Abstract
Anxiety in modern day has become an issue that seems apparently common among individuals. It has also been noted that there is an increasing tendency of some individuals and groups being / or feeling more prone to anxiety than others. While the topic has raised heated debate among psychiatrists and psychologists alike, there seems to be an inclination from various professionals towards specific areas of anxiety. Dealing with anxiety as a topic is an issue that causes one to be conscious of an individual’s feeling of anxiety. For this reason, it is paramount to take a closer look at prevailing issues that are raised with respect to anxiety. In line with this, it is also important to shed some light on some reasons that are raised and make necessary synthesis of these aspects. Necessary recommendations will also be included in the research paper while drawing conclusion from the issues discussed. In whatever the case and reason, there is overwhelming evidence of the impact of anxiety on various facets of life regardless of age and sex of individuals who experience it.
Anxiety
Anxiety is one of the most experienced aspects in the life of an individual. There are a myriad of reasons that contribute to this phenomenon that tends to affect different individuals on different levels regardless of the age of sex. There are enormous amounts of literature that have different inclinations in a vociferous effort to unearth the underlying reasons for this experience. For example, there are researchers that have identified and majored on social factors that tend the lead to anxiety while others believe that sexual orientation or race is a major contributing factor to the extent to which individuals are affected and experience anxiety.
Issues about anxiety
According to Norasakkunkit and Kalick (2009), it is clear that, while social anxiety is known to contribute to a higher percentage of possible anxiety disorder, it is presumably caused by the level of independent self-construal. It is recorded that due to the depth of this level of independent self-construes, there is an increasing tendency of researchers confusing this with anxiety that is brought about by differences in culture (Norasakkunkit&Kalick, 2009). In most cases, “social anxiety measures” has been associated with a very high probability of “misrepresenting cultural differences in as far as emotional well-being is concerned” (Norasakkunkit&Kalick, 2009, p. 313).
Norasakkunkit and Kalick (2009) found out that independent priming aided in substantial decrease in social anxiety. However, regardless of the outcome of social anxiety decrease due to independent priming, it has noted that this independent priming did not make any tangible contribution in as far as emotional well-being self-reporting is concerned (Norasakkunkit&Kalick, 2009).
Zientek, Yetkiner and Thompson (2010) took anxiety research a notch higher where mathematical anxiety among college students was addressed. It is interesting to note that there seems to be a great deal of disparity while considering college students that have enrolled for mathematics in algebra within community colleges as compared to students that enrolled for remedial classes in mathematics courses (Zientek, Yetkiner and Thompson, 2010). Additionally, mathematics anxiety has been found to interfere with the learning of students in colleges since there is ample evidence that this affects their feelings in as far as the content that they are demanded to master is concerned (Zientek, Yetkiner and Thompson, 2010). However, it is further seen that upon proper handling of mathematics anxiety, it is possible for this anxiety to make positive contribution towards mathematics performance of the individual (Zientek, Yetkiner and Thompson, 2010).
According to data obtained from National Comorbidity Study, there seems to be a clear indication that over 29 % of all adults have and/ or will have met the “Diagnostics and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorder, Fourth Edition (DSM-IV) criteria” that details the level as well as the extent of anxiety disorder in their lifetime (Kessler et al., 2005; Bostwick, Boyd, Hughes & McCabe, 2010, p. 468). In addition to this, 21 % of the population is at the same time likely to experience mood disorder that can contribute to somber anxiety disorder (Kessler et al., 2005; Bostwick, Boyd, Hughes & McCabe, 2010). As early as 2001, 2002, National Epidemiologic Survey indicated that over 11 % of the population, accounting for a staggering and mind boggling 66 million people who fully qualified in the class of “DSM-IV with a further 9.3 % of the population” accounting for “DSM-IV mood disorder” (Grant et al., 2004; Bostwick, Boyd, Hughes & McCabe, 2010, p. 468).
These results have drawn heated debate in as far as the cost for individual as well as national population treatment and containment is concerned (Kessler et al., 2005; Bostwick, Boyd, Hughes & McCabe, 2010). Additional facts and research also show that there is an increasing likelihood for “lesbians, bisexuals in addition to gays to be more likely to develop severe anxiety disorders as compared to their heterosexual counterparts”(Bostwick, Boyd, Hughes & McCabe, 2010, p. 468).
Healy (2010), while citing the works of Lonigan et al. (2004) asserts that, apart from extreme cases, high negative affect (NA) is not sufficient to bring about anxiety based on their research. It is however noted that high NA in conjunction with a low level of attention control (AC) has the highest probability of contributing towards anxiety disorder development (Healy, 2010).
Parade, Leerkes and Blankson (2010) mediate a different notion where they detail the interrelationship between a child and the parents’ contributions in their lives. It is eminent that for children who have most of their daily and basic needs being denied by their parents as they grow tend to be less likely to be involved in social events (Parade, Leerkes and Blankson, 2010). The main reason for this occurrence is due to the fact that these individuals are more likely to think that they will be embarrassed or humiliated while participating in the social gathering and thus tend to fear and shun such gatherings at all cost (American Psychiatric Association, 2000; Parade, Leerkes and Blankson, 2010).
Reasons that contribute to anxiety development and experience
Nigg (2006) as cited by Healy (2010) record that temperament in addition to psychopathology has been proved to have significant contribution towards attention control (AC) in addition to negative affect (NA).
