The Perception Of Self And Others Among Students With Depression And Anxiety: A Cross-Sectional Study

Abstract

Objective: The research aimed at studying the differences in the perception of anxious and depressed university students. It was hypothesized that depressed students will have more dysfunctional attitudes as compared to anxious students. It was further assumed that students with depression will comparatively have more negative perception of themselves and others associated with them. Material and Methods: The sample comprised of 100 participants, selected from various departments of University of Karachi. They were provided with the Intensive Care Psychological Assessment Tool (IPAT) Anxiety, IPAT Depression scales and (Form B) Dysfunctional Aptitude scale (DAS) as well as a set of personality traits. An adjective checklist of 88 traits was adapted from Neuroticism, Extraversion and Openness Personality Inventory revised (NEO-PI-R). The pattern of responses was illustrated through the use of percentages while the results were analyzed using Chi-square and t-test. Results: The results suggest that no significant difference exists between the perception of self and others among students with depression and anxiety. Furthermore, no significant differences were observed among both groups in DAS scores.