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Gender differences in dimensions of anxiety sensitivity
Abstract
Anxiety sensitivity (AS) is the fear of anxiety-related sensations arising from beliefs that these sensations have harmful physical, psychological, or social consequences. AS is measured using the Anxiety Sensitivity Index (ASI), a 16-item self-report questionnaire. Little is known about the origins of AS, although social learning experiences (including sex-role socialization experiences) may be important. The present study examined whether there were gender differences in: (a) the lower- or higher-order factor structure of the ASI; and/or (b) pattern of ASI factor scores. The ASI was completed by 818 university students (290 males; 528 females). Separate principal components analyses on the ASI items of the total sample, males, and females revealed nearly identical lower-order three-factor structures for all groups, with factors pertaining to fears about the anticipated (a) physical, (b) psychological, and (c) social consequences of anxiety. Separate principal components analyses on the lower-order factor scores of the three samples revealed similar unidimensional higher-order solutions for all groups. Gender × AS dimension analyses on ASI lower-order factor scores showed that: females scored higher than males only on the physical concerns factor; females scored higher on the physical concerns factor relative to their scores on the social and psychological concerns factors; and males scored higher on the social and psychological concerns factors relative to their scores on the physical concerns factor. Finally, females scored higher than males on the higher-order factor representing the global AS construct. The present study provides further support for the empirical distinction of the three lower-order dimensions of AS, and additional evidence for the theoretical hierarchical structure of the ASI. Results also suggest that males and females differ on these various AS dimensions in ways consistent with sex role socialization practices.
... While initially conceptualised as a unidimensional construct (Reiss & McNally, 1985), much work has now shown that AS is better conceptualised as consisting of three dimensions: physical concerns (e.g., fearing that a racing heart is a sign of an oncoming heart attack), cognitive concerns (e.g., fearing that an experience of derealization is a sign that one is going crazy or about to lose control), and social concerns (e.g., fearing that trembling in front of others will lead to social rejection/exclusion). One of our early factor analytic studies of the original 16-item Anxiety Sensitivity Index (ASI; Peterson & Reiss, 1992) revealed these three factors were replicable across gender and further suggested a hierarchical structure to the ASI with the three lower order AS dimensions each loading onto a single higher order global AS factor (Stewart et al., 1997). However, most items on the original ASI-tapped AS physical concerns leading to several attempts to revise the original ASI to produce more reliable AS cognitive and social concern subscales. ...
... A related question pertains to whether differing cutoffs should be used for men and women (or boys and girls) when selecting individuals for AS-targeted intervention. Women and girls score higher on average than men and boys in overall AS levels both in childhood/adolescence and adulthood (e.g., Stewart et al., 1997;Walsh et al., 2004) and a higher proportion of girls than boys belong to the high AS taxon (Bernstein et al., 2006). If we use genderspecific norms in selecting individuals for AS-targeted intervention, the average woman participant has more severe AS than the average man participant which could create artificial gender differences in who benefits most from intervention. ...
... Our AS intervention research has focused on targeting global AS. However, given the hierarchical structure of AS (e.g., Stewart et al., 1997), it remains to be established whether it is additionally useful to target the lower order dimensions of AS in our interventions. Our previously described study (Olthuis, Watt, MacKinnon, et al., 2014;Olthuis et al., 2015) in which individuals were community recruited for high AS status and randomised to either a global AS-targeted intervention or a waitlist control showed that the active AS-targeted intervention was effective in reducing levels of all three AS dimensions, but with smaller effects for AS cognitive concerns. ...
Le présent article résume notre programme de recherche sur la sensibilité à l’anxiété (SA) – un facteur dispositionnel cognitif et affectif impliquant des craintes de sensations liées à l’anxiété en raison de croyances selon lesquelles ces sensations entraînent des conséquences catastrophiques. La SA et ses dimensions d’ordre inférieur sont considérées comme des facteurs transdiagnostiques de risque ou de maintien des troubles émotionnels et des troubles addictifs. La compréhension des mécanismes par lesquels la SA exerce ses effets peut révéler des cibles d’intervention clés pour les programmes de prévention et de traitement axés sur la SA. Dans le présent article, je passe en revue les recherches fondamentales que nous avons menées pour comprendre les mécanismes qui relient la SA à ces troubles et à leurs symptômes. Je décris également les interventions transdiagnostiques ciblées sur la SA et j’illustre la manière dont la recherche fondamentale a permis d’orienter le contenu de ces interventions. Enfin, je passe en revue les projets en cours dans mon laboratoire et je souligne les orientations futures importantes dans ce domaine. Bien que des progrès considérables aient été réalisés au cours des trois dernières décennies et que la recherche ait considérablement fait avancer notre compréhension de la SA en tant que facteur transdiagnostique, de nombreuses questions restent en suspens. Les réponses devraient nous aider à affiner les interventions afin d’en faire bénéficier au maximum les personnes qui ont une grande peur d’avoir peur.
... Literature has demonstrated gender differences in anxiety disorders, with increased severity and prevalence reported in females (McLean, Asnaani, Litz, & Hofmann, 2011). Furthermore, anxiety sensitivity (i.e., the fear of anxiety-related sensations) is also much more prevalent in females compared with males (Armstrong & Khawaja, 2002;Norr, Albanese, Allan, & Schmidt, 2015;Stewart, Taylor, & Baker, 1997). Even though there have been mixed findings regarding gender differences in reactivity, a meta-analysis revealed stressor-evoked HR reactivity does not differ across genders (Brindle, Ginty, Phillips, & Carroll, 2014). ...
... It is not clear why the association between perceived HR changes and cognitive anxiety was evident in males only. It has previously been shown that females report greater anxiety sensitivity, in particular relating to physical concerns (Stewart et al., 1997), experience greater severity of anxiety symptoms (McLean et al., 2011), and differ in their self-reported physiological symptoms (Grossman et al., 2001). However, in the current study, males and females reported similar levels of anxiety across studies (see Tables 1 and 3), with analyses confirming no gender differences (see supplementary Table 1). ...
... No such associations were evident in the male sample for anxiety interpretation. This could be due to reported gender differences in anxiety sensitivity (the fear of anxiety sensations) (Stewart et al., 1997). Indeed, females score higher on global anxiety sensitivity scales, specifically factors relating to physical concerns (Stewart et al., 1997). ...
Background: Acute psychological stress elicits increases in heart rate (HR) and anxiety. Theories propose associations between HR, perceived HR, and anxiety during stress. However, anxiety is often measured as a unidimensional construct which limits a comprehensive understanding of these relationships.
Objectives: This research explored whether HR reactivity or perceived HR change was more closely associated with cognitive and somatic anxiety during acute psychological stress.
Design: Two laboratory-based studies were conducted.
Methods: In a single laboratory session, healthy male (N = 71; study 1) and female (N = 70; study 2) university students completed three laboratory psychological stress tasks (counterbalanced), each with a preceding baseline. Heart rate, perceived HR change, and cognitive and somatic anxiety intensity and interpretation of anxiety symptoms were assessed immediately following each task. Data were aggregated across tasks.
Results: Actual HR change was unrelated to anxiety intensity, but was associated with more debilitative interpretations of anxiety (study 2). Perceptions of HR change were consistently associated with greater intensity of cognitive (study 1) and somatic (study 1 and 2) anxiety.
Conclusions: Perceived HR rather than actual HR is more closely associated with anxiety intensity during psychological stress. The findings have implications for stress management and the clinical treatment of anxiety symptoms.
... A community-recruited sample with a broader age range that includes men, women, and gender diverse participants is needed to explore these associations more comprehensively. Such sampling is particularly important as anxiety sensitivity can affect individuals differently depending on gender (Stewart et al., 1997) and because gender role socialization and traditional sexual scripts differ significantly between men than women (Wiederman, 2005). Second, past studies have typically required participants to be recently sexually active, which may have inadvertently excluded individuals with high anxiety sensitivity who actively avoid sexual activity. ...
... First, it suggests that even though anxiety sensitivity may interfere with some aspects of sex, this interference may not affect men's perceptions of satisfaction with the sexual experience. Second, despite differences in anxiety sensitivity by gender (Stewart et al., 1997) and differences in gender role socialization when it comes to sexuality (Wiederman, 2005), men's and women's experiences when it comes to anxiety sensitivity and sexual well-being are more similar than they are different. Anxiety sensitivity has emerged as an important factor in sexual well-being for both men and women. ...
... Previous research has inconsistently examined the role of gender in the investigation of anxiety and anxiety sensitivity during psychological treatment for depression. This investigation is critical: women are at greater risk for most anxiety and mood disorder symptoms (Angst et al., 2002;Wade et al., 2002) and report greater anxiety sensitivity than men in both clinical and normative samples (Schmidt and Koselka, 2000;Stewart et al., 1997). These elevations are linked to important clinical outcomes. ...
... In our depressed sample, behavioral avoidance among those with greater anxiety sensitivity physical concerns, particularly of contexts that elicit somatic symptoms of anxiety (Wilson and Hayward, 2006; i.e., anxious arousal within group settings), may explain attendance for less than the adequate number of CBGT sessions. Of note, some previous research supports gender differences in anxiety sensitivity , with women endorsing greater anxiety sensitivity physical concerns than men (Stewart et al., 1997). Women also endorse greater phobic avoidance in the context of panic disorder (Schmidt and Koselka, 2000). ...
We examined how anxiety sensitivity - the fear of symptoms of anxiety due to their perceived harmful effects - and gender are associated with treatment trajectory and outcomes in a large outpatient sample (N = 278) who received 14-weeks of cognitive-behavioral group therapy (CBGT) for depression. Three dimensions of anxiety sensitivity (cognitive, physical, and social concerns) and depression were assessed at pre-treatment, and the latter was assessed weekly during treatment. Latent growth curve models supported a link between cognitive concerns (fears of losing control over thoughts) and greater improvement in depression near the end of treatment (i.e., weeks 10-14); gender did not moderate trajectory. Gender (i.e., identifying as a woman) and greater physical concerns (fears of physical consequences of arousal symptoms) were associated with completion of < 8 sessions. Results suggest that those with more cognitive concerns might require greater time in treatment and/or benefit most from the focus on maladaptive assumptions and core beliefs in later CBGT sessions. Future research, including investigation of intervening variables, may elucidate the mechanisms through which greater physical concerns and gender are associated with treatment non-completion. Results supported differential associations of anxiety sensitivity dimensions with depression treatment outcomes, though further research attention is needed.
