Social Anxiety Disorder: One of The Key Factors To A Student's Poor Academic Performance
Social Anxiety Disorder: One of The Key Factors To A Student's Poor Academic Performance
Social Anxiety Disorder: One of The Key Factors To A Student's Poor Academic Performance
A Research Proposal
In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements in
Communication Skills 2
Submitted to:
Submitted by:
Barrameda, Jemuel M.
Barrera, Ravin Jay S.
Camu, Tomas S., III
CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION
Have you ever felt like your heartbeat is racing and you’re running out of breathe
whenever you are in front of a large crowd? Or have you found yourself sweating hard
and your voice cracking whenever you are asked to talk in a group, even though you
are very much familiar of the topic being discussed? Or is it a constant occurrence to
you’ve been asked to simply introduce your name during the first day of classes? That,
social phobia.
Social anxiety disorder (SAD) is the incontrollable fear of social situations and
In school setting, where everyone is engaged to group works, graded recitation, class
reporting, or, generally, where class participation is compulsory – it can be denied that
social interaction is inevitable and so the inability to control your fear as such greatly
affect one’s performance. The sad truth, at times, is that some of those affected with the
said disorder are not really slow-learners or poor academically – their high scores in
quizzes, projects and exams assert to this claim. For this reason, that this study has
been pushed through –not just to simply inform the readers of the existence of this
prevalence, yet, oftentimes, neglected anxiety; but, to give more information on how
tragic it is when it attacks its victims, especially that it involves different factors like
chemical imbalances inside one’s brain. The ways on how to alleviate it, if not put an
end to it, by simply using the newly- accepted strategy called Cognitive Behavioral
Intervention (CBI) or the inner-speech technique and the combined effort from the
our bodies whenever we feel uneasiness in certain social situations is to learn that it has
a name: Anxiety. According to the study done by Ader and Ertkin (2010), there are facts
that we should be fully aware of to notify our mind of something we might be missing:
Fact no.1: Anxiety is normal and adaptive because it helps us prepare for danger (for
instance, our heart beats faster to pump blood to our muscles so we have the energy to
run away or fight off danger). Therefore, the goal is to learn to manage anxiety, not
eliminate it; Fact no. 2: Anxiety can become a problem when our body tells us that
In point of fact, most people do feel anxious when they have to speak in front of
a large group. Social anxiety becomes a problem when it becomes quite distressing
and starts getting in the way of your ability to function and enjoy life.
The Anxiety and Depression Association of America has determined the most
common distinctive attribute of social anxiety as the ardent anxiety or fear of being
performances. Sadly, it is the third largest mental health care problem in the world
today based on the Social Anxiety Association. In the US alone, the latest government
epidemiological data show social anxiety affects about 7% of the population at any
given time. The lifetime prevalence rate (i.e., the chances of developing social anxiety
disorder at any time during the lifespan) stands slightly above 13%. In one survey, SAD
affects approximately 15 million American adults and is the second most commonly
diagnosed anxiety disorder following specific phobia. The average age of onset for
social anxiety disorder is during the teenage years. Although individuals diagnosed with
note that this disorder is not simply shyness that has been inappropriately given medical
attention. It is a pervasive disorder and causes anxiety and fear in most all areas of a
A detailed description can be found from the write ups of Newcastle' North
Tyneside & Northumberland Mental Health NHS Trust: Department of Design and
Communication (2001) regarding social anxiety vis-a-vis shyness vis-à-vis panic attack.
These three are inseparable, if not interdependent to one another. They have irrefutable
similarities, but they have irrevocable differences as well. The following definitions
exemplify:
point at which the affected person often avoids these situations entirely, or
attack usually happen suddenly, peak within 10 minutes and then subside.
However, some attacks may last longer or may occur in succession, making it
In the book entitled “Overcoming Social Anxiety and Shyness” by Butler (1999),
disorder. Butler emphasized that shyness and social anxiety disorder are two different
things. As quoted: “Shyness is a personality trait. Many people who are shy do not have
the negative emotions and feelings that accompany social anxiety disorder. They live a
normal life, and do not view shyness as a negative trait. While many people with social
anxiety disorder are shy, shyness is not a pre-requisite for social anxiety disorder.”
To contest with the two, let us include the conventional definition of panic attack
disorder#): “Panic disorder can occur with or without agoraphobia, or the fear of
experiencing panic attack symptoms in a situation that feels either physically difficult or
emotionally embarrassing to escape from. A person with panic disorder often fears
the physical symptoms of panic attacks, believing that they may have a medical issue
causing their discomfort. Over time, the person may feel more secure from these attacks
home.”
