TY  - EJOU
AU  - Lv, Shuai 
AU  - Chen, Zhaojun 
AU  - Mao, Jian 
AU  - Wang, Hui 
AU  - Wu, Peibo 
AU  - Hai, Yujuan 

TI  - The Relationship between Self-Esteem and Social Phobia among College Students: The Mediating Effect of Fear of Negative Evaluation and the Moderating Effect of Perfectionism
T2  - International Journal of Mental Health Promotion

PY  - 2024
VL  - 26
IS  - 6
SN  - 2049-8543

AB  -  <b>Objectives:</b> To explore the relationship between college students’ self-esteem (SE) and their social phobia (SP), as well as the mediating role of fear of negative evaluation (FNE) and the moderating effect of perfectionism. <b>Methods:</b> A convenience sampling survey was carried out for 1020 college students from Shandong Province of China, utilizing measures of college students’ self-esteem, fear of negative evaluation, perfectionism, and social phobia. Data analysis was performed using the SPSS PROCESS macro. <b>Results:</b> (1) college students’ self-esteem significantly and negatively predicts their social phobia (β = −0.31, <i>t</i> = −10.10, <i>p</i> < 0.001); (2) fear of negative evaluation partially mediates the relation between self-esteem and social phobia among college students, with the mediating effect accounting for 48.97% of the total effect (TE); (3) the mediating role of fear of negative evaluation is moderated by perfectionism (β = 0.18, <i>t</i> = 7.75, <i>p</i> < 0.001), where higher levels of perfectionism strengthen the mediating effect of fear of negative evaluation. <b>Conclusions:</b> Perfectionism moderates the mediating effect that fear of negative evaluation plays, establishing a moderated mediating model.
KW  - Self-esteem; fear of negative evaluation; perfectionism; social phobia

DO  - 10.32604/ijmhp.2024.048917