The Association Between Social Anxiety and Sleep Among Young People: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

Social anxiety and sleep are both crucial to young people's development, yet the nature of their association remains unclear and has not been systematically examined. This meta-analysis aimed to examine the relationship between social anxiety and several sleep indicators (e.g., sleep quality, sleep disorders, and sleep duration) in young people, and to explore potential moderators of this relationship. We searched six databases (PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, the Cochrane Library, WANFANG, CNKI) on March 22, 2025. In total, thirty-six studies were included in the analysis. We found a moderate positive correlation between social anxiety and poor sleep quality in young people (r = 0.25). The moderating variables included ages (university and middle school students) and measurement tools for social anxiety. Social anxiety was positively correlated with insomnia (r = 0.42), daytime sleepiness (r = 0.54), and general sleep problems (r = 0.24), and negatively associated with sleep duration (r = - 0.27) in young people. This research suggests that promoting young people's coordinated psychological and physical health requires equal attention on social anxiety and sleep, with targeted, comprehensive interventions for overall well-being.