Robust dimensions of anxiety sensitivity: development and initial validation of the Anxiety Sensitivity Index-3.

Accumulating evidence suggests that anxiety sensitivity (fear of arousal-related sensations) plays an important role in many clinical conditions, particularly anxiety disorders. Research has increasingly focused on how the basic dimensions of anxiety sensitivity are related to various forms of psychopathology. Such work has been hampered because the original measure--the Anxiety Sensitivity Index (ASI)--was not designed to be multidimensional. Subsequently developed multidimensional measures have unstable factor structures or measure only a subset of the most widely replicated factors. Therefore, the authors developed, via factor analysis of responses from U.S. and Canadian nonclinical participants (n=2,361), an 18-item measure, the ASI-3, which assesses the 3 factors best replicated in previous research: Physical, Cognitive, and Social Concerns. Factorial validity of the ASI-3 was supported by confirmatory factor analyses of 6 replication samples, including nonclinical samples from the United States and Canada, France, Mexico, the Netherlands, and Spain (n=4,494) and a clinical sample from the United States and Canada (n=390). The ASI-3 displayed generally good performance on other indices of reliability and validity, along with evidence of improved psychometric properties over the original ASI.

Interpersonal correlates of generalized anxiety disorder: Self versus other perception.

The present investigation examined the interpersonal functioning of undergraduate students who met self-report criteria for generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), both as they perceive it and as perceived by their self-nominated friends. Forty-eight participants who met self-report criteria for GAD endorsed greater global severity of interpersonal problems on the 64-item version of the Inventory of Interpersonal Problems [Horowitz, L. M., Alden, L. E., Wiggins, J. S., Pincus, A. L. (2000). Inventory of Interpersonal Problems: Manual. San Antonio, TX: The Psychological Corporation] than 53 control participants. However, friends of GAD participants did not attribute significantly greater interpersonal problems to them than did friends of control participants. GAD participants reported less secure attachment to their parents than control participants but reported similar levels of attachment to peers and perceived social support. Furthermore, there were no significant differences between the friends of the GAD participants and friends of the control participants on ratings of their friendships quality. Findings are discussed in the context of their relevance to the etiology, maintenance, and treatment of GAD.

Domains of life satisfaction in social anxiety disorder: relation to symptoms and response to cognitive-behavioral therapy.

A general sense of satisfaction with life has been shown to be discriminable from symptom levels and disability in clinical populations. The current study focused on the utility of identifying domains of life satisfaction in social anxiety disorder and differential changes in these domains following cognitive-behavioral group therapy (CBGT). An exploratory principal axis factor analysis of the items of the Quality of Life Inventory in clients with a principal diagnosis of social anxiety disorder (N=138) yielded four domains of life satisfaction: (1) Achievement, (2) Social Functioning, (3) Personal Growth, and (4) Surroundings. Prior to treatment, clients reported dissatisfaction in the Achievement and Social Functioning domains. Further, levels of satisfaction in these domains were significantly related to severity of social anxiety and depressive symptoms. Finally, analyses of a subsample of clients completing 12-weeks of cognitive-behavioral group therapy revealed significant improvements in the Achievement and Social Functioning factors. These findings provide further support for the assertion that social anxiety disorder has important implications for clients' quality of life and that CBGT can successfully impact several domains of satisfaction.

Tratamiento cognitivo-conductual del trastorno de ansiedad social: teoría y práctica / Cognitive behavioral treatment for social anxiety disorder: theory and practice

Conforme han progresado las formulaciones teóricas det trastorno de ansiedad ha ido surgiendo la terapia cognitivo conductual (TCC) en primera línea de la literatura empírica. En el presente artículo, se describe brevemente nuestro modelo cognitivo conductual sobre el trastorno de ansiedad social, los componentes específicos de la TCC así como las pruebas de su eficacia y los factores que influyen en los resultados del tratamiento. Además, incluimos la presentación de un caso utilizando el enfoque cognitivo conductual de Heimberg et al. (Heimberg y Becker, 2002, Hope, Heimberg, Juster y Turk, 2000) para el tratamiento del trastorno de ansiedad social (AU)

Behavioral assessment of public-speaking anxiety using a modified version of the Social Performance Rating Scale.

The current study aimed to extend the evaluation of the utility of the Social Performance Rating Scale (SPRS) [Behav. Res. Ther. 36 (1998) 995]. We examined the utility of a modified SPRS for the behavioral assessment of public-speaking anxiety among patients with social phobia (n = 49). The videotaped performance of public-speaking fearful patients in a public-speaking task was rated using four of the five SPRS ratings and was compared to global ratings by patients and observers, as well as to self-report and clinician-administered measures of social anxiety. The pattern of correlations with criterion measures of social anxiety provided evidence for the convergent and divergent validity of this modified SPRS for the behavioral assessment of public-speaking anxiety.

Ethnic differences in worry in a nonclinical population.

The present study examined ethnic differences in worry in a college student population. No differences were found between Caucasians, African Americans, and Asian Americans in pathological worry as measured by the Penn State Worry Questionnaire (PSWQ) or in the frequency with which they met self-report criteria for generalized anxiety disorder on the Generalized Anxiety Disorder Questionnaire for DSM-IV (GAD-Q-IV). Groups differed in Worry Domains Questionnaire (WDQ) total scores and on all WDQ domain subscales except for the Financial domain. Within ethnic groups, Caucasians and African Americans experienced variations in intensity of worry across the specific domains, but Asian Americans did not. These results suggest that ethnic groups may differ from each other in the degree to which they worry and in the breadth of their concerns. Further examination of ethnic differences and worry (and anxiety more generally) is suggested.