... Desde una perspectiva de género, existe evidencia de mayores niveles de ansiedad social en mujeres (Crimmins, Kim & Sole-Auro, 2011;McLean, Asnaani, Litz & Hofmann, 2011); igualmente mayor preocupación en ellas por la salud física y mental (Roberts, Hodgson & Dolan, 2011). Al respecto aclaran Stewart, Taylor & Baker (1997) que en las mujeres hay más preocupación por la salud física y en los hombres, por la salud psicológica. Para Rosenfield, & Mouzon (2012), esto se explicaría por la asociación entre la condición biológica y la construcción social que "induce", al parecer en el contexto sociocultural en el que se desarrolló la investigación, al fomento de concepciones de masculinidad y feminidad en las cuales, en las mujeres el riesgo se asocia con la internalización de los problemas y en los hombres con la externalización. ...
... Desde la psicología de la salud, acorde con McLean et al. (2011), Crimmins et al. (2011) y Roberts et al. (2011 las mujeres evidencian mayor preocupación por la salud física. Esto es coherente con Stewart, Taylor & Baker (1997) y reafirmado por Eaton et al. (2012), sobre una mayor preocupación hacia indicadores de salud próximos a las conductas internalizantes y en los hombres hacia las conductas externalizantes. Estas diferencias reafirman lo considerado por Rosenfield & Mouzon (2012) para quienes resultan de las construcciones sociales de feminidad y masculinidad, que conllevan a un mayor desarrollo del afrontamiento en esos dominios, por lo que la ansiedad social se relaciona significativamente con los indicadores de salud en los ámbitos opuestos para cada sexo. ...
Rec (28 de marzo de 2018) Acept (5 de noviembre de 2018) Resumen Se realizó una investigación cuantitativa, descriptiva, correlacional de corte transversal, para describir la posible relación entre la ansiedad social, la adicción a internet y al cibersexo, con la percepción de bienestar subjetivo y de malestar físico. Participaron 214 adultos jóvenes, con edades entre los 18 y 30 años, de la ciudad de Bogotá, Colombia. Los resultados evidenciaron un nivel bajo en el comportamiento de las variables y relaciones significativas, con diferencias en función del sexo, siendo en las mujeres la relación significativa y positiva entre la adicción al internet y la adición al cibersexo con la percepción de malestar físico, y en los hombres, significativa y negativa entre la adicción al internet y al cibersexo con la percepción de bienestar subjetivo. Se discuten los resultados y sus implicaciones, para el mejoramiento del bienestar y la calidad de vida del adulto joven. Palabras clave: Adicción al cibersexo, adicción a internet, bienestar subjetivo, malestar físico, jóvenes. Abstract A quantitative, descriptive and correlational research was done, with Cross-sectional design, with the aim to describe the possible significant relationship between the social anxiety, internet use addiction and Cybersex addiction, with the perception of subjective well-being and physical discomfort. Participants were 214 young adults, women and men with ages between 18 to 30 years old; all of them from the city of Bogotá, Colombia. The results showed low level measures in all of the variables with significant relationships between them. Also, showed significant differences depending on gender. For women, the relationship was stronger and positive between the internet and cybersex addiction and their perception of physical discomfort, for men was stronger and negative between internet and cybersex addiction and their subjective well-being perception. The results are discussed and its implications, in order to improve the well-being and the quality of life of the young adults.
... Desde una perspectiva de género, existe evidencia de mayores niveles de ansiedad social en mujeres (Crimmins, Kim & Sole-Auro, 2011;McLean, Asnaani, Litz & Hofmann, 2011); igualmente mayor preocupación en ellas por la salud física y mental (Roberts, Hodgson & Dolan, 2011). Al respecto aclaran Stewart, Taylor & Baker (1997) que en las mujeres hay más preocupación por la salud física y en los hombres, por la salud psicológica. Para Rosenfield, & Mouzon (2012), esto se explicaría por la asociación entre la condición biológica y la construcción social que "induce", al parecer en el contexto sociocultural en el que se desarrolló la investigación, al fomento de concepciones de masculinidad y feminidad en las cuales, en las mujeres el riesgo se asocia con la internalización de los problemas y en los hombres con la externalización. ...
... Desde la psicología de la salud, acorde con McLean et al. (2011), Crimmins et al. (2011) y Roberts et al. (2011 las mujeres evidencian mayor preocupación por la salud física. Esto es coherente con Stewart, Taylor & Baker (1997) y reafirmado por Eaton et al. (2012), sobre una mayor preocupación hacia indicadores de salud próximos a las conductas internalizantes y en los hombres hacia las conductas externalizantes. Estas diferencias reafirman lo considerado por Rosenfield & Mouzon (2012) para quienes resultan de las construcciones sociales de feminidad y masculinidad, que conllevan a un mayor desarrollo del afrontamiento en esos dominios, por lo que la ansiedad social se relaciona significativamente con los indicadores de salud en los ámbitos opuestos para cada sexo. ...
A quantitative, descriptive and correlational research was done, with Cross - sectional design, with the aim to describe the possible significant relationship between the social anxiety, internet use addiction and Cybersex addiction, with the perception of subjective well-being and physical discomfort. Participants were 214 young adults, women and men with ages between 18 to 30 years old; all of them from the city of Bogotá, Colombia. The results showed low level measures in all of the variables with significant relationships between them. Also, showed significant differences depending on gender. For women, the relationship was stronger and positive between the internet and cybersex addiction and their perception of physical discomfort, for men was stronger and negative between internet and cybersex addiction and their subjective well-being perception. The results are discussed and its implications, in order to improve the well-being and the quality of life of the young adults.
... They may do so only once symptoms are more severe (likely associated with elevated and generalized AS concerns). Interestingly, there were no gender differences across the remaining clusters despite prior evidence of gender differences in AS subscales (Stewart et al., 1997). The Cognitive cluster had a lower proportion of married people and a higher proportion of Asian/Asian Canadian participants than if these characteristics had been equally distributed across clusters. ...
Background/Purpose
Anxiety sensitivity (AS) is a transdiagnostic risk factor for mental health disorders. While its lower order factors – social, physical, and cognitive concerns – and their associations with emotional disorders have been examined independently of each other, research has not fully appreciated that these factors might appear to different degrees in individuals, with psychopathology implications.
Methods
We used cluster analysis to investigate how the lower order AS factors appear in treatment-seekers with high AS and how these manifestations of AS (i.e., the different clusters) are uniquely associated with psychopathology. Participants (N = 154; from two studies) were high AS treatment-seeking adults with anxiety and/or depressive disorders who completed a diagnostic interview and self-report measures of AS and anxiety and depression symptoms.
Results
A four-cluster solution emerged including a Multidimensional cluster (33.8% of the sample) and Social (28.6%), Physical (21.4%), and Cognitive (16.2%) clusters. Validation analyses revealed cross-cluster differences in age, gender, ethnicity, and psychopathology, the latter reflecting known associations between AS and mental health (e.g., depression symptoms were significantly highest in the Cognitive and Multidimensional clusters).
Conclusions
Results provide valuable insight into the heterogeneity of high AS as it appears clinically, with implications for best matching treatment approaches for this population.
... Interestingly, although individuals with AS are generally motivated to avoid exercise (Sabourin et al., 2011;Moshier et al., 2015;Farris et al., 2019), exercise can be effective in reducing AS (Broman-Fulks and Storey, 2008;Watt et al., 2008;Sabourin et al., 2015) leading to improvements in mental health (Broman-Fulks et al., 2018). Research suggests that females score higher than males on AS (Stewart et al., 1997). Moreover, AS has been found to be a mediator between sex and pandemic-related distress (i.e., news anxiety and overall anxiety), suggesting that higher levels of AS might help explain increased distress related to the pandemic in females, specifically (DeGrace et al., 2021). ...
Introduction
University students are at high risk for anxiety and depression. Our main objective was to tease apart variance in symptom severity that was uniquely attributable to four associated variables that are frequently confounded: exposure to childhood emotional abuse, alexithymia, sensory processing sensitivity (SPS), and anxiety sensitivity (AS).
Methods
University students (N = 410) completed an online survey designed to measure our four key study variables along with several other potentially relevant variables including sex, physical activity levels, and perceived COVID-19 impacts.
Results
Over half of the participants reported moderate to extremely severe symptoms of anxiety and depression. Females reported stronger signs of SPS and AS and were more likely than males to have increased their moderate/vigorous exercise since the pandemic began. After controlling for the other variables, the best predictors of perceived COVID-19 impacts were SPS, childhood emotional abuse, and current levels of physical activity. Whereas all three personality variables and childhood emotional abuse emerged as significant predictors of both depression and anxiety, neither COVID-19 impacts nor physical activity levels accounted for unique variance in either model. Unexpectedly, male sex emerged as an additional risk factor for depression, raising the possibility that males experience unique stressors and societal pressures that increase their risk of depression.
Discussion
These findings help to clarify the links between childhood emotional abuse, personality traits implicated in emotional awareness and self-regulation, and mental health. They may have important implications for the development and implementation of individualized treatments for common mental disorders.
... Preoccupied and fearful attachment styles also mark elevated AS (Weems et al., 2002). There are mixed findings regarding gender differences in AS, with some studies showing higher AS scores in women than in men (Armstrong & Khawaja, 2002;Deacon et al., 2002;Ghisi et al., 2016;Rifkin et al., 2015;Sandin et al., 2007;Stewart et al., 1997). This finding aligns with the wider anxiety literature (Lewinsohn et al., 1998;McLean et al., 2011). ...
Introduction: The present study examined the psychometric properties of a Greek adaptation of the Anxiety Sensitivity Index-3 (ASI-3; Taylor et al., 2007). Method: We translated the ASI-3 following a forward-backward method and then, in addition to measures of anxiety and depression (DASS-21; Lovibond & Lovibond, 1995; Lyrakos et al., 2011), we administered it to a nonclinical general population sample (N = 611) recruited online. Results: Confirmatory factor analysis revealed that a bifactor model with three orthogonal group factors best fit the data, followed by a correlated three-factor model. An examination of the dimensionality of the ASI-3 and the reliability of its dimensions suggested the presence of a reliable, strong AS general factor and comparatively weaker group factors. The ASI-3 appears to measure AS invariantly across gender. We report preliminary evidence for its convergent, discriminant, and divergent validity. Conclusion: The Greek adaption of the ASI-3 revealed adequate psychometric properties. Future studies should explore its criterion-related validity by administering the Greek adaptation of the ASI-3 to clinical samples and explore its relationship to other key constructs of anxiety sensitivity’s nomological network.
