Theory of Mind, Emotion Recognition and Social Cognition in Adolescents with Generalized Anxiety Disorder and Healthy Controls

People with generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) may experience adverse consequences due to difficulty understanding and interacting with others.

This study was conducted to compare the theory of mind, emotion recognition, and social cognition in teenagers with GAD and healthy controls.

This case-control study was conducted on 60 patients with GAD and 60 sample of teenagers without GAD in Tehran, during 2022-2023.  The GAD was diagnosed based on DSM-IV_TR criteria. The data collection tools included theory of mind scale (TOM), social cognition questionnaire and Ekman 60-Faces Test (EK-60F). One-way analysis of variance and post hoc test were performed to analyze the data using SPSS version 27 with a two-tailed 5% level of significance. 

The results observed significant differences in the mean values of all variables in four groups of females with and without generalized anxiety disorder, and males with and without generalized anxiety disorder. Comparing the means of study groups, it can be observed that females have higher mean values for their study variables compared to males (P<0.05).

  The findings indicated that teenagers with generalized anxiety disorder were more prone to experiencing difficulties in theory of mind, emotional perception, and social cognition, particularly among females, compared to their counterparts without the disorder.  During adolescence, it is vital to possess the skills of emotional management and the absence of anxiety to establish relationships, nurture meaningful friendships, and actively participate in social interactions.