Prevalence and Sociodemographic Correlates of Social Anxiety Among Medical Students in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia: A Cross-Sectional Study

Background: Social anxiety disorder (SAD) is a prevalent and often disabling condition, and medical students may be especially vulnerable because of intense academic pressure and frequent performance evaluation.Data from Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, are limited.Objectives: To estimate the prevalence of probable SAD (Social Phobia Inventory (SPIN) score ≥19) and the distribution of symptom severity among medical students in Jeddah; to examine associations with sociodemographic factors; and to describe an exploratory eight-item social anxiety impact scale and its relationship with SPIN scores.Methods: This cross-sectional online survey was conducted among medical students in Jeddah between February and May 2025.Participants completed sociodemographic questions, the 17-item SPIN, and an eight-item social anxiety impact scale.Probable SAD was defined as a SPIN score ≥19, with ≥21 used as a sensitivity threshold.Prevalence is reported as n (%) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs).Sociodemographic differences in scores were tested with independent-samples t-tests and one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), and differences in prevalence with chi-square tests.Results: Among 220 participants, the mean SPIN score was 21.8 ± 12.7.In total, 126 (57.3%; 95% CI 50.7-63.6)scored ≥19 and 117 (53.2%; 95% CI 46.6-59.7)scored ≥21; 49 (22.3%) had moderate or more severe symptoms (SPIN ≥31).Cronbach's alpha was 0.92 for the SPIN and 0.87 for the impact scale, and the two scores were strongly correlated (r = 0.79).SPIN scores and probable SAD did not differ significantly by sex, socioeconomic status, academic year, marital status, or living arrangement, although several subgroups were small.Impact-scale scores differed by living arrangement (p = 0.041; exploratory).Conclusions: More than half of the medical students surveyed screened positive for probable SAD, indicating a substantial burden that warrants routine screening and accessible mental health support.Interpretation is limited by convenience sampling, the use of a screening instrument rather than a diagnostic interview, and an impact scale that has not been formally validated.