Emotional Symptoms correlated to Triggering Situations
Dr. Thomas Richards of the Social Anxiety Institute indicated how people with
social anxiety react to different situations where they usually experience significant
7. Feeling insecure and out of place in social situations ("I don’t know what to say.")
automatic negative emotional cycles, racing heart, blushing, excessive sweating, dry
throat and mouth, trembling, and muscle twitches. In severe situations, people can
develop a dysmorphia concerning part of their body (usually the face) in which they
perceive themselves irrationally and negatively. Constant, intense anxiety (fear) is the
2018) concerned itself to the most conspicuous perceptions of other individuals to those
“Oftentimes, people with social anxiety are seen by others as being shy, quiet,
backward, withdrawn, inhibited, unfriendly, nervous, aloof, and disinterested.
Paradoxically, people with social anxiety want to make friends, be included in groups,
and be involved and engaged in social interactions. But having social anxiety prevents
people from being able to do the things they want to do. Although people with social
anxiety want to be friendly, open, and sociable, it is fear (anxiety) that holds them back.
Because of anxiety, our faces may "freeze," we may be unable to smile, and we tend to
be too shy and inhibited. Other people see this, incorrectly, as being unfriendly, aloof,
and sometimes even arrogant. They read our faces and evaluate us negatively
because they cannot see inside us. They cannot see our feelings or read our
thoughts. They cannot tell we have anxiety. They judge us on how we act and while
we still have social anxiety, we usually act unfriendly or standoffish even though we
are really not like that. It is important to remember that they are not reacting negatively
to us as individuals but to how we are behaving at that specific time.”
Beauchemin and Patterson (2008) dwells on the clinical aspects of this matter. Their
study divulged on how the people with social anxiety typically know that their anxiety is
irrational, is not based on fact, and does not make rational sense. Nevertheless, they
indicated that thoughts and feelings of anxiety persist and are chronic (i.e., show no
As said earlier, the average age of onset for social anxiety disorder is during the
teenage years and could be said has already been developed from unattended or
specialists in human we, the researchers believed that it would be easier for us to
discuss about the role of school in this trying times phase of the young victims. We can
enumerate their fight against this dilemma into two main genres:
intense fear, racing heart, turning red or blushing, excessive sweating, dry throat and
mouth, trembling (fear of picking up a glass of water or using utensils to eat), swallowing
with difficulty, and muscle twitches, particularly around the face and neck.
Other physical symptoms, which often accompany the intense stress of social
anxiety disorder, are difficulty speaking and nausea or other stomach discomfort, sleep
problems and indigestion. These manifestations can most of the times seen during a
As the common adage goes: “You are what you think” – we couldn’t ignore the
role of our mind in this disorder. Indeed, it might have started from a single thought and
just have grown into more complicated ones. We should not limit the discussion that
way because, admit it or not, the listed physiological of physical visible symptoms
heighten the fear of disapproval. By doing so, the affected ones, themselves, can
become an additional focus of fear, creating a vicious cycle: as people with social
anxiety disorder worry about experiencing these symptoms, the greater their chances
are of developing them. Irrational fears and self-consciousness are two of the typical
Rather, some anxiety is rooted in specific, irrational fears. If the fear starts to be
While some types of anxiety manifest themselves more in social situations. Self-
consciousness in a group is one sign of an anxiety disorder. If you find that you have
extreme doubt in everyday activities like making small talk at a party or eating and
drinking with a group of people, you might be experiencing the symptoms of a social
anxiety disorder. In school, students fail to interact well with their classmates or
groupmates due to stress on how to present their ideas well, in short, themselves.
Discrimination influences the daily life of its victims. Suicide rates is getting higher
and it has been argued that this in part is due to the negative outcomes of prejudice,
Children who are socially anxious become targets of bullies for a number of
reasons. Specifically, bullies tend to target children who exhibit the following:
Lack assertiveness
Children who have few friends are unable to defend themselves and those
victim; the aggressor is also a victim, often feeling insecure and having social
relationship problems. In addition to the aggressor and the victim, there are the
witnesses to this situation, who remain silent as they are afraid to become the next
victim and, for this reason, also turn into aggressors at times.
Though stereotypes are not always and inevitably activated when we encounter
gatherings, there are times that we can and we do get past them, although doing so
One primary truth that we have to learn is that social anxiety is a treatable
those with social anxiety. Ader, E., & Erktin, E. (2010) in their entry journal with a
high-stakes tests” oriented the readers of one form of therapy that has shown to be
effective at treating the condition. They refer to cognitive behavioral therapy, in which
the therapist and the person in treatment work together to develop strategies to
overcome anxiety and establish new skills for the individual to continue to address the
condition individually. Cognitive restructuring, during which the person in treatment
works to identify negative beliefs in order to combat them, is often a helpful way for a
person to examine the inner self and any beliefs that may contribute to social anxiety.
