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

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.

Identiferoai:union.ndltd.org:DRESDEN/oai:qucosa:de:qucosa:25389
Date January 1999
CreatorsWittchen, Hans-Ulrich, Stein, Murray B., Kessler, Ronald C.
PublisherCambridge University Press
Source SetsHochschulschriftenserver (HSSS) der SLUB Dresden
LanguageEnglish
Detected LanguageEnglish
Typedoc-type:article, info:eu-repo/semantics/article, doc-type:Text
SourcePsychological Medicine, 29 (1999) Nr. 2, S. 309-323, ISSN: 0033-2917
Rightsinfo:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess
Relation0033-2917

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