Do stigma and level of social anxiety predict adolescents' help-seeking intentions for social anxiety disorder?

BACKGROUND

Many adolescents meeting diagnostic criteria for social anxiety disorder (SAD) do not seek help or access timely professional supports. The current study investigated two hypothesized barriers to adolescents' seeking help for SAD: stigma and SAD symptoms.

METHOD: Three hundred fifteen adolescents (52% female; mean age = 14.85 years) read a vignette describing a hypothetical peer with symptoms of SAD and completed measures of their own help-seeking intentions, SAD symptoms, stigma awareness and agreement.

RESULTS

The majority of adolescents reported that the vignette character needed help. Adolescents with more SAD symptoms, and those with greater stigma awareness, were less likely to indicate they would seek help from an adult they know (e.g., parent or teacher) for similar symptoms.

CONCLUSIONS

Both SAD symptoms and perceptions of societal stigma may act as barriers to help-seeking for young people indicating the importance of intervention with young people, and the adults with whom they interact regularly.