Social Anxiety and Problematic Drinking Among College Students

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Table of Contents

Description of the Study
Hypothesis
Results
References

Description of the Study

The article Understanding Problematic Drinking and Social Anxiety among College Students describes the impact of social anxiety disorder on the experiences of many students. Statistics indicate that 25 percent of learners in colleges encounter numerous academic problems due to increased levels of alcoholism (Hunley, 2016). Past studies have not explained how the problem of social anxiety can be addressed in colleges. The study was aimed at examining how social anxiety affected students motivation or desire to consume alcohol. This knowledge could be used by researchers to come up with evidence-based interventions to support the needs of many students with social anxiety disorder.

Hypothesis

The article does not have a defined hypothesis. However, the researcher begins the article by indicating that post-event processing dictates the nature of drinking behaviors in individuals with social anxiety disorders (Hunley, 2016, para. 5). The study also wanted to understand the relationship between increased levels of post-event processes and problematic alcohol intake.

Study Method

The author of the article used a qualitative approach to review past studies completed by a group of researchers at the Adult Anxiety Clinic of Temple University (Hunley, 2016, para. 6). Led by Carrie Potter, the researchers used a correlation analysis to determine the relationship between post-event processing and problematic drinking especially in individuals suffering from social anxiety disorder (Hunley, 2016). The researchers used two groups to complete the study. The first group was comprised of individuals high in social anxiety. The second one targeted students low in social anxiety (Hunley, 2016). The participants were guided to interact with a student they had never met before. This exercise was followed by tasks that either inhibited or promoted post-event processing.

Results

The completed study showed conclusively that promotion of post-event processing after the completed social task encouraged the students to drink. Individuals suffering from social anxiety disorder were affected the most. The event appeared to produce long-lasting impacts on the students desire to take alcohol. Students who engaged in an inhibiting exercise did not portray similar signs. The inhibition task distracted the students from ruminating about the encountered past social experience (Hunley, 2016).

Interesting Points

The selected article presents interesting points that can be used to support the experiences of many students with social anxiety disorder. The first issue is to acknowledge that social anxiety disorder is a serious condition that should not be ignored. The article goes further to indicate that post-event processing dictates the connection between problematical drinking and social anxiety (Hunley, 2016). Activities aimed at inhibiting such post-event processing experiences can decrease an individuals desire to take alcohol. The other interesting point is that the author has encouraged future scholars to analyze how different actions aimed at inhibiting post-event processing can deliver long-term results.

Agreeing with the Findings

The findings presented in this article are agreeable. This is the case because the researchers used an effective method to conduct the research study. It is also agreeable that actions that encourage post-event processing can increase a persons urge to engage in unpleasant behaviors such as drinking alcohol. This is the case for individuals with social anxiety disorder. Tasks aimed at inhibiting post-event processing have the potential to decrease a patients urge to cope with alcohol. The other agreeable finding from the article is that high anxiety patients might have long-lasting impacts on the motivation to take alcohol (Schry & White, 2013). Psychiatrists can use the presented findings to provide sustainable support to more students distressed by social anxiety disorder.

References

Hunley, S. (2016). Understanding problematic drinking and social anxiety among college students. Web.

Schry, A., & White, S. (2013). Understanding the relationship between social anxiety and alcohol use in college students: A meta-analysis. Addictive Behaviors, 38(1), 2690-2706. Web.

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