Background and Aim: Anxiety is one of the important disorders of mental health in children and the adolescents’ period, which is influenced by various endogenous and environmental factors. The aim of this study was a comparative survey of anxiety level in primary school children in Gorgan in 2013.
Materials and Methods: In this descriptive-analytical and cross-sectional study, 745 male and female primary school students in public and private schools in Gorgan were selected using a combination sampling (stratification and clustering). For data collection Spence Children's Anxiety Scale (SCAS) included 38 questions were used. The collecting data were analyzed using SPSS-21 statistical software and chi-square and t-tests. p-values of less than 0.05 were considered as the significance level.
Results: Anxiety disorders in the studied sample were 14.5 percent. The most common disorders were obsessive-compulsive disorder with 18, social phobia 17.6 and separation anxiety 17.6 percent and the fear of open spaces had the lowest prevalence. The results showed that according to Spence Children’s Anxiety Scale total score for the studied sample was 22.74±12.72. The prevalence of anxiety disorders in children with unemployed mothers with lower educational level in female, in families with fewer children and public school students were more.
Conclusion: Anxiety disorders are the most prevalence disorder among children and adolescents which have a significant effect on their functioning. This study also underlines the issue that instant identification and treatment of this disorder should be one of the considerations and activities of child mental health specialists. The best place to start screening and assisting these children is primary schools.