... También se han evidenciado diferencias de género en la sensibilidad a la ansiedad, de modo que las mujeres obtienen puntuaciones mayores en cada uno de los factores, en comparación con los varones (30) . Resultados similares se han reportado en poblaciones clínicas y no clínicas (31) , para lo cual se ha aplicado la prueba Índice de Sensibilidad a la Ansiedad (Anxiety Sensitivity Index -ASI) que fue creado originalmente por Reiss en 1986 con una estructura unidimensional de 16 ítems, y modificada por Taylor y Cox, quienes la ampliaron a 36 ítems con una estructura de tres factores. ...
Introducción:
La sensibilidad a la ansiedad es un constructo poco conocido, y que sin embargo tiene un importante valor clínico, por ser un potente predictor de los trastornos de ansiedad, tanto en niños, como adolescentes y adultos. En Perú existen pocas pruebas psicométricas que evalúan la ansiedad en niños, y menos aún sobre sensibilidad a la ansiedad.
Objetivo:
En esta investigación se realiza un análisis psicométrico del Índice de Sensibilidad para Niños con la finalidad de estimar la validez y la confiabilidad de esta prueba que no ha sido aplicada en población peruana.
Método:
Se tomó una muestra no probabilística de 568 escolares de entre 8 y 12 años de cinco instituciones educativas de la ciudad de Arequipa, en Perú. Los datos se procesaron mediante el Análisis Factorial Confirmatorio de Grupo Múltiple utilizando el programa R.
Resultados:
Los resultados confirmaron una estructura de dos factores: Miedo a las sensaciones corporales y Miedo a síntomas mentales y sociales, con índices de confiabilidad aceptables calculados mediante la prueba Omega de McDonald.
Conclusión:
Se concluye que la prueba es válida y confiable, pero se sugiere profundizar en el análisis psicométrico de este instrumento.
... One such risk/maintenance factor for sleep disturbance that has been suggested in the literature is anxiety sensitivity (AS) -a fear of arousalrelated sensations arising from the belief that these sensations will have catastrophic cognitive, physical, and/or social consequences (Taylor et al., 2007). Specifically, the global AS construct consists of three lower-order components: cognitive (e.g., "when I have trouble thinking clearly, I worry that there is something wrong with me"), physical (e.g., "when my throat feels tight, I worry that I could choke to death"), and social concerns (e.g., "when I begin to sweat in a social situation, I fear people will think negatively of me") (Stewart et al., 1997). ...
Cognitive models of insomnia posit a role for anxiety sensitivity (AS) in sleep difficulties. While sleep disturbances have been linked to AS, particularly AS cognitive concerns, prior studies have rarely accounted for the correlated construct of depression. We used pre-treatment intervention trial data from 128 high AS, treatment-seeking adults with a DSM-5 diagnosis of an anxiety, depressive, or posttraumatic stress disorder to determine whether AS cognitive concerns and/or depression are independently associated with sleep impairment domains (e.g., sleep quality, latency, daytime dysfunction). Participants provided data on AS, depressive symptoms, and sleep impairments. AS cognitive concerns (but not other AS dimensions) were correlated with four of five sleep impairment domains; depression was correlated with all five. Multiple regressions revealed four of five sleep impairment domains were predicted by depression with no independent contribution of AS cognitive concerns. In contrast, AS cognitive concerns and depression were independently associated with daytime dysfunction. Results suggest previous findings linking AS cognitive concerns to sleep impairments may have been largely secondary to the overlap of cognitive concerns with depression. Findings demonstrate the importance of incorporating depression into the cognitive model of insomnia. Both AS cognitive concerns and depression may be useful targets for reducing daytime dysfunction.
... As in other work on anxiety (e.g. Stewart, Taylor, & Baker, 1997), results showed that women scored higher on the emotional and relational dimension of eco-anxiety than men, indicating that women have greater sensitivity in the emotional sphere associated with eco-anxiety than their male counterparts. This gender difference, confirmed in other studies (Searle & Gow, 2010;Wullenkord et al., 2021), may however be linked to the declarative nature of self-report scales such as the EMEA. ...
IntroductionClimate change represents an unprecedented threat to humanity. In addition to the palpable consequences in terms of climate, it can generate psychological effects, such as eco-anxiety.Objective
The aim of the present study was to validate a French-language scale (EMEA) measuring eco-anxiety, in order to contribute to the latter’s understanding and characterization. To fully reflect the diversity of its manifestations, the construction of the items was based on a qualitative study involving in-depth interviews with 18 eco-anxious people. This study also analyzed the relationships between eco-anxiety, intolerance to uncertainty, and perception of climate risk.MethodA total of 691 individuals participated in the two phases of this research: 262 in Phase 1 (selection of scale items) and 429 in Phase 2 (psychometric validation). In addition to the items contained in the EMEA, Phase 2 included a climate anxiety scale, a climate risk perception scale, and a scale measuring intolerance to uncertainty. The research was conducted online after being approved by a research ethics board.ResultsResults reveal a hierarchical model with one main factor and three subfactors (anxiety-depressive manifestations, relational disturbances, and obsession with ecology). There were positive correlations between eco-anxiety, intolerance of uncertainty, and climate risk perception, and negative correlations between obsession with ecology (third EMEA subdimension) and intolerance of uncertainty, consistent with convergent validity hypotheses.Conclusion
The EMEA’s psychometric qualities will allow it to be used for further research, but also as an assessment and care decision aid for health professionals to help patients with severe or paralyzing eco-anxiety. It will also be useful for studying the efficiency of psychotherapeutic interventions.
... Previous research (Taylor and Cox 1998;Zinbarg et al., 1997) has identified three subscales: (a) cognitive concerns (e.g., "I might lose control of my mind"); (b) physical concerns (e.g., "It scares me when my heart beats rapidly"); (c) social concerns (e.g., "It is important for me not to appear nervous"). The ASI has demonstrated good internal consistency and reliability (Peterson and Heilbronner 1987;Stewart et al., 1997;Zvolensky et al., 2001). Previous work has identified various cut-off scores to categorize individuals as having a high or low level of anxiety sensitivity using the ASI. ...
Background
Anxiety sensitivity involves the fear of anxiety-related symptoms and can exacerbate both major depressive disorder and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms. However, it is unclear if anxiety sensitivity plays a similar role in dissociative identity disorder (DID) where symptoms of depression and PTSD commonly co-occur. We examined the association between anxiety sensitivity, depression, PTSD and dissociative symptoms in DID, hypothesizing a positive association between all symptoms and anxiety sensitivity.
Method
Participants were 21 treatment-seeking adult females with histories of childhood trauma, current PTSD, and DID. Participants completed the Anxiety Sensitivity Index (ASI), Beck Depression Inventory-II, Childhood Trauma Questionnaire, Multidimensional Inventory of Dissociation, and PTSD Checklist for DSM-5. The ASI included subscales that assessed anxiety sensitivity in cognitive, physical, and social domains.
Results
Participants reported high levels of anxiety sensitivity. A multiple regression analysis demonstrated that the ASI cognitive subscale was the strongest predictor of depressive symptoms. No direct associations were identified between anxiety sensitivity and PTSD or dissociative symptoms. We conducted a mediation analysis to test an indirect relationship between cognitive anxiety sensitivity and dissociative symptoms, and found a significant indirect effect through depressive symptoms.
Conclusions
Our results suggest that cognitive anxiety sensitivity or the fear of cognitive dyscontrol is linked with symptom severity in DID. These findings emphasize the need to assess for and utilize interventions that target anxiety sensitivity, which may in turn alleviate symptoms of depression and dissociation in DID.
... Currently, significant gaps remain in our understanding of the sexbased differences in the complex relationships between AnxS, exercise and CR. While some studies have reported sex-based differences in AnxS, the evidence is yet inconclusive regarding sex-based differences in AnxS in the general population [69]. Likewise, there is inconsistent evidence, often from non-comparable studies, on the role of sex-based differences in the relationship between AnxS and exercise, often because studies do not account for baseline differences in exercise participation or AnxS. ...
Background
Despite well-established efficacy for patients with a cardiovascular diagnosis or event, exercise-based cardiac rehabilitation program participation and completion has remained alarmingly low due to both system-level barriers and patient-level factors. Patient mental health, particularly depression, is now recognized as significantly associated with reduced enrollment, participation, attendance, and completion of a cardiac rehabilitation program. More recently, anxiety sensitivity has emerged as an independent construct, related to but distinct from both depression and anxiety. Anxiety sensitivity has been reported to be adversely associated with participation in exercise and, thus, may be important for patients in cardiac rehabilitation. Accordingly, the objective of this study was to conduct a scoping review to summarize the evidence for associations between anxiety sensitivity and cardiovascular disease risk factors, exercise, and clinical outcomes in cardiac rehabilitation.
Methods
A formal scoping review, following PRISMA-ScR guidelines, was undertaken. Searches of MEDLINE, Web of Science, CINAHL, PSYCINFO, and Scopus databases were conducted, supplemented by hand searches; studies published through December of 2020 were included. The initial screening was based on titles and abstracts and the second stage of screening was based on full text examination.
Results
The final search results included 28 studies. Studies reported statistically significant associations between anxiety sensitivity and exercise, cardiovascular disease, and participation in cardiac rehabilitation. Many studies, however, were conducted in non-clinical, community-based populations; there were few studies conducted in cardiovascular disease and cardiac rehabilitation clinical patient populations. Additionally, significant gaps remain in our understanding of the sex-based differences in the complex relationships between anxiety sensitivity, exercise and cardiac rehabilitation.
Conclusion
More research is needed to understand specific associations between anxiety sensitivity and clinical outcomes among clinical cardiovascular disease patients and participants in cardiac rehabilitation programs. Treatment of anxiety sensitivity to optimize clinical outcomes in cardiac rehabilitation programs should be investigated in future studies.
... Firstly, because the age range in our samples is quite large for a developing population (at least in sample 1 and 2) studies with a closer age range could be used to further pinpoint developmental critical age ranges for the associations found. Secondly, the incidence and prevalence of anxiety disorders as well as reported anxiety measures seems to be a different between male and female subjects (Stewart, Taylor, & Baker, 1997;Zolog, Bonillo, Ballabriga, & Canals, 2011). A priori we could not find sex differences between phenotypes, nonetheless anxiety disorders have a higher prevalence in women (World Health Organization, 2004a). ...
