Association between childhood trauma and social anxiety in adolescents: The mediating role of self-compassion and loneliness

Background: Previous studies have shown a correlation between childhood trauma and social anxiety. However, the underlying mechanism of this association is not well understood.

Objective: The aim of this study was to examine the relationship between childhood trauma and social anxiety in adolescents, and to explore the mediating role of self-compassion and loneliness.

Participants and setting: In total 1309 adolescents (531 of whom were female) were recruited, and their mean age was 15.4 ± 2.30 years.

Methods: Participants completed the Adolescent Social Anxiety Scale, Childhood Trauma Questionnaire Short Form, Self-Compassion Scale, and University of California, Los Angeles Loneliness Scale. Pearson correlation analysis was conducted to investigate the relationships among childhood trauma, self-compassion, loneliness, and social anxiety. The PROCESS Macro Model 80 was used for regression analysis to explore the mediating effects of self-compassion and loneliness on the relationship between childhood trauma and social anxiety.

Results: After controlling for the influence of gender and parental marital status, self-compassion mediated the association between childhood trauma and social anxiety, in which positive self-compassion alleviated the relationship between childhood trauma and social anxiety, while negative self-compassion aggravated the relationship between childhood trauma and social anxiety. Furthermore, self-compassion and loneliness chain-mediated the relationship between childhood trauma and social anxiety.

Conclusion: These results offer theoretical support for the research and intervention of adolescents' social anxiety, and are crucial for developing adolescents' mental health education and promoting interpersonal communication.