Title: : Self-Esteem and Loneliness: How it Correlates with Adolescents’ Social Anxiety

INTRODUCTION

Research questions

 This research study aims to answer the following questions:

1. Is there an association between fear of negative evaluation and loneliness?
2. Is there an association between fear of negative evaluation and self-esteem?
3. Is there an association between social avoidance and loneliness?
4. Is there an association between social avoidance and self-esteem?

Review of Literature

 Social Anxiety

- Social anxiety is characterized by a prominent fear of one or more social situations in which
the person is exposed to unfamiliar others or possible scrutiny by others (American
Psychiatric Association, 2013).
- Adolescence is a challenging period for individuals (Collins and Steinberg 2007).
- Data in clinical settings indicate that it is the anxiety disorder most commonly diagnosed in
adolescents (Albano et al., 1995).
- Social anxiety encompasses the experience of fear of and distress about social situations,
avoidance of social situations, and a fear of provoking negative evaluations from others.
(Herbert, Rheingold & Brandsma, 2010)

 Fear of Negative Evaluation

- The fear of others’ critical judgments in social situations is a core feature of social anxiety
disorder (Johnson & Anderson, 2014).

 Social Avoidance

- Avoidant behaviour is crucial in social anxiety and social phobia, being a major factor in the
maintenance of anxiety (Rinck, et al., 2010).

 Loneliness

- In general, loneliness peaks during adolescence (Qualter et al., 2015).

- Social anxiety has been found to be a predictor of loneliness especially during the
mentioned age group. (Mahon et al. 2006; Lim et al. 2016).
- Loneliness is found to be a potential antecedent to emerging mental health symptoms.

 Self-esteem

- Social anxiety can be caused by low self-esteem that may even lead to social anxiety
disorder (Cuncic, 2020).
 - Linear Regression Analysis showed that self-esteem is related to fear of negative evaluation
and social anxiety (Khanam & Moghal, 2012).

Hypothesis

 Null Hypothesis
- Across the population sample of UPV students, there is no significant correlation between:
a. Fear of negative evaluation and loneliness;
b. Fear of negative evaluation and self-esteem;
c. Social avoidance and loneliness; and
d. Social avoidance and self-esteem.
 Alternative Hypothesis

- Across the population sample of UPV students, there is a positive correlation between:
a. Fear of negative evaluation and loneliness;
b. Fear of negative evaluation and self-esteem;
c. Social avoidance and loneliness;
d. Social avoidance and self-esteem.

- Across the population sample of UPV students, there is a negative correlation between:
a. Fear of negative evaluation and loneliness:
b. Fear of negative evaluation and self-esteem:
c. Social avoidance and loneliness; and
d. Social avoidance and self-esteem.

REFERENCES

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 American Psychological Association. (2013). APA Dictionary of Psychology: Social Anxiety.
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 Collins, W. A. & Steinberg, L. (2007). Adolescent development in interpersonal context.
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DOI: 10.1080/02699930903309268