IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jijerp/v20y2023i3p2362-d1049997.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

The Influence of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Social Anxiety: A Systematic Review

Author

Listed:
  • Reuben Kindred

    (Department of Psychological Sciences, Swinburne University of Technology, John St, Hawthorn, VIC 3122, Australia)

  • Glen W. Bates

    (Department of Psychological Sciences, Swinburne University of Technology, John St, Hawthorn, VIC 3122, Australia)

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in negative mental health outcomes throughout the world, and its impact on social interactions and relationships is likely to be evident in problematic social anxiety. This systematic review qualitatively synthesized data from studies that have reported on the effects of the pandemic on social anxiety. A systematic search of Web of Science Core Collection, Embase, PsychINFO, Scopus, EBSCOhost, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, and Proquest Central—Dissertations and Theses was conducted, with thirty-three studies meeting the inclusion criteria. The results suggest that social anxiety has been heightened in the general population due to the pandemic, with women and low-income earners being especially vulnerable. Other contributing factors include impaired coping strategies, lower socio-emotional well-being, limited support networks, and contraction of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. Individuals with a Social Anxiety Disorder diagnosis may be at risk of a deterioration of mental health in general. Limitations of the literature reviewed include the predominance of cross-sectional study designs, which limit causal inferences are limited. Additionally, associations may be inflated as many studies have not accounted for mediating variables. Taken together, the research suggests that social anxiety, either pre-pandemic or arising due to the pandemic environment, has contributed to a variety of negative mental health outcomes related to social anxiety.

Suggested Citation

  • Reuben Kindred & Glen W. Bates, 2023. "The Influence of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Social Anxiety: A Systematic Review," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(3), pages 1-28, January.
  • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:20:y:2023:i:3:p:2362-:d:1049997
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/20/3/2362/pdf
    Download Restriction: no