Anxiety disorders are the most prevalent group of neuropsychiatric disorders and go along with high personal suffering. They often arise during childhood and show a progression across the life span, thus making this age a specific vulnerable period during development. Still most research about these disorders is done in adults. In light of this, it seems of utmost importance to identify predictive factors of anxiety disorders in children and adolescents. Temperament or personality traits have been proclaimed as risk markers for the development of subsequent anxiety disorders, but their exact interplay is not clear. In this dissertation an effort is made to contribute to the understanding of how risk markers of early temperamental traits, in this case Trait Anxiety, Anxiety Sensitivity and Separation Anxiety are interplaying. While Trait Anxiety is regarded as a more general tendency to react anxiously to threatening situations or stimuli (Unnewehr, Joormann, Schneider, & Margraf, 1992), Anxiety Sensitivity is the tendency to react with fear to one’s own anxious sensations (Allan et al., 2014; S. Reiss, Peterson, Gursky, & McNally, 1986), and Separation Anxiety is referring to the extent to which the child is avoiding certain situations because of the fear of being separated from primary care givers (In-Albon & Schneider, 2011). In addition, it will be addressed how these measurements are associated with negative life events, as well as brain functioning and if they are malleable by a prevention program in children and adolescents. In study 1 the aim was to extend the knowledge about the interrelations of this anxiety dimensions and negative life events. Results indicated positive correlations of all three anxiety traits as well as with negative life events. Thus, a close connection of all three anxiety measures as well as with negative life events could be indicated. The closest association was found between Anxiety Sensitivity and Trait Anxiety and between Separation Anxiety and Anxiety Sensitivity. Furthermore, negative life events functioned as mediator between Anxiety Sensitivity and Trait Anxiety, indicating that a part of the association was explained by negative life events. In study 2 we extended the findings from study 1 with neurobiological parameters and examined the influence of anxiety traits on emotional brain activation by administering the “emotional face matching task”. This task activated bilateral prefrontal regions as well as both hippocampi and the right amygdala. Further analyses indicated dimension-specific brain activations: Trait Anxiety was associated with a hyperactivation of the left inferior frontal gyrus (IFG) and Separation Anxiety with a lower activation bilaterally in the IFG and the right middle frontal gyrus (MFG). Furthermore, the association between Separation Anxiety and Anxiety Sensitivity was moderated by bi-hemispheric Separation-Anxiety-related IFG activation. Thus, we could identify distinct brain activation patterns for the anxiety dimensions (Trait Anxiety and Separation Anxiety) and their associations (Separation Anxiety and Anxiety Sensitivity). The aim of study 3 was to probe the selective malleability of the anxiety dimensions via a prevention program in an at-risk population. We could identify a reduction of all three anxiety traits from pre- to post-prevention-assessment and that this effect was significant in Anxiety Sensitivity and Trait Anxiety scores. Furthermore, we found that pre-intervention Separation Anxiety and Anxiety Sensitivity post-intervention were associated. In addition, pre-interventive scores were correlated with the intervention-induced change within the measure (i.e., the higher the score before the intervention the higher the prevention-induced change) and pre-intervention Anxiety Sensitivity correlated with the change in Separation Anxiety scores. All relations, seemed to be direct, as mediation/moderation analyses with negative life events did not reveal any significant effect. These results are very promising, because research about anxiety prevention in children and adolescents is still rare and our results are indicating that cognitive-behavioural-therapy based prevention is gilding significant results in an indicated sample even when samples sizes are small like in our study. In sum the present findings hint towards distinct mechanisms underlying the three different anxiety dimensions on a phenomenological and neurobiological level, though they are highly overlapping (Higa-McMillan, Francis, Rith-Najarian, & Chorpita, 2016; Taylor, 1998). Furthermore, the closest associations were found between Anxiety Sensitivity and Trait Anxiety, as well as between Separation Anxiety and Anxiety Sensitivity. Specifically, we were able to find a neuronal manifestation of the association between Separation Anxiety and Anxiety Sensitivity (Separation Anxiety-specific IFG activation) and a predictive potential on prevention influence. The results of these studies lead to a better understanding of the etiology of anxiety disorders and the interplay between different anxiety-related temperamental traits and could lead to further valuable knowledge about the intervention as well as further prevention strategies.
... We adjusted for sex in our models, and there were no significant effects except for depression. Still, as some work has found sex differences for anxiety sensitivity [82], future research could benefit from a more balanced sample to ensure the effects are generalizable across sex. Fourth, the current study sampled primarily young adults; thus, the extent to which the findings are generalizable to younger and older non-Hispanic Black populations remains unknown. ...
The non-Hispanic Black adult population has notable disparities in mental and physical health compared to several other racial/ethnic groups. Yet, there is a lack of scientific knowledge about psychologically based individual difference factors that may be associated with an exacerbation of common mental and physical health symptoms among non-Hispanic Black persons. The present investigation sought to build on the limited knowledge about anxiety sensitivity among non-Hispanic Black adults by exploring whether this construct was uniquely associated with a range of prevalent mental health and psychosomatic symptoms commonly tied to disparities among this population. Participants included non-Hispanic Black adults (N = 205; Mage = 21.67 years; SDage = 5.39; age range: 18-60 years; 82.0% female). Results indicated that anxiety sensitivity was positively related to anxious arousal, general depression, insomnia, fatigue severity, and somatic symptom severity; effects were evident above and beyond the variance explained by a range of covariates, including age, sex, education, subjective social status, and neuroticism. Overall, the present findings uniquely build from past research on anxiety sensitivity and non-Hispanic Black adults by demonstrating that individual differences in this construct are consistently and relatively robustly associated with a wide range of mental health and psychosomatic symptoms. Future research that builds from this work may benefit from consideration of intervention programming targeting anxiety sensitivity reduction to offset mental and physical health impairments among the non-Hispanic Black population.
... Because we targeted brief (i.e., six sessions or less), and at times, very brief (e.g., one 10-minute session) interventions, we included treatment time (in minutes) as a moderator. Also, because females tend to have higher AS than males (e.g., Norr et al., 2015;Olatunji & Wolitzky-Taylor, 2009;Stewart et al., 1997), we evaluated whether sex moderated treatment effects (as operationalized by the proportion of the sample who were female in each study). ...
Anxiety sensitivity (AS) is a transdiagnostic risk factor and potential treatment target for prevention of associated psychopathology and negative health behaviors. We conducted a meta-analysis evaluating the efficacy of brief interventions in at-risk samples for reducing AS and associated clinical/behavioral outcomes (e.g., depression, alcohol use) across 28 studies (1,998 participants). AS targeted interventions, compared to control conditions, evidenced a significant moderate effect size for alleviating AS from pre- to post-treatment (d = 0.54) and approached a large effect size from pre-treatment to short-term follow-up (d = 0.78). The effect size for long-term follow-up did not reach significance (d = 0.29). For clinical/behavioral outcomes, AS interventions demonstrated significant small-to-moderate effect sizes for the three timepoints examined (d's = 0.20-0.41). Our findings help validate AS as a modifiable mechanistic target for prevention efforts.
... One of the most widely used instruments to evaluate AS is the 16-item Anxiety Sensitivity Index (ASI) developed by Reiss et al. (1986), who concluded that the AS structure measured using this tool was unidimensional. However, other studies conducted using this scale showed different results, that is, that AS structure varies between two and four factors (Blais et al., 2001;Cox et al., 2001;Peterson & Heilbronner, 1987;Schmidt & Joiner, 2002;Stewart et al., 1997;Taylor et al., 1992;Telch et al., 1989;Wardle et al., 1990). However, there are also studies that arrived at the same findings as Reiss et al. (1986) (Sandin et al., 1996;Taylor et al., 1991Taylor et al., , 1992. ...
The purpose of the current study was to investigate the factor structure of the Anxiety Sensitivity Index-3 (ASI-3) in a Turkey sample and to determine measurement invariance of the ASI-3 across gender and age groups. Confirmatory factor analysis was performed on four different models to determine the best fit model for the structure. After the best structure was determined, different models were tested for measurement invariance across gender and age groups. To determine the reliability of the ASI-3, the hierarchical omega coefficient and correlations between the scores obtained from different scales for convergent validity were calculated. It has been determined that the bifactor model is the model that best fits the data, and this model shows invariance across gender and age groups. Besides, evidence regarding the reliability and convergent validity of the ASI-3 was also provided in the study. Current findings show that anxiety sensitivity consists of a general factor (anxiety sensitivity) and three independent specific factors (physical, cognitive, and social concerns). It was concluded that the general factor of anxiety sensitivity constitutes a dominant factor and special factors have a relatively low effect on explaining the structure. Considering the dominance of the general factor, it is recommended to use the ASI-3 total score as a measure of general anxiety sensitivity.
... Women, throughout life, have higher prevalence of cognitive and somatic anxiety (Kajantie & Phillips, 2006). Across cultures and in non-clinical populations, women are more likely to experience negative affect (Costa et al., 2001) and be more fearful of experiencing anxiety symptoms (Deacon et al., 2003;Stewart et al., 1997). Neuroimaging evidence shows that women have greater activation in brain regions mediating attention to potential threats (McClure et al., 2004), so sex differences in processing of information may result in increased vigilance. ...
Anxiety is common, yet often under-treated, among women in postmenopause. This study examined the effect of a hypnotic intervention designed to reduce hot flashes, on anxiety levels of postmenopausal women. Anxiety was assessed using the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale-Anxiety subscale, and a visual analog scale. Additionally, hypnotizability was tested as a moderator of anxiety reductions. Significant reductions in anxiety were found from baseline to endpoint and follow-up and hypnosis was superior to the control condition. Additionally, ratings of Current Anxiety decreased from pre-session to post-session at each weekly visit and the pre-session scores reduced continuously. Hypnotizability was found to moderate anxiety reductions, but regardless of hypnotizability level participants, on average, experienced significant symptom improvement from baseline scores. These data provide initial support for the use of hypnosis to reduce symptoms of anxiety among postmenopausal women.
Trial registration: This study was registered at ClinicalTrials.gov on February 11, 2011 under Identifier number NCT01293695 (https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT01293695?term=Elkins&cond=hot+flashes&draw=2&rank=2).