Social skills training, still according to the duo, may also take place in therapy,
giving those in treatment stronger conversation and listening skills as well as practice
with assertiveness.
Exposure to both social situations that a person tends to avoid (in vivo
exposure) and disliked sensations that occur as a result of one's anxiety (interceptive
exposure) may also be helpful in reducing social anxiety. When one is frequently
an antidepressant, along with therapy. However, medication has been shown to not be
To be able to meet this goal of student’s improvement, if not abrupt change in his
or her behaviour, the given partnership is highly advised:
b.1 Teacher- involvement in the process, genuine concern to the betterment of the
student with SAD
A good read that we could say has stated the above matter intricately is the article
entry from Vantage Point: Behavioral Health and Trauma Healing. Let me cite a
”Teachers are expected to do so much with students in only six hours a day. It
would be an easy job if all they had to do was teach the subject matter and go home.
But their jobs are far greater.
Teachers can take steps in their classroom to help recognize mental health
issues in students.
They can educate themselves and others on the symptoms of mental health
issues, provide a safe environment, encourage good health, and help students access
mental health resources. PBS News explains that students spend six or more hours a
day at school and it is inevitable that teachers will encounter the mental health issues of
students.
If a student is dealing with social anxiety, it may be harder for them to participate
in a class group discussion. If a student has an eating disorder, they will not feel
comfortable during the class food party. If a student has been through a trauma such as
sexual abuse the night before, they are certainly not going to care how to solve word
problems in math. Teachers can make a difference just by recognizing signs and
symptoms students are exhibiting.”
For starters, they advised to implement a program like the "FRIENDS" group
program in your classroom or school. This program is designed to prevent anxiety and
Another good strategy for the teacher that could help younger children is to read
storybooks about shyness, self-esteem and bullying. For older children, read novels or
Behavioral Intervention that deals with the simultaneous roles of the teacher and
students. The role of the teacher is to encourage and inspire the student to admit that
he or she has something to do with the problems, though we cannot set aside the role
of chemicals imbalances in our brains from where the inner speech technique is
expected to work. This strategy instills in the students the mindset that they are the
The student with SAD may require social skills training or instruction in relaxation
prepared by the school management, handed down to the designated instructors will be
put into waste if the student is not willing to cooperate. The students and the teachers
should work hand- in-hand to achieve a common goal – the student’s freedom from the
Some kids' social and academic problems sprung from specific mental disorders,
including SAD. According to substantial data, the family plays a very vital role in the
from a low-income family but attends a school with many wealthier students. It may help
to remind the child that most of the things wealthier people buy their kids are trivial in
importance: Does a designer label on your jeans' butt really matter? Really worth 1000
versus a 50 pair?" That can teach values that many wealthy parents only wish they had
taught their children who grew up to be obscenely materialistic, valuing the showy over
Family member's malaise. Many kids are sad because their parents
fight, divorce, or are chronically ill. Some kids blame themselves for the problem. Key is
in the obvious: persistently but lovingly reminding the child that it is not his/her fault.
Even high achievers worry they're not good enough. Few kids can be the best in
their class in even one thing, let alone everything. And half of students, by definition, are
below average. Some suppressed feelings about that, which may be healthy given the
difficulty of rising from academically below-average to above-average. But for the child
who is continually plagued by their academic inferiority despite effort, a parent's best
approach might be to offer modest help with homework, perhaps a tutor, and trying to
ensure the child's teacher each year is kind and good with struggling kids.
The wise parent will observe the child, for example, during recess, to see why s/he is
not making good friends. The parent might even query popular, kind-hearted kids in the
class to get candid feedback about the child. Of course, parents should try to
encourage good friendships by inviting desirable kids home and on family outings.
Problems arising
Most teachers do not claim to be experts in the field of mental health and they
will most likely say this is one area that they need improvement.
One specific area of improvement for teachers is their level of training they
receive regarding mental health disabilities among students. Fortunately, teachers have
There are many things teachers can learn about mental health among students.
