The Role of Psychological Well-Being and Life Expectancy in Social Anxiety of Girls Living in Welfare Centers in Tehran in 2018: A Descriptive Study

Adolescents face psychological, emotional, and social communication problems. Psychological well-being and hope are the most important components of mental health. The aim of this study was to investigate the role of psychological well-being and life expectancy in social anxiety.

In this descriptive study, the statistical population was all girls living in welfare centers in Tehran in 2018, out of which 168 people were selected based on available sampling method. Tools of collecting data were three questionnaires including Jerabek’s Social Anxiety Scale, Snyder’s Hope Scale, and Ryff’s Psychological Well-Being Scale. Data were analyzed using Pearson’s correlation test and multiple linear regression.

The findings showed that psychological well-being and life expectancy negatively predict the social anxiety. Also, among the components of psychological well-being, the variable of self-acceptance (r=-0.179, p<0.05), the variable of purposeful life (r=-0.291, p<0.05), and the variable of life expectancy (r=-0.226, p<0.01) had a significant negative relationship with social anxiety. There was not a significant relationship between the components of psychological well-being (positive relation with others, autonomy, environmental mastery, and personal growth) and the component of pass of life expectancy with the social anxiety (p>0.05).

The results of this srudy can help researchers and therapists in the field of mental health both theoretically (expansion and enrichment of theoretical concepts in the field of adolescents) and operationally (holding workshops on educating homeless adolescents about psychological well-being and hope).