... Already Endler et al. (1962) reported that females get a higher score on STAI (which is a cognitive and affective describer of anxiety) than males. Referring to anxiety, Stewart et al. (1997) claimed that females have much more fear of physical outcomes of anxiety, while in Foot and Koszycki (2004) it is reported that males have much more fear of the social outcomes of anxiety. Wood and Eagly (2002) described that propensity to consider vague conditions as a threatening situation is an adaptive method for females to maintain the safety of themselves and their offspring. ...
Evaluating the personal adaptation response to the emergency situations is very important for the prevention of mental distress, for the activation of network and community synergies and for the planning and implementation of appropriate psycho-social interventions. So far there are no short tools for the overall assessment of cognitive, emotional and behavioral responses of psychological adaptation to the emergency in the psychometric panorama. The Emergency Response and Psychological Adjustment Scale (ERPAS) was administered to a sample of 1,088 participants, while the concurrent validity was tested through a second administration to 600 participants along with the GSE (Generalized Self-Efficacy Scale) and the BDI-II (Beck Depression Inventory-II). Confirmatory factor analysis bore out a five-factor solution (including 18 items) with good fit indices of adaptation to data, χ²/df = 1.440, RMSEA = 0.028, RMSEA 90% CI = 0.018–0.038, GFI = 0.996, AGFI = 0.959, CFI = 0.982, and NFI = 0.944. Evidence of convergent validity was provided by the significant correlations with variables such as cognitive and somatic depression, and perceived general self-efficacy. The analyses also showed a strong invariance across gender. The ERPAS tool prefigures application during the assessment in multiple emergency contexts (e.g. earthquakes, floods, pandemics, terrorist attacks, war events, major accidents, major fires). This validation study of the ERPAS has shown that this version is a reliable and valid measurement for assessing people's modes of personal response (cognitive, emotional, behavioral) in emergency contexts.
... Female participants in our study, had significantly higher somatic trait anxiety on the STICSA as compared to men (Balsamo et al., 2015). This supports previous research indicating that women within nonclinical samples experience physiological anxiety symptoms to a larger extent than men (Stewart et al., 1997). Further, in our study, women also had higher anxiety as measured by the anxiety subscale of the DASS, with this also supporting previous research (Bayram and Bilgel, 2008;Imam, 2008). ...
This study explored the factor structure of the State-Trait Inventory for Cognitive and Somatic Anxiety (STICSA) and measurement invariance between genders. We also measured concurrent and divergent validity of the STICSA as compared to the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI). A sample of 1064 (N Females = 855) participants completed questionnaires, including measures of anxiety, depression, stress, positive and negative affect. Confirmatory factor analyses supported the original factor structure of the STICSA, which was invariant between genders. Overall, the STICSA had superior concurrent and divergent validity as compared to the STAI. The somatic subscales were also significantly less correlated with depression, and positive and negative affect. Further, the somatic, as compared to cognitive anxiety STICSA subscales were less correlated with depression. This suggests that the STICSA, especially the somatic anxiety subscales, might hold the key to distinguishing between different types of anxiety, as well as between anxiety and depression.
... For example, after estrogen enters the estrogen receptors, the receptors affect other hormones as well. Therefore, the positive effects of the estrogen hormone on memory in case of anxiety symptoms of the estrogen hormone cause the level of avoidance and danger perception to decrease (Stewart, Taylor & Baker, 1997). While anxiety was observed to be higher in female in field studies, it was observed that anxiety was higher in male in clinical studies. ...
... AS is associated with elevated anxiety in nonpandemic times and specifically linked with Ebola pandemic-related distress (Blakey et al., 2015). Research has demonstrated sex differences in these traits: males score higher in SS (Cross et al., 2013), females higher in AS (Stewart et al., 1997). ...
Males are more non-adherent to public health measures for containing COVID-19 while females experience more COVID-19-related distress. Personality traits may influence both non-adherence and distress. We examined sensation seeking (SS), anxiety sensitivity (AS), impulsivity, and hopelessness as traits potentially associated with non-adherence and distress in response to COVID-19. Furthermore, we sought to understand if known sex differences in SS (male>female) and AS (female>male) may explain sex differences on these two COVID-19 outcomes. In the first month of the pandemic, 400 adults (mean age = 32.16 years; 45.3%F) completed the Substance Use Risk Profile Scale to assess personality. Degree of adherence to public health recommendations and COVID-19-related distress were also measured. Male sex was indirectly related to poorer adherence to stay-at-home advisories via SS, and female sex was indirectly related to higher COVID-19 distress via AS. Personality-targeted interventions may help reduce non-adherence and COVID-19 distress, potentially reducing sex differences.
... Nevertheless, before assuming that this is an important effect, it should be recalled that the sample is uneven, given that the group comprised almost twice as many women as men. However, one should recall that it has been reported that women tend to score higher than men in terms of worry (Robichaud, Dugas, & Conway, 2003;Stewart, Taylor, & Baker, 1997). Perhaps future research, while the pandemic lasts, may change these figures. ...
Introduction
Preventive measures taken during periods of health crisis, specifically in pandemics, have consistently been associated with detrimental effects on mental health. Isolation and loneliness are indirect effects of these preventive measures. Given these premises, monitoring the behavior of the population in the face of these eventualities becomes important. Worry as an indirect measure of anxiety and stress enables one to recognize subjects who are vulnerable to phenomena of high uncertainty, since measures taken to avoid excessive contagion can have high costs for this population. This phenomenon has been consistently observed in other pandemics such as H1/N1 influenza.
Objective
To determine the prevalence of worry and perceived risk of contagion in the Guadalajara population during the COVID-19 quarantine and to identify differentiating effects.
Method
A total of 255 people from western Mexico (Guadalajara, Jalisco) voluntarily participated by answering the Penn State Worry Questionnaire (PSWQ) adapted to Mexican population. The average age of the respondents, aged between 18 and 70 years, was 31.71 (± 5.19). A total of 170 women and 85 men participated in the study.
Results
40.12% of the population scored high levels of worry, making them vulnerable to mental health conditions. Subjects favored the prevention of a contagion regardless of whether they were self-isolated. The only variable that had a differential effect was sex (p < .05), and there were no differences in educational attainment, occupational demandingness, and isolation between the groups.
Discussion and conclusion
A preventive attitude was observed among the participants, and so it is important to implement strategies that will prevent mental health costs in those who express excessive worry to avoid saturating mental health services.
... Anxiety trait is a personal predisposition to experience more frequent and more intense anxiety symptoms (Stewart, Taylor, & Baker, 1997). From the scientific literature, it is not clear if we can expect a higher or lower level of anxiety traits in athletes compared to nonathletes. ...
Background: Aggression has become a social problem both – on and off the playing field. So far, findings indicate modification role of sport activity and its type in terms of contact’s occurrence, in behavior of persons.
Objective: The aim of the study is to investigate the level of physical and verbal aggression, anger and hostility of nonathletes and athletes participate in different type of sport activity and also to find out the relationship between dimension of aggression and the level of anxiety trait.
Methods: The research group was comprised of 153 males (22.07±2.49 years): 47 contact sport athletes, 51 noncontact sport athletes and 55 nonathletes. Kruskal-Wallis test with following Mann-Whitney U-test was used to find out the level of dimensions of aggression (measured by a questionnaire BPAQ) and anxiety trait (measured by a questionnaire STAI). To determined the relationship between dimensions of aggression and anxiety trait the Spearman correlation coefficient was used.
Results: We found out that nonathletes are more physical aggressive than contact sport athletes and they also dispose of higher level of anger and hostility. Moreover, nonathletes are more hostil, physical and verbal aggressive than noncontact sport athletes. There was no difference between contact sport and noncontact sport athletes in any dimension of aggression. Besides that, it exists positive relation between anxiety trait level and physical aggression in male regardless participating in sport activities.
Conclusion: Our results showed that nonathletes have higher level of anger, hostility, physical and verbal aggression than athletes. Differences between athletes in terms of contact’s occurance have not been demonstrated. At the same time, the level of anxiety trait is postive related with physical aggression in athletes and nonathletes as well.
Key words: dimensions of aggression, behaviour, combat sport, sport activity, sport psychology
... Women's biological features, such as hormonal changes, along with their disadvantages in societal areas of life (socioeconomic status, gender-related social roles) extend to gender differences in mental health. Thus, women tend to report being more moody than men (91), more worried (92), more anxious (93,94), and more stressed and depressed (11,68,82,87,(95)(96)(97)(98)(99)(100). Many studies have also shown that women score lower than men on psychological indicators of well-being and coping resources, such as self-esteem (10,99,(101)(102)(103)(104), will-to-live (9,11), and self-efficacy (23). ...
Maintaining health and quality of life and decreasing the number of years lived with disabilities in old age are among the main challenges of aging societies worldwide. This paper aims to present current worldwide health-related gender inequalities throughout life, and especially in late life, as well as gender gaps in social and personal resources which affect health, functioning and well-being. This paper also addresses the question of whether gender gaps at younger ages tend to narrow in late life, due to the many biological and social changes that occur in old age. Based on international data regarding these gender gaps and the trends of change in personal resources and health-related lifestyles in the more and less developed nations, conclusions regarding future changes in gender gaps are presented, along with practical implications for future improvements in women's health and well-being.
... It indicates the tendency to create catastrophic thinking about the consequences of such emotions. 14,15 Anxiety sensitivity reflects the individual's expectation of the stimulus outcome and people's individual differences in the tendency to experience fear while responding to the signs of anxiety. 16 Considering the association between stress and disease, anxiety sensitivity acts as a mediator in formation and continuation of psychological disorders. ...
Background: Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) is a functional gastrointestinal disorder that affects social, occupational, communicational, and psychological functioning. Therefore, the aim of this research was to determine the effect of emotional regulation and distress tolerance skills based on Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) on anxiety sensitivity and emotion regulation difficulties among women with IBS.
Methods: In order to conduct this study, a sample of 30 women with IBS who referred to Tehran healthcare centers was selected using the convenience sampling. Then, participants were assigned to experimental and control groups randomly. In this pretest-posttest semi-experimental study, we used anxiety sensitivity index questionnaire and the emotion regulation questionnaire. The experimental group received the educational intervention in 10 sessions during two and a half months. Data were analyzed by SPSS software.
Results: The results showed that DBT had a significant effect on anxiety sensitivity and emotional regulation difficulties in women with IBS (P-value < 0.001). So, this treatment could reduce the anxiety sensitivity and emotional regulation difficulties in with IBS women.
