Social fears and social phobia in a community sample of adolescents and young adults: prevalence, risk factors and co-morbidity

Abstract

Background: The paper describes prevalence, impairments, patterns of co-morbidity and other correlates of DSM-IV social phobia in adolescents and young adults, separating generalized and non-generalized social phobics.

Methods: Data are derived from the baseline investigation of the Early Developmental Stages of Psychopathology Study (EDSP), a prospective longitudinal community study of 3021 subjects, aged 14-24. Diagnoses were based on the DSM-IV algorithms of an expanded version of the Composite International Diagnostic Interview.

Results: Lifetime prevalence of DSM-IV/CIDI social phobia was 9.5% in females and 4.9% in males, with about one-third being classified as generalized social phobics. Twelve-month prevalence was only slightly lower, indicating considerable persistence. Respondents with generalized social phobia reported an earlier age of onset, higher symptom persistence, more co-morbidity, more severe impairments, higher treatment rates and indicated more frequently a parental history of mental disorders than respondents with non-generalized social phobia.

Conclusions: History of DSM-IV social phobia was found to be quite prevalent in 14-24 year-olds. The generalized subtype of social phobia was found to have different correlates and to be considerably more persistent, impairing and co-morbid than non-generalized social phobia. Although generalized social phobics are more likely than non-generalized social phobics to receive mental health treatments, the treatment rate in this sample was low despite the fact that mental health services are free in Germany.