Recognize the difference between bad behavior and mental health issue. Recognize
warning signs. Connect the student to resources. Work with parents. By doing so,
teachers can help the students feel welcome and encourage them to learn, help parents
feel confident in where they are sending their child for a proper education, and the
teacher to feel confident in how to handle children with problems. It is not okay for a
teacher to call student names, to constantly punish one kid for a particular behaviour
that all kids may be doing, or for a teacher to neglect a child because he or she does
With regards to the students, it would be such a pill if the affected ones would not
The part of the parents in this honing procedure should also be very clear. They
should be the backup their kids to help them make feel that they are truly understood
and not an outcaste especially in comparison with their siblings. An article in Reader’s
Digest stated that sibling’s rivalry added to adult depression that is one of the causes of
SAD if not attended at its early stage. Another lapse of the parents or siblings are the
hesitation to approach their loved ones who are suffering the disorder. Either they
consider them as just acting out or they are too self-absorbed and find no time to sit with
them, to talk thinks out, to let them confide to them and air their sentiments. The moral
and emotional support from the family could make a promising start of a new phase of
life for them, if only the formal got a good grasp of the real condition of the affected
ones.
Once we have been empathic to children, and they know we have heard their
worries, we can help them to calm themselves down. One way to do this is by helping
them slow their breathing. Encouraging children to take three long, slow deep breaths,
can be a simple way of changing their physical tension and pattern of brain
activity. Practising breathing slowly when they are not worried first is best, then we can
help them do it while worried.
We can also help children to calm themselves by having a list of calm words
they can use. Gently ask children to use sentences like “I can cope”, “This is not
terrible” and “I’m okay”. It is often useful to prepare these calm words in advance by
writing them down. For some children, writing out some reasons why they can cope, and
some evidence for why things are not terrible can be very useful.
You might like to take some time with your worried child to write down a list of
these reasons. For example, “five reasons why I can cope when someone says
something mean”, “5 reasons why it is not terrible if I don’t understand my homework” or
“5 reasons why I will be okay going into school by myself”. Then in the worried
situation, ask the child to say “I’m okay” and think about the list.
We need to help worried children to solve problems and make plans
themselves.
When parents or adults give lots of advice or suggestions to kids it means they
don’t have the opportunity to solve problems themselves. Sometimes worried kids get
more and more hooked on advice and reassurance from others.
Instead of giving advice, when children tell us they are worried or sad about
something, our response – once we have expressed care and concern – should be to
ask a question which helps them think. Helpful questions might be: “what do you think
might work?”, “what might make this a little better?”, “what do you think your options
are”, “what do you think would help?” and so on.
Children will often not have the answers the first time we ask them these
questions, but with coaching (“do you think THIS or THIS might be better?”) and
practise they will improve, and learn important skills.
CHAPTER 3
METHODOLOGY
Participants
year 2018 covering random senior high and college students at a small private
university (total student population: >1000) in Manila, the Philippines. Roughly half of
the 20 classes will be surveyed in the middle of Term 1 and the other half in the middle
of Term 2. A total of 300 Filipino students anonymously will complete the 10-page self-
for the purpose of this report. Our sample represents about 15% of the university’s total
Measures
variable. The USDI, developed by Khawaja & Kelly, measures the academic
motivation to study) (Table 1). Statements have score-bearing response options ranging
from “none at all” (1) to “all the time” (5). The USDI has a high level of internal
consistency.
Ethical standards
The study should be approved by the ethics review committee of the university.
After evaluating the contents of the survey instrument, the Committee should assess
that the study would have no known risk to research participants. Verbal consent will be
obtained; however, students will be informed that they could decline participation and
that they could stop completing the questionnaire if they wished to. The benefits of the
study (i.e., findings would be used to draw attention towards mental health in Filipino
students) will especially stressed in order to trigger a sense of social responsibility and
will be written on the cover page of the survey instrument that was administered. On the
same cover page, we will also include our full names and contact numbers in which we
enjoined students to ask us questions about the study and related matters.
We will not seek the consent of the students’ parents anymore. The survey will
focus on real-life conditions (e.g., feeling uneasy in social situations, nausea, trembling
hands, cracking voice) which are normally shared between and among Filipino
the topic of the study as personally acceptable, once they’ve felt they would not be
asking their parents for permission should they decide to discuss it. The foregoing
ethical standards, especially with respect to studies with no known harmful risks and the
waiving of a signed certification of consent, will be in line with the practices of most
Procedure
We will conduct the research using the cases we find online during our free time.
Each case has its importance and rationale, and the anonymity and confidentiality of the
study. Each case will be studied properly and reached its conclusion.
Analysis
characteristics. The characteristics that were statistically significantly related with higher
levels of anxiety symptoms were further examined at the sub-scale levels. The analysis
CONCLUSION
university students. These initial findings can help guide the development of a campus-
symptoms, that more often than not results in depression, poor academic performance,
dropping out and sadly, suicide in students -- lifestyle and factors related to financial
condition and parental and peer relationships are important considerations for
identifying those at greater risk. More researches are needed in building additional local
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