Conclusion: According to the results, DBT educations can reduce the anxiety sensitivity and negative emotion regulation and increase the positive emotion regulation.
... In a 2003 study, Silverman and colleagues used CFA to compare two-, three-, and fourfactor models of 13 CASI items. In these analyses, five items were not classified (items 7, 13, 16, 14, and 18), given inconsistencies among previous studies with respect to which factors these items on the CASI Muris et al. 2001;Silverman et al. 1999;van Widenfelt et al. 2002) and ASI (Carter et al. 1999;Stewart et al. 1997;Zinbarg et al. 1997;Zvolensky et al. 2001) belonged. Results of these analyses indicated that the four-factor model provided the best fit for the data and that this model provided a significantly better fit than the three-factor model. ...
Background
Child anxiety sensitivity (AS) is measured almost exclusively using the Childhood Anxiety Sensitivity Index (CASI). Yet, in the context of significant discrepancies regarding the CASI factors and how they are scored and reported, it remains unclear whether the CASI reliably and validly assesses the purported multifactorial AS construct.
Objective
This paper will: (1) provide a comprehensive summary of previous CASI factor analyses by which these factor structures were identified, (2) evaluate evidence regarding the multifactorial nature of AS in youth, and (3) discuss potential directions for continued research in this area.
Method
In a PsycInfo search, peer-reviewed studies published between 1991 and 2018 were identified for inclusion if they examined the factor structure of the CASI or reported data on the CASI subscales as administered to child participants.
Results
Findings from the 50 studies reviewed suggested that (1) the 18-item CASI does not consistently yield internally reliable assessments of specific AS facets, (2) significant discrepancies exist regarding the CASI subscales identified, the items comprising these scales, and their predictive validity in terms of anxiety, and (3) alternatives to assess the multifactorial construct of AS in youth do exist, but they have not been systematically examined in the literature.
Conclusions
Directions for future study include further examining expanded scales for AS in youth, continued study of shorter scales assessing more consistently reliable AS content, and evaluating the utility of an expanded response scale for the CASI.
... The vast majority of research suggests that anxiety sensitivity consists of three facets reflecting physical concerns, cognitive concerns, and social [14]. Across studies, the three first-order facets measure fears of adverse physical outcomes (Physical Concerns), fears of cognitive dyscontrol (Cognitive Concerns), and fears of the public display of anxiety symptoms [14,Social Concerns;,15]. Importantly, anxiety sensitivity is distinct from trait anxiety [16] and neuroticism [17]. ...
Background: The opioid epidemic is a significant public health crisis, and this problem is particularly prevalent among individuals with chronic pain. Accordingly, there is an urgent need for interventions to mitigate the risk for opioid misuse and opioid use disorder among people with pain. Given that mental health problems, specifically anxiety, are common among people who misuse opioids, it is important to examine factors that link mental health problems with opioid misuse to ultimately inform the development of novel interventions. Anxiety sensitivity, a transdiagnostic vulnerability factor defined as the fear of anxiety-related physical sensations, may be one important mechanism in elevated opioid misuse among persons with chronic pain.
Objective: Therefore, the current cross-sectional study examined anxiety sensitivity (and construct sub-facets) as a predictor of opioid misuse among adults with chronic pain.
Method: Adults reporting chronic pain and prescription opioid use completed an online survey.
Results: Anxiety sensitivity was associated with multiple aspects of opioid misuse, including current opioid misuse, severity of opioid dependence, and number of opioids used to get high. The magnitude of effects ranged from medium to large. Associations between anxiety sensitivity and opioid misuse were observed over and above the variance accounted for by age, sex, income, education, perceived health, and pain severity.
Conclusion: These findings suggest that anxiety sensitivity may be an important treatment target among adults with chronic pain who misuse opioids. Future research should continue to explore the explanatory relevance of anxiety sensitivity in opioid misuse among individuals with chronic pain.
Introduction
Climate change represents an unprecedented threat to humanity. In addition to the palpable consequences in terms of climate, it can generate psychological effects, such as eco-anxiety.
Objective
The aim of the present study was to validate a French-language scale (EMEA) measuring eco-anxiety, in order to contribute to the latter's understanding and characterization. To fully reflect the diversity of its manifestations, the construction of the items was based on a qualitative study involving in-depth interviews with 18 eco-anxious people. This study also analyzed the relationships between eco-anxiety, intolerance to uncertainty, and perception of climate risk.
Method
A total of 691 individuals participated in the two phases of this research: 262 in Phase 1 (selection of scale items) and 429 in Phase 2 (psychometric validation). In addition to the items contained in the EMEA, Phase 2 included a climate anxiety scale, a climate risk perception scale, and a scale measuring intolerance to uncertainty. The research was conducted online after being approved by a research ethics board.
Results
Results reveal a hierarchical model with one main factor and three subfactors (anxiety-depressive manifestations, relational disturbances, and obsession with ecology). There were positive correlations between eco-anxiety, intolerance of uncertainty, and climate risk perception, and negative correlations between obsession with ecology (third EMEA subdimension) and intolerance of uncertainty.
Conclusion
The EMEA's psychometric qualities will allow it to be used for further research, but also as an assessment and care decision aid for health professionals to help patients with severe or paralyzing eco-anxiety. It will also be useful for studying the efficiency of psychotherapeutic interventions.
To meaningfully use the Anxiety Sensitivity Index-3 (ASI-3) with athletes, measurement invariance must be established. Thus, we sought to determine appropriate factor structures for the ASI-3 in an athlete sample, assess measurement invariance between an athlete sample and a less active sample, and compare ASI-3 scores between these groups. Two university student samples were recruited: an athlete sample ( n = 216) and a less active control sample ( n = 321). Results supported bifactor and hierarchical factor structures for the ASI-3 overall and in the athlete sample. Measurement invariance of these factor structures was established. ASI-3 score comparisons indicated that the athlete sample had significantly lower levels of global anxiety sensitivity, and lower physical and social concerns. Results support the use of the ASI-3 to address mental health concerns in athletes and permit meaningful comparisons between athletes and nonathletes using the ASI-3 and its subscales.
Although control over aversive events maintains a central role in contemporary models of anxiety pathology, particularly panic disorder, there is little understanding about the emotional consequences of specific types of control processes. In the present study, offset control over 8 20% carbon dioxide-enriched air administrations was experimentally manipulated in a large nonclinical population (n = 96) varying in anxiety sensitivity (high or low) and gender. Dependent measures included self-reported anxiety, affective reports of valence, arousal, emotional control, and physiological indices of heart rate and skin conductance. High anxiety-sensitive participants who lacked offset control reported significantly greater elevations in self-reported anxiety, emotional displeasure, arousal, and dyscontrol relative to their yoked counterparts with offset control. In contrast, low anxiety-sensitive individuals responded with similar levels of cognitive and affective distress regardless of the offset control manipulation. Although the provocation procedure reliably produced bodily arousal relative to baseline, at a physiological level of analysis, no significant differences emerged across conditions. These findings are discussed in relation to offset control during recurrent interoceptive arousal, with implications for better understanding anxiety about abrupt bodily sensations.
Overgeneralization of conditioned fear is associated with anxiety disorders (AD). Most results stem from studies done in adult patients, but studies with children are rare, although the median onset of anxiety disorders lies already in childhood. Thus, the goal of the present study was to examine fear learning and generalization in youth participants, aged 10–17 years, with AD (n = 39) compared to healthy controls (HC) (n = 40). A discriminative fear conditioning and generalization paradigm was used. Ratings of arousal, valence, and US expectancy (the probability of an aversive noise following each stimulus) were measured, hypothesizing that children with AD compared to HC would show heightened ratings of arousal and US expectancy, and decreased positive valence ratings, respectively, as well as overgeneralization of fear. The results indicated that children with AD rated all stimuli as more arousing and less pleasant, and demonstrated higher US expectancy ratings to all stimuli when compared to HC. Thus, rather than displaying qualitatively different generalization patterns (e.g., a linear vs. quadratic slope of the gradient), differences between groups were more quantitative (similar, but parallel shifted gradient). Therefore, overgeneralization of conditioned fear does not seem to be a general marker of anxiety disorders in children and adolescents.
Research shows that health anxiety significantly affects older adults' health and quality of life. Although exercise may be associated with lower health anxiety, research on older adults is limited, and the mechanism remains unknown. This study examined the association between exercise and health anxiety in older women and the mediating role of anxiety sensitivity in this association. Participants were 166 women aged 65+ years, without health problems that prevented them from exercising. Participants were recruited via Facebook advertisements. They completed an online self-report questionnaire including measures of health anxiety, physical activity, and anxiety sensitivity. The SPSS PROCESS macro was used to examine the association between exercise and health anxiety, and the role of anxiety sensitivity as a mediator. Results indicated that greater participation in exercise was associated with lower health anxiety, and anxiety sensitivity mediated the association. Findings suggest that exercise-based interventions might prevent health anxiety in older adults.
Epidemics bring along many pathologies and become a threat for ill individuals because of an outbreak and those exposed to th e outbreak process. Many negative psychological and educational results can be encountered following the COVID-19 process when previous studies were considered together with these threats. In this context, this research aimed to examine the effect of t he COVI D-19 on anxiety sensitivity, death anxiety, and resilience. In addition, examining anxiety sensitivity in terms of some personal variables (gender, physical health, marital status, and working status). The study has been conducted on a relational survey method. Th e participants consisted of 955 individuals aged between 18-68, of which 281 were males, and 662 were females. In this study, Anxiety Sensitivity Index-3, Death Anxiety Scale, and Brief Resilience Scale were used to collect data. The data were analyzed with Pearson correlation coefficient, regression, independent samples t-test, and ANOVA. The result of analyses showed a positive correlation between anxiety sensitivity and death anxiety; however, there is a negative correlation between resilience and anxiety sensit ivity. Furthermore, resilience and anxiety sensitivity differed significantly according to gender, marital status, and working status (student, unemployed, employed, retired); however, the level of death anxiety did not differ according to gender and marital status. An xiety sensitivity, death anxiety, and resilience did not differ significantly in terms of physical health. When considering the finding obtain ed in the present study, individuals with high anxiety sensitivity levels were affected more by the COVID-19 pandemic, but those with high resilience levels were affected less. © IJERE. All rights reserved
The present study sought to examine associations between anxiety sensitivity and both sleep and physical activity among college students, who are particularly vulnerable to sleep disturbance, decreased physical activity, and the development of psychopathology, especially in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Participants were 683 college students (Mage = 20.33, SD = 3.58; 72% female; 70.3% White) who completed self-report measures online for course credit. Results indicated that after controlling for the effects of age, gender identity, and race, greater sleep disturbance was significantly associated with higher overall anxiety sensitivity (7% unique variance; β = 0.27, t = 6.67, p < .001) as well as its three subdomains (physical concerns: 4% variance; β = 0.21, t = 4.97, p < .001; cognitive concerns: 6% variance; β = 0.25, t = 6.17, p < .001; social concerns: 6% variance; β = 0.26, t = 6.22, p < .001). Additionally, more time spent walking was associated with greater anxiety sensitivity physical concerns (1% variance; β = 0.11, t = 2.52, p = .012) and greater vigorous intensity physical activity was associated with lower anxiety sensitivity social concerns (1% variance; β = -0.13, t = -2.76, p = .006). These findings suggest that sleep problems may be more universally relevant to anxiety sensitivity than physical activity and interventions to promote healthier sleep may be useful for decreasing anxiety sensitivity in college students.
