Escape behaviors in depression and anxiety: A cross-sectional study in Turkish adults

We aimed to investigate the relationships between escape behaviors and the characteristics of subjects with depression and/or anxiety disorders.

This cross-sectional study included 126 adults diagnosed with depression and/or anxiety disorders. Participants completed validated self-report scales: Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), Smartphone Addiction Scale-Short Version (SAS-SV), Dutch Eating Behavior Questionnaire-Emotional Eating Subscale (DEBQ-Emotional), Maladaptive Daydreaming Scale-16 (MDS-16), and Turkish Craving for Online Shopping Scale (TCOSS).

The study population (mean age: 36.46 ± 10.25 years, 76.98% female)had moderate symptom scores from the HADS Depression (9.59 ± 3.22) and Anxiety scales (10.15 ± 4.05). HADS Depression correlated with SAS-SV (r=0.411, p<0.001), MDS-16 (r=0.288, p=0.001), and TCOSS (r=0.199, p=0.026). HADS Anxiety correlated with DEBQ-Emotional (r=0.248, p=0.005), SASSV (r=0.278, p=0.002), and MDS-16 (r=0.190, p=0.033). Multivariable regression identified high SAS-SV (p<0.001) and MDS-16 (p=0.039) scores as independently associated with greater depression severity, while female sex (p=0.025) and high SAS-SV score (p=0.004) were independently associated with anxiety severity.

In Turkish adults with depression/anxiety disorders, depression severity is linked to smartphone addiction and maladaptive daydreaming, while female sex and smartphone addiction are linked to anxiety severity. Weak correlations also existed between depression and online shopping craving and between emotional eating and anxiety.