Gender Differences in Social Anxiety Symptoms: A novel use of two self-report measures in a Finnish Sample

Abstract

Background: Social anxiety disorder (SAD) is characterized by a fear of humiliation and/or embarrassment in social situations, which may lead to significant avoidance and distress. A preponderance of research suggests that the prevalence of SAD is higher in females than in males and that gender differences of SAD varies cross-culturally. According to numerous studies, attention to the diagnosis and adequate assessment of anxiety disorders in primary care settings is lacking. A deficiency of easily administered well-validated diagnostic tools and limited time for thorough (i.e., structured clinical interview) evaluation may contribute to the above finding. Procedure: Our principal aims were two-fold: 1) to focus on emergent gender differences in self- reported social anxiety (SA) symptoms, and 2) to evaluate newly translated Finnish versions of the Social Phobia and Anxiety Inventory (SPAI) and Brief Fear of Negative Evaluation Scale -Straightforward Items (BFNE-S) in a general Finnish parent sample (N = 597). Results and Conclusions: Results from our sample using the SPAI estimated that 6.7% of females and 5.0% of males met criteria for a probable diagnosis of SAD. Non socially-anxious females scored significantly higher than did their male counterparts on social interaction and focus of attention fears, whereas socially-anxious males scored higher than socially-anxious females on behavioural avoidance. The SPAI and BFNE-S are useful additions to Finnish screening tools to detect SA symptoms in adults.