Anxiety sensitivity is a transdiagnostic construct that has been associated with the etiology of emotional disorders, especially panic and other anxiety disorders. Although it is well known that, for the adult population, the factor structure of anxiety sensitivity includes three separate facets (physical, cognitive, and social concerns), the facets of anxiety sensitivity for adolescents have not yet been established. The main goal of the present study was to examine the factor structure of the Spanish version of the Childhood Anxiety Sensitivity Index (CASI). A large sample of nonclinical adolescents completed the Spanish version of the CASI in school settings (N = 1655; aged 11–17 years; 800 boys and 855 girls). Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses of the full scale (CASI-18) indicate that a three first-order factor solution represents appropriately the three anxiety sensitivity facets previously defined for the adult population. The 3-factor structure had a better fit and was more parsimonious than a 4-factor solution. Results also indicate that the 3-factor structure remains invariant across genders. Girls scored significantly higher than boys on the total scale and on all three dimensions of anxiety sensitivity. In addition, the present study provides information concerning normative data for the scale. The CASI holds promise as a useful tool for assessing general and specific facets of anxiety sensitivity. It could be helpful for the assessment of this construct in clinical and preventive settings. The limitations of the study and suggestions for further research are outlined.
Based on data from the 2008-2018 Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey, this study uses multiple regression models to investigate the gender disparities in health and well-being among older adults in China. Women are found to have severe disadvantages in health, reflected in more chronic diseases, higher disability levels, lower physical and cognitive functions than men. Although older Chinese females are more likely to have good life satisfaction than their male counterparts, they are experiencing significantly higher negative affect than males. These results are further verified robust, providing practical policy implications of improving gender equalities in older adults.
Objectives:
Despite the existence of several first-line treatments for obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), many patients fail to experience symptom reduction and/or do not complete treatment. As a result, the field has increasingly moved towards identifying and treating malleable underlying risk factors that may in turn improve treatment efficacy. One salient underlying risk factor, anxiety sensitivity (AS) cognitive concerns, has been found to be uniquely associated with obsessive-compulsive (OC) symptom dimensions. However, no studies have yet examined whether reductions in AS cognitive concerns will lead to subsequent reductions in OC symptoms.
Methods:
The current study attempted to fill this gap by recruiting individuals reporting elevations on both AS cognitive concerns and at least one OC symptom dimension. Participants were randomly assigned to receive either a one-session AS cognitive concerns intervention (n = 35) or a single health information control session (n = 37). AS cognitive concerns were assessed at post-intervention and one-month follow-up.
Results:
The active intervention produced significantly greater reductions in AS cognitive concerns post-intervention than the control intervention. However, this effect was no longer significant at one-month follow-up. Further, while there was not an effect of treatment condition on OC symptoms at one-month follow-up, changes in AS cognitive concerns from baseline to post-intervention mediated changes in OC symptoms at one-month follow-up.
Conclusions:
Findings support previous research attesting to the malleable nature of AS. Extending this research, findings provide initial support for the efficacy of AS interventions among individuals with elevated OC symptoms.
Practitioner points:
Clinicians should consider assessing anxiety sensitivity (AS) among patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder. If elevated, clinicians should consider targeting AS as an adjunct to treatment as usual.
Male= 160, Female= 160) who were selected randomly form various educational institution of Gujranwala city. The age range of the participants was 12 to 19 years with (M=16.7, SD=1.81). The significant findings of the reliability analyses indicated a Cronbach's alpha value of .86 for the internal consistency. Whereas the split half reliability coefficient of .81 indicated that the adapted version of ASI-R is reliable measure to assess anxiety sensitivity among adolescents in indigenous settings.
Problem
There is a well-evidenced sex-disparity in physical activity (PA), such that females are significantly less active than males. Anxiety sensitivity, the fear of anxiety-related bodily sensations, is a cognitive-affective vulnerability associated with increased negative affect during PA and lower levels of PA. The current study examined anxiety sensitivity as a potential sex-specific, psychological factor related to sex differences in past-week PA behavior in daily cigarette smokers.
Method
Participants (n = 527; 53.3% female) completed an anonymous online survey on emotion and health. Anxiety sensitivity was assessed with the Anxiety Sensitivity Index-3. Past-week, self-reported PA minutes were measured across four intensities (e.g. walking, moderate, vigorous, and total PA) using the International Physical Activity Questionnaire-Short. Four zero-inflated negative binomial regression models were constructed to test the main and interactive effects of sex and anxiety sensitivity on PA outcomes.
Results
Females reported significantly fewer past-week PA minutes relative to males across all domains. At higher levels of anxiety sensitivity, males reported significantly fewer total PA minutes; whereas, total PA levels in females were not dependent on anxiety sensitivity level. Additionally, females with elevated anxiety sensitivity reported significantly more past-week walking minutes relative to females with low anxiety sensitivity, whereas the opposite pattern was observed in males.
Conclusion
This is the first study to our knowledge to examine sex-differences in anxiety sensitivity and PA, at varying PA intensities, among smokers. These data have the potential to inform sex-specific models of anxiety, PA, and smoking.
Background and objectives
Anxiety sensitivity (AS) refers to a fear of the negative implications of anxiety, and arises due to gene-environment interactions. We investigated whether genetic variation in two neuropeptides implicated in the stress response, neuropeptide Y (NPY) and pituitary adenylate cyclase-activating polypeptide receptor 1, interacted with childhood trauma (CT) to influence AS.
Design and methods
This cross-sectional study examined the CT x genetic variant effects on AS in 951 adolescents who self-identified as Xhosa or South African Colored (SAC) ethnicity.
Results
In Xhosa females, the NPY rs5573 A allele and rs3037354 deletion variant were associated with increased (p = 0.035) and decreased (p = 0.034) AS, respectively. The interaction of CT and the NPY rs5574 A allele increased AS in SAC female participants (p = 0.043). The rs3037354 deletion variant protected against AS with increased CT in SAC male participants (p = 0.011).
Conclusions
The NPY rs5574 A allele and rs3037354 deletion variant interact with CT to act as risk and protective factors, respectively, for AS in an ethnicity- and sex- differentiated manner. Our results reaffirm the role of NPY and gene-environment interactions in anxiety-related behaviors and reinforce the need for psychiatric genetics studies in diverse populations.
Women, relative to men, are at particularly high risk for anxiety and depression, perhaps in part due to their heightened levels of anxiety sensitivity (AS). Physical activity (PA) is an accessible mental health intervention that may be particularly beneficial for women. Using a within-subjects pre-post mixed methods design, this study tested the acceptability, appropriateness, feasibility, and evidence-base of a community-based PA intervention for AS among women at high risk for anxiety and depression. Participants were 45 women with high AS who completed an 8-week group PA intervention. Data were collected via self-report questionnaires, interviews, and recruitment, participation, and retention rates. Results suggest the intervention is acceptable, appropriate, and feasible. Interviews reveal high intervention satisfaction and perceived benefits beyond AS reduction. There was
a relatively high attrition rate that suggests room for improvement. The intervention significantly reduced AS, as well as panic, social anxiety, generalized anxiety, and depression symptoms. In the context of the preliminary nature of this study, results
suggest the use of community-delivered, group-based PA as a mental health intervention strategy for women is worth further exploration. There is potential for collaboration between the health system, PA delivery professionals, and community
organizations to improve access to care.
Background:
Low- and moderate-intensity exercise training has been shown to be effective for reducing general anxiety and anxiety sensitivity among adults with asthma. Exercise frequency and intensity have been shown to play an integral role in reducing anxiety sensitivity; however, less is known about the impact of high-intensity interval training (HIIT) on anxiety in adults with asthma.
Methods:
A 6-week HIIT intervention was conducted with adults with asthma. Participants completed HIIT (10% peak power output for 1 min, 90% peak power output for 1 min, repeated 10 times) 3 times per week on a cycle ergometer. Preintervention and postintervention assessments included the Anxiety Sensitivity Index-3 and the Body Sensations Questionnaire.
Results:
Total Anxiety Sensitivity Index-3 (PRE: 17.9 [11.8]; POST 12.4 [13], P = .002, Cohen d = 0.4, n = 20) and Body Sensations Questionnaire (PRE: 2.4 [1.0]; POST: 2.0 [0.8], P = .007, Cohen d = 0.3) improved from preintervention to postintervention.
Conclusion:
A 6-week HIIT intervention leads to improved anxiety among adults with asthma. Future research should determine the impact of HIIT among adults with asthma with clinical anxiety.
