The Effects of Social Anxiety on Subjective Well-Being among Adolescents: The Mediating Roles of Mindfulness and Loneliness

Abstract

Adolescence is an important period characterized by various transitions and changes. Experiencing social anxiety is a growing phenomenon among adolescents and affects their well-being and mental health. It is necessary to pay attention and understand the factors related to social anxiety to improve the subjective well-being of adolescents. The current study aimed to examine the mediating roles of mindfulness and loneliness in the association between social anxiety and subjective well-being among adolescents. Social Anxiety Scale for Adolescents, Mindful Attention Awareness Scale Adolescent Form, UCLA Loneliness Scale Short Form, Adolescent Subjective Well Being Scale and General Information Form were used to collect data. 543 Turkish adolescents (53.6% female) participated in the study. The age range of the participants was 15 to 18 years, with a mean age of 16.45 years (SD=1.10). The results demonstrated that social anxiety was negatively associated with mindfulness and subjective well-being, and positively associated with loneliness. It has been determined that social anxiety had an indirect effect on subjective well-being through mindfulness and loneliness. Mindfulness mitigated the adverse impacts of social anxiety on subjective well-being whereas loneliness exacerbated this association. These results have shown that adolescents with high levels of social anxiety have lower mindfulness and higher loneliness, which in turn lead to less subjective well-being. The findings of the current study suggest that this situation may be ameliorable with mindfulness-based and loneliness-based interventions.