Universal-based prevention of syndromal and subsyndromal social anxiety: A randomized controlled study.

This article reports results from a universal preventive program aimed at (a) reducing social anxiety and (b) preventing the development of syndromal social anxiety among a population-based sample of older children and young adolescents during a 1-year period. Pupils (N = 1,748) from 2 counties were cluster randomized to either an intervention or a control condition. In the intervention condition, the Norwegian Universal Preventive Program for Social Anxiety (NUPP-SA)-which educates pupils, parents/guardians, teachers/school staff, and county health workers-was administered. The results indicate that NUPP-SA had a significant specific intervention effect for reducing social anxiety in the total sample as well as among the syndromal subjects. Further, significantly fewer subjects from the intervention county developed syndromal social anxiety during the 1-year period, thus showing a prevention effect. The results demonstrate the value of an intervention specifically aimed at reducing social anxiety and preventing the development of syndromal social anxiety among young people.