Latinx women are twice as likely to experience depression compared to Latinx men. Latinx women are also subjected to heightened stress in the form of ethnic and sexist discrimination. Limited research has sought to explore variables that may have explanatory roles between discrimination and mental health outcomes among women of color. The current study tested whether anxiety sensitivity and expressive suppression uniquely link discrimination and depression for Latinx women. This cross-sectional study included 246 Latinx women primarily of Mexican descent (n = 173) recruited from community events and Mechanical Turk. On average, participants were 36.29 years old (SD = 12.61, range = 18–72). Participants completed several self-report measures on ethnic discrimination (Brief Perceived Ethnic Discrimination Questionnaire), sexism (Schedule of Sexist Events), anxiety sensitivity (Anxiety Sensitivity Index-3), expressive suppression (Emotion Regulation Questionnaire—Suppression), and depression (Brief Center for Epidemiologic Studies—Depression). Using the PROCESS macro (Hayes, 2013), two parallel mediation analyses examined whether discrimination had an indirect effect via anxiety sensitivity and expressive suppression on depression. Anxiety sensitivity (indirect effect = .65, SE = .24, 95% CI [.21, 1.15]) and expressive suppression (indirect effect = .25, SE = .13, 95% CI [.07, .56]) uniquely linked ethnic discrimination and depression. Anxiety sensitivity (indirect effect = .66, SE = .21, 95% CI [.29, 1.13]) uniquely linked sexist discrimination and depression symptoms, while expressive suppression did not (indirect effect = .13, SE = .10, 95% CI [−.001, .40]). Anxiety sensitivity linked both ethnic and sexist discrimination with depression; however, expressive suppression only linked ethnic discrimination and depression. Evidence suggests that there are different links to depression depending on the type of discrimination for Latinx women.
The opioid epidemic is a significant public health concern linked to chronic pain. Despite efforts to change opioid prescribing practices for chronic pain, opioid-involved overdoses remain at an all-time high. Research focused on identifying individual difference factors for problematic opioid misuse in the context of chronic pain have identified certain psychological variables that may confer heightened risk for opioid-related problems. Anxiety sensitivity, or fear of anxiety-related physical sensations, has been linked to opioid-related problems among adults with chronic pain. Yet, it is possible that these relations may not be distributed equally in society, and sex differences may be one avenue by which these relations differ. Therefore, the current study examined the moderating role of sex on the relation between anxiety sensitivity, current opioid misuse, and severity of opioid dependence among 428 adults (74.9% female, Mage = 38.28 years, SD = 11.06) with chronic pain. Results indicated that the relation between anxiety sensitivity and current opioid misuse (ΔR2 = 0.005, B = 0.12, SE = 0.06, p = 0.04), and opioid dependence (ΔR2 = 0.01, B = 0.04, SE = 0.02, p = 0.007) was stronger for males compared to females. These results suggest that anxiety sensitivity may be associated with opioid-related problems to a greater extent for males than females. Continued research is needed to examine how these sex differences may impact clinical treatment for opioid-related problems.
Expectancy theory posits that anxiety sensitivity may serve as a premorbid risk factor for the development of anxiety pathology (S. Reiss, 1991). The principal aim of the present study was to determine whether anxiety sensitivity acts as a specific vulnerability factor in the pathogenesis of anxiety pathology. A large, nonclinical sample of young adults (N = 1,401) was prospectively followed over a 5-week highly stressful period of time (i.e., military basic training). Anxiety sensitivity was found to predict the development of spontaneous panic attacks after controlling for a history of panic attacks and trait anxiety. Approximately 20% of those scoring in the upper decile on the Anxiety Sensitivity Index (R. A. Peterson & S. Reiss, 1987) experienced a panic attack during the 5-week follow-up period compared with only 6% for the remainder of the sample. Anxiety sensitivity also predicted anxiety symptomatology, functional impairment created by anxiety, and disability. These data provide strong evidence for anxiety sensitivity as a risk factor in the development of panic attacks and other anxiety symptoms.
The performance of five methods for determining the number of components to retain (Horn's parallel analysis, Velicer's minimum average partial [MAP], Cattell's scree test, Bartlett's chi-square test, and Kaiser's eigenvalue greater than 1.0 rule) was investigated across seven systematically varied conditions (sample size, number of variables, number of components, component saturation, equal or unequal numbers of variables per component, and the presence or absence of unique and complex variables). We generated five sample correlation matrices at each of two sample sizes from the 48 known population correlation matrices representing six levels of component pattern complexity. The performance of the parallel analysis and MAP methods was generally the best across all situations. The scree test was generally accurate but variable. Bartlett's chi-square test was less accurate and more variable than the scree test. Kaiser's method tended to severely overestimate the number of components. We discuss recommendations concerning the conditions under which each of the methods are accurate, along with the most effective and useful methods combinations.
Two studies were designed to establish whether high anxiety sensitive (AS) university students selectively process threat cues pertaining to their feared catastrophic consequences of anxiety, and to examine potential gender differences in the selective processing of such threat cues among high versus low AS subjects. Forty students (20 M; 20 F) participated in Study 1. Half were high AS and half low AS, according to scores on the Anxiety Sensitivity Index (ASI). Subjects completed a computerised Stroop colournaming task involving social/psychological threat (e.g. EMBARRASS; CRAZY), physical threat (e.g. CORONARY; SUFFOCATED), and neutral (e.g. MOTEL; TOWEL) target words. High AS subjects demonstrated more threat-related interference in colour-naming than did low AS subjects, overall. High AS menevidencedgreater interference relative to low AS men only for the social/psychological threat stimuli; highAS women evidencedgreater interference relative to low AS women only for the physical threat stimuli. Study 2 was designed to replicate and extend the novel Study 1 finding of a cognitive bias favouring the processing of social/psychological threat cues among high AS men. Participants were 20 male university students (10 high AS; 10 low AS). In addition to social/psychological threat, physical threat, and neutral words, a category of positive emotional words (e.g. HAPPINESS; CELEBRATION) was included as a supplementary control on the Stroop. Consistent with Study 1, high AS males evidenced greater Stroop interference than did low AS males, but only for social/psychological threat words. No AS group differences in Stroop interference were revealed for the physical threat or positive words. Clinical implications, and potential theoretical explanations for the gender differences, are discussed.
The Anxiety Sensitivity Index (ASI) is one of the most widely used measures of the construct of anxiety sensitivity. Until the recent introduction of a hierarchical model of the ASI by S. O. Lilienfeld, S. M. Turner, and R. G. Jacob (1993), the factor structure of the ASI was the subject of debate, with some researchers advocating a unidimensional structure and others proposing multidimensional structures. In the present study, involving 432 outpatients seeking treatment at an anxiety disorders clinic and 32 participants with no mental disorder, the authors tested a hierarchical factor model. The results supported a hierarchical factor structure consisting of 3 lower order factors and 1 higher order factor. It is estimated that the higher order, general factor accounts for 60% of the variance in ASI total scores. The implications of these findings for the conceptualization and assessment of anxiety sensitivity are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
A variety of rules have been suggested for determining the sample size required to produce a stable solution when performing a factor or component analysis. The most popular rules suggest that sample size be determined as a function of the number of variables. These rules, however, lack both empirical support and a theoretical rationale. We used a Monte Carlo procedure to systematically vary sample size, number of variables, number of components, and component saturation (i.e., the magnitude of the correlation between the observed variables and the components) in order to examine the conditions under which a sample component pattern becomes stable relative to the population pattern. We compared patterns by means of a single summary statistic, g–2, and by means of direct pattern comparisons using the kappa statistic. Results indicated that, contrary to the popular rules, samples size as a function of the number of variables was not an important factor in determining stability. Component saturation and absolute sample size were the most important factors. To a lesser degree, the number of variables per component was also important, with variables per component producing more stable results. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
Anxiety sensitivity is the fear of anxiety-related bodily sensations, which arises from beliefs that the sensations have harmful somatic, psychological, or social consequences. Elevated anxiety sensitivity, as assessed by the Anxiety Sensitivity Index (ASI), is associated with panic disorder. The present study investigated the relationship between anxiety sensitivity and depression. Participants were people with panic disorder (n = 52), major depression (n = 46), or both (n = 37). Mean ASI scores of each group were elevated, compared to published norms. Principal components analysis revealed 3 factors of anxiety sensitivity: (a) fear of publicly observable symptoms, (b) fear of loss of cognitive control, and (c) fear of bodily sensations. Factors 1 and 3 were correlated with anxiety-related measures but not with depression-related measures. Conversely, factor 2 was correlated with depression-related measures but not with anxiety-related measures.
Expectancy theory posits that anxiety sensitivity may serve as a premorbid risk factor for the development of anxiety pathology (S. Reiss, 1991). The principal aim of the present study was to determine whether anxiety sensitivity acts as a specific vulnerability factor in the pathogenesis of anxiety pathology. A large, nonclinical sample of young adults (N = 1,401) was prospectively followed over a 5-week highly stressful period of time (i.e., military basic training). Anxiety sensitivity was found to predict the development of spontaneous panic attacks after controlling for a history of panic attacks and trait anxiety. Approximately 20% of those scoring in the upper decile on the Anxiety Sensitivity Index (R. A. Peterson & S. Reiss, 1987) experienced a panic attack during the 5-week follow-up period compared with only 6% for the remainder of the sample. Anxiety sensitivity also predicted anxiety symptomatology, functional impairment created by anxiety, and disability. These data provide strong evidence for anxiety sensitivity as a risk factor in the development of panic attacks and other anxiety symptoms.
We tested the hypothesis that the Anxiety Sensitivity Index (ASI) measures a unitary personality variable. College students (N = 840) were administered the ASI along with a questionnaire assessing panic and anxiety symptomatology. The ASI demonstrated adequate internal reliability (α = .82) and showed modest discrimination on two of three anxiety disorder indices (i.e., anxiety medication usage and panic history). Results of a principal components analysis with varimax rotation revealed a four-factor solution which explained 53.5% of the total variance. Our findings seriously challenge previous claims that the ASI measures a single factor. Rather, our data suggest that the ASI measures several loosely-related cognitive appraisal domains concerned with the anticipated negative consequences of anxiety. The four factors that emerged from our analysis were (a) concern about physical sensations, (b) concern about mental/cognitive incapacitation, (c) concern about loss of control, and (d) concern about heart/lung failure. It is concluded that the ASI is a convenient and reliable instrument for assessing perceived physical consequences of anxiety but that the instrument is lacking in its coverage of anxiety consequences related to social concerns. Implications of the findings for treatment are discussed.
The present article has two related aims. First, to reply to the recent claims made by Lilienfeld, Turner, and Jacob. Second, as part of my reply I will present an integrative review of the current status of research on the nature and measurement of anxiety sensitivity (AS). In contrast to the largely unsubstantiated claims by Lilienfeld et al., there are empirical, methodological, and conceptual bases for drawing the following conclusions: (a) there are theoretical grounds for proposing that AS predicts fear-proneness; (b) correlations between the Anxiety Sensitivity Index (ASI) and measures of common fears are not artifacts of overlapping content; (c) the ASI is not a measure of panic symptoms; it measures the fear of anxiety- and panic-related sensations; (d) the factorial structure of the ASI is highly relevant to the construct validity of this instrument; