Age and Sex Differences for Anxiety in Relation to Family Size, Birth Order, and Religiosity among Kuwaiti Adolescents

Abstract

Differences in rated anxiety among 2,453 boys ( n = 1,229) and girls ( n = 1,224), Kuwaiti secondary school students, were reported for five age groups from 14 to 18 years. For girls at all ages but 14 years, mean rated anxiety was significantly higher than the means for the boys. Mean anxiety scores increased across age groups from 14 to 18 years. Not all comparisons between age groups with the same sex, however, were significant. Analysis showed nonsignificant correlations for anxiety with both family size and number of siblings, but significant and positive correlations for anxiety with birth order were found for boys ( r = .10, p < .01) and girls ( r = .06, p < .05). The predictive and practical values of these very small correlations are negligible, being significant merely because N is so large. Pearson correlations between anxiety and self-rating of religiosity were –.22 and –.22 ( p < .01) for boys and girls, respectively. This result was interpreted in the light of high intrinsic religious orientation among Kuwaitis. In the Islam proper, multiple practices are said to relieve anxiety.