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/20/3/2362/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Viechtbauer, Wolfgang, 2010. "Conducting Meta-Analyses in R with the metafor Package," Journal of Statistical Software, Foundation for Open Access Statistics, vol. 36(i03).
    2. Serina Chang & Emma Pierson & Pang Wei Koh & Jaline Gerardin & Beth Redbird & David Grusky & Jure Leskovec, 2021. "Mobility network models of COVID-19 explain inequities and inform reopening," Nature, Nature, vol. 589(7840), pages 82-87, January.
    3. Quintana-Domeque Climent & Proto Eugenio, 2022. "On the Persistence of Mental Health Deterioration during the COVID-19 Pandemic by Sex and Ethnicity in the UK: Evidence from Understanding Society," The B.E. Journal of Economic Analysis & Policy, De Gruyter, vol. 22(2), pages 361-372, April.
    4. Finiki Nearchou & Clodagh Flinn & Rachel Niland & Sheena Siva Subramaniam & Eilis Hennessy, 2020. "Exploring the Impact of COVID-19 on Mental Health Outcomes in Children and Adolescents: A Systematic Review," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(22), pages 1-19, November.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Elena Ioana Iconaru & Emilian Tarcau & Manuela Mihaela Ciucurel & Liviu Draghici & Constantin Ciucurel, 2023. "The Relationship between Physical Activity Level and Sociodemographic Factors in Romanian Adults in the Post-COVID-19 Pandemic Period," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(18), pages 1-17, September.
    2. Josefina Nuñez Sahr & Angela M. Parcesepe & William You & Denis Nash & Kate Penrose & Milton Leonard Wainberg & Subha Balasubramanian & Bai Xi Jasmine Chan & Rachael Piltch-Loeb, 2024. "Exploring COVID-19 Vaccine Decision Making: Insights from ‘One-Shot Wonders’ and ‘Booster Enthusiasts’," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 21(8), pages 1-17, August.
    3. Nareerut Pudpong & Sataporn Julchoo & Pigunkaew Sinam & Sonvanee Uansri & Watinee Kunpeuk & Rapeepong Suphanchaimat, 2023. "Self-Reported Anxiety and Depression among Parents of Primary School Children during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Thailand, 2022," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(9), pages 1-12, April.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Whitney S Beck & Ed K Hall, 2018. "Confounding factors in algal phosphorus limitation experiments," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 13(10), pages 1-19, October.
    2. Xindong Xue & W. Robert Reed & Robbie C.M. van Aert, 2022. "Social Capital and Economic Growth: A Meta-Analysis," Working Papers in Economics 22/20, University of Canterbury, Department of Economics and Finance.
    3. Bart Verkuil & Serpil Atasayi & Marc L Molendijk, 2015. "Workplace Bullying and Mental Health: A Meta-Analysis on Cross-Sectional and Longitudinal Data," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 10(8), pages 1-16, August.
    4. Francesca Pilotto & Ingolf Kühn & Rita Adrian & Renate Alber & Audrey Alignier & Christopher Andrews & Jaana Bäck & Luc Barbaro & Deborah Beaumont & Natalie Beenaerts & Sue Benham & David S. Boukal & , 2020. "Meta-analysis of multidecadal biodiversity trends in Europe," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 11(1), pages 1-11, December.
    5. Eugenio Valdano & Davide Colombi & Chiara Poletto & Vittoria Colizza, 2023. "Epidemic graph diagrams as analytics for epidemic control in the data-rich era," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 14(1), pages 1-11, December.
    6. repec:cup:judgdm:v:15:y:2020:i:6:p:972-988 is not listed on IDEAS
    7. Jonas Schmidt & Tammo H. A. Bijmolt, 2020. "Accurately measuring willingness to pay for consumer goods: a meta-analysis of the hypothetical bias," Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, Springer, vol. 48(3), pages 499-518, May.
    8. Mario Herberz & Tobias Brosch & Ulf J. J. Hahnel, 2020. "Kilo what? Default units increase value sensitivity in joint evaluations of energy efficiency," Judgment and Decision Making, Society for Judgment and Decision Making, vol. 15(6), pages 972-988, November.
    9. Piers Steel & Sjoerd Beugelsdijk & Herman Aguinis, 2021. "The anatomy of an award-winning meta-analysis: Recommendations for authors, reviewers, and readers of meta-analytic reviews," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 52(1), pages 23-44, February.
    10. Kevin Lanza & Casey P. Durand & Melody Alcazar & Sierra Ehlers & Kai Zhang & Harold W. Kohl, 2021. "School Parks as a Community Health Resource: Use of Joint-Use Parks by Children before and during COVID-19 Pandemic," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(17), pages 1-14, September.
    11. Augusteijn, Hilde Elisabeth Maria & van Aert, Robbie Cornelis Maria & van Assen, Marcel A. L. M., 2021. "Posterior Probabilities of Effect Sizes and Heterogeneity in Meta-Analysis: An Intuitive Approach of Dealing with Publication Bias," OSF Preprints avkgj, Center for Open Science.
    12. Georgiou, George K. & Guo, Kan & Naveenkumar, Nithya & Vieira, Ana Paula Alves & Das, J.P., 2020. "PASS theory of intelligence and academic achievement: A meta-analytic review," Intelligence, Elsevier, vol. 79(C).
    13. Lu, Xuefei & Borgonovo, Emanuele, 2023. "Global sensitivity analysis in epidemiological modeling," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 304(1), pages 9-24.
    14. Geller, Susann & Wilhelm, Oliver & Wacker, Jan & Hamm, Alfons & Hildebrandt, Andrea, 2017. "Associations of the COMT Val158Met polymorphism with working memory and intelligence – A review and meta-analysis," Intelligence, Elsevier, vol. 65(C), pages 75-92.
    15. Gignac, Gilles E. & Bates, Timothy C., 2017. "Brain volume and intelligence: The moderating role of intelligence measurement quality," Intelligence, Elsevier, vol. 64(C), pages 18-29.
    16. Stephan Kambach & Ingolf Kühn & Bastien Castagneyrol & Helge Bruelheide, 2016. "The Impact of Tree Diversity on Different Aspects of Insect Herbivory along a Global Temperature Gradient - A Meta-Analysis," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 11(11), pages 1-14, November.
    17. Julian Packheiser & Helena Hartmann & Kelly Fredriksen & Valeria Gazzola & Christian Keysers & Frédéric Michon, 2024. "A systematic review and multivariate meta-analysis of the physical and mental health benefits of touch interventions," Nature Human Behaviour, Nature, vol. 8(6), pages 1088-1107, June.
    18. Nan Wang & Yuxiang Luan & Rui Ma, 2024. "Detecting causal relationships between work motivation and job performance: a meta-analytic review of cross-lagged studies," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 11(1), pages 1-10, December.
    19. repec:cup:judgdm:v:14:y:2019:i:3:p:234-279 is not listed on IDEAS
    20. Senlin Zhou & Yunpeng Wu & Xizheng Xu, 2023. "Linking Cognitive Reappraisal and Expressive Suppression to Mindfulness: A Three-Level Meta-Analysis," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(2), pages 1-16, January.
    21. Mahesh Shumsher Rughooputh & Rui Zeng & Ying Yao, 2015. "Protein Diet Restriction Slows Chronic Kidney Disease Progression in Non-Diabetic and in Type 1 Diabetic Patients, but Not in Type 2 Diabetic Patients: A Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials ," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 10(12), pages 1-17, December.
    22. de la Cruz, Vera Ysabel V. & Tantriani, & Cheng, Weiguo & Tawaraya, Keitaro, 2023. "Yield gap between organic and conventional farming systems across climate types and sub-types: A meta-analysis," Agricultural Systems, Elsevier, vol. 211(C).

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:20:y:2023:i:3:p:2362-:d:1049997. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.