The realm of human psychology is no longer a completely unsolved riddle. The medical scientists and psychiatrists have explored new venues to understand the enigma with continuous researches, experiments and new technologies. The researchers are going far to understand the reasons that influence the development of anxiety disorder. There are mainly social, biological and psychological factors responsible for inducing anxiety disorder which scientists have further categorized into four main sections.
- Heredity
- Personality
- Brain Chemistry
- Life Experiences
| Heredity |
| Researchers believe that genes affect the mental ability of a human, so anxiety disorder is associated with genetic factors. A person can inherit the risk of anxiety disorder and it is normally seen that people with anxiety disorders have a history of the same running in their family. Besides heredity, family environment is also responsible for developing of anxiety disorders, like, a child from a broken family (where mother and father are separated) or from a family where substance abuse results in daily conflicts, suffer from psychological problems leading to anxiety disorder as he grows up. There are many evidences available to prove that anxiety disorder runs in families. |
| Personality |
| A person’s personality traits can become responsible for developing anxiety disorder. As for example, if a person has low self esteem or poor coping skills, he will develop anxiety disorder after a certain period of his lifespan. This is a chicken-n-egg condition, if a child grows up with anxiety disorder, eventually he will experience low self-esteem. This is because the world appears to be a frightening place to people with anxiety disorder and they find themselves incapable or without power to fight against those threats. |
| Brain Chemistry |
| Some studies have confirmed that an imbalance of neurotransmitters such as serotonin, GABA, and epinephrine can contribute to anxiety disorder as well as other mental illnesses. Scientists logically derive the fact that some medications like Xanax can control anxiety disorder, so brain chemicals are involved in inducing anxiety disorder to a great extent.We can also say that other factors outside the body compel the brain chemicals to lose balance and that is why a person feels anxiety in a certain situation or place. So, brain chemistry and other factors responsible for inducing anxiety disorder have ‘cause and effect’ relation. |
| Life Experiences |
| Negative life experiences like trauma, severe substance abuse, violence, long-term exposure to sexual or other physical and mental abuse can become major factors responsible for developing anxiety disorder. People with depressing or sad life experiences are more susceptible to anxiety disorder. More importantly, trauma and abuse in childhood or infancy is very damaging which leaves a persistent and permanent sense of helplessness and fear that remain with the person even when he is fully grown up. |