Anxiety among Faculty Members of Academic Institutions of a Metropolitan City: A Descriptive Cross-sectional Study

Abstract

Introduction: Anxiety is one of the common mental disorders frequently occurring in the community. It has been a major contributor to public ill health. Very few studies have been conducted on anxiety among academic professionals working in educational institutions. The aim of this study was to find out the prevalence of anxiety among faculty members of academic institutions of a metropolitan city.

Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted among university faculties working in academic institutions of a metropolitan city from 22 July 2021 to 30 June 2022 after taking ethical approval from the Ethical Review Board (Reference number: 94). A self-administered structured questionnaire was applied to collect the information. Beck Anxiety Inventory was used to measure anxiety; the anxiety was categorised as normal, mild, moderate, and severe and dichotomized into “present” and “absent”. Convenience sampling method was used. Point estimate and 95% Confidence Interval were calculated.

Results: Out of 416 respondents, the prevalence of anxiety was found to be 111 (26.68%) (22.44-30.92, 95% Confidence Interval). Among them, 85 (76.58%) were mild, 13 (11.71%) of moderate and 13 (11.71%) of severe type. Among those who had anxiety, 87 (78.37%) were males, and 59 (53.15%) were in the age group of 40 year and above; 37 (33.33%) had chronic health problems.

Conclusions: The prevalence of anxiety among faculty members of academic institutions was lower as compared to other studies conducted in similar settings.