The level of Social Anxiety Among Gifted and Ordinary Students at Ajloun Area, and its Relationship with Some Demographics and Academic Achievement

Abstract

This study is aimed at revealing the level of social anxiety and its dimensions on a sample of gifted students and ordinary students in the schools of Ajloun / Jordan governorate and its relation to some demographic variables (gender, grade, father's level of education, economic level of the family and academic achievement). To achieve the objectives of the study, the researcher used the social anxiety test that was prepared by Radwan (2001). The validity and reliability of the test verified. The sample comprised 87 gifted students and 158 ordinary students. The sample study was randomly selected from high basic and secondary grades. The arithmetic, standard deviation, ANOVA and the correlation coefficients were used to analyze the data. The results showed that social anxiety level between the gifted and ordinary students was low, and there were not any statistically significant differences at α≤ 0.05 at the total social anxiety level degrees between talented and normal students. The study found that there were not any statistically significant differences at the level degrees among the gifted students with respect to gender, grade, the educational level of parents and the economic level of the family. Nonetheless, there were statistically significant differences (α≤ 0.05) at the total social anxiety level degrees among ordinary students regarding both variables, the grade variable in favor of seventh grade, and the gender variable in favor of males. However, there were not any statistically significant differences at the total social anxiety level degrees at the educational level of parents and the economic level of the family. There was a negative correlation coefficient at the total social anxiety level between the ordinary students and the academic achievement. The results were discussed in the light of the theoretical framework & previous studies. Some recommendations were given based on the results of the study.