Effect of Group Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (GCBT) on Social Anxiety Disorder (SAD) Among Visually Impaired Students in Rural Communities in South-East, Nigeria

Social anxiety disorder is one of the most common psychological problems associated with visually impaired students in rural communities. The visually impaired students in rural communities are predisposed to Social Anxiety (SA). Therefore, the study examined a group GCBT's effectiveness in reducing SAD. The participants were divided into treatment (n=32) and control (n=32) groups. The measure was the Liebowitz Social Anxiousness Scale (LSAS) with a 24-item scale that provides distinct scores for social nervousness and performance concern throughout the previous week. At time 1, both group participants did not significantly differ in their SAD. The result showed that group cognitive behavioral therapy led to a reduction in the mean scores on social anxiety disorder. The findings further revealed a statistically significant main impact of treatment condition on social anxiety disorder (F(1,33)= 44.586,p ≤.001, ʠ2=.46), suggesting that, in stark contrast to the control group, treatment condition led to a considerable reduction in social anxiety disorder symptoms. The outcome similarly showed a significant main impact of time (before treatment vs. post treatment). However, after the intervention, a significant difference was reported. In particular, there was a reduction in SAD in the treatment group but those of the control group did not significantly change. Therefore, the researchers concluded that GCBT is effective and significant in the reduction of SAD among visually impaired students in rural communities.