It is further seen that there are individuals who are “shame-prone” and demonstrate high levels of self-efficacy that is as a result of governmental promotions of these values in their respective societies (Norasakkunkit&Kalick, 2009, p. 314). For example, research has shown that this trend is highly advocated in Japan for which, upon leaving their country, Japanese tend to develop higher anxiety levels as compared to other European or American counterparts (Norasakkunkit&Kalick, 2009). The pathological manifestation of this occurrence is evident in the level of shame that is palpable in their conduct (Norasakkunkit&Kalick, 2009).
Another identified reason that contributes toward development of anxiety is in times of conflict. According to Norasakkunkit&Kalick (2009), “conflict between collectivistic and individualistic values tends to raise the temperatures” and thus a fertile breeding ground for the development of anxiety (p. 314).
In addition, it is asserted that the relationship that exists between self-construal, emotional distress and ethnicity such that for those individuals who are more “prone to self-construal are at the same time more likely to be acutely attuned towards social cues” that trickle down to formation of social anxiety (Norasakkunkit&Kalick, 2009, p. 314).
There are situations like embarrassing situations, aggravated harassment and humiliation have also been noted to contribute towards increase in the level of anxiety as quoted in the works of American Psychiatric Association (2000); Parade, Leerkes&Blankson (2010).
The Way Forward / Recommendations
According to Ruini et al. (2003; Norasakkunkit&Kalick, 2009), the level of emotional distress in comparison with the level of emotional well-being indicate “at least inverse correlation that is moderated” (p. 315). For this reason, it is highly advocate that nourishment of emotionally upraising facets of well-being ought to be sought such that the level of distress is greatly decreased to a minimalistic level.
There is need for more literature that is both credible and evidence based to be focused on the aspect of sexual orientation and its converse contribution towards the level of anxiety. There is also a need to have better information to the parents as to the contribution that their relationships with their children have in the future interactions that the children will likely be engaged in and the shortfalls that some avoidable mistake may have including the detriments and repercussions that current studies have already identified.
Conclusion
Anxiety in modern day has become an issue that seems apparently common among individuals. Dealing with anxiety as a topic is an issue that causes arousal of an individual’s feeling of anxiety. While social anxiety is known to contribute to a higher percentage of possible anxiety disorder, it is presumably caused by the level of independent self-construal. In most cases, a social anxiety measure has a very high probability of misrepresenting cultural differences in as far as emotional well-being is concerned. However, regardless of the outcome of social anxiety decrease due to independent priming, it has noted that this independent priming did not make any tangible contribution in as far as emotional well-being self-reporting is concerned. 21 % of the population is at the same time likely to experience mood disorder that can contribute to somber anxiety disorder. It is however noted that high NA in conjunction with a low level of attention control has the highest probability of contributing towards anxiety disorder development. Further research on the contribution of sexual orientation towards anxiety disorder is highly recommended.
References
American Psychiatric Association.(2000). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (4th ed., text revision). Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Association.
Bostwick, W. B., Boyd, C., Hughes, T. L., & McCabe, S. E., (2010).Dimensions of sexual orientation and the prevalence of mood and anxiety disorders in the United States.American Journal of Public Health, 100(3), 468-75.http://search.proquest.com/docview/215088972?accountid=45049
Dresler, T., Mériau, K., Heekeren, H. R., & van, d. M. (2009). Emotional stroop task: Effect of word arousal and subject anxiety on emotional interference.Psychological Research, 73(3), 364-71.doi:10.1007/s00426-008-0154-6
Grant, B. F., Stinson, F. S., Hasin, D. S., et al. (2004). Prevalence and co-occurrence of substance use disorders and independent mood and anxiety disorders: results from the National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions. Arch Gen Psychiatry, 61, 807–816.
Healy, B. (2010). The effect of attentional control and heart-period variability on negative affect and trait anxiety.The Journal of General Psychology, 137(2), 140-50.http://search.proquest.com/docview/741063898?accountid=45049
Kessler, R. C., Berglund, P., Demler, O., Jin, R., Walters, E. E. (2005). Lifetime prevalence and age-of-onset distributions of DSM-IV disorders in the National Comorbidity Survey replication.Arch Gen Psychiatry,62, 593-602.
Lonigan, C. J., Vasey, M. W., Phillips, B. M., & Hazen, R. A. (2004).Temperament, anxiety, and the processing of threat-relevant stimuli.Journal of Clinical and Child and Adolescent Psychology, 33, 8-20.
Nigg, J. T. (2006). Temperament and developmental psychopathology.Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 47, 395-422.
Norasakkunkit, V., &Kalick, S. M. (2009). Experimentally detecting how cultural differences on social anxiety measures misrepresent cultural differences in emotional well-being. Journal of Happiness Studies, 10(3), 313-327. doi:10.1007/s10902-007-9082-1
Parade, S. H., Leerkes, E. M., &Blankson, A. N. (2010).Attachment to parents, social anxiety, and close relationships of female students over the transition to college. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 39(2), 127-137. http://search.proquest.com/docview/204525941?accountid=45049
Ruini, C., Ottolini, F., Rafanelli, C., Tossani, E., Ryff, D. D., & Fava, G. A. (2003).The relationship of psychological well-being to distress and personality. Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, 72, 268–275.
Zientek, L. R., Yetkiner, Z. E., & Thompson, B. (2010).Characterizing the mathematics anxiety literature using confidence intervals as a literature review mechanism. The Journal of Educational Research, 103(6), 424-438. http://search.proquest.com/docview/759468657?accountid=45049
