Cyber Addiction and the Role of Social Anxiety Disorders among College-Going Students of the Central Kashmir: A Cross-Sectional Study

Abstract

Background: Social anxiety disorder is a common mental health disorder which effects the young generation of adolescents and it is often associated with comorbidities such as depression, suicide ideation, and substance abuse disorder. Cyber addiction is a significant mental health problem among college-going students. The aim of this study was to estimate the prevalence of social anxiety in adolescents and to explore its correlation with Internet usage among college-going students of the central part of Kashmir. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 220 undergraduate college-going students of the central part of Kashmir to screen for social anxiety and social phobia using a Social Interaction Anxiety Scale a validated instrument, and Young’s Internet Addiction Scale was used for measuring Internet addiction. Participants of the study were categorized according to the severity of anxiety and social phobia obtained and later compared with their Internet addiction behaviors. Results: The results of the study revealed that cyber addiction was seen among 93.18% of study participants. The prevalence of social anxiety and social phobia was estimated to be 25.0% and 35.90%. Cyber addiction was positively correlated with social anxiety score (Pearson correlation = 0.994, P < 0.001). Conclusion: More than 93.18% of participants had cyber addiction; the majority had mild-to-moderate cyber addiction. Social anxiety was present in more than one-third of the students and social anxiety disorder was found to be associated with cyber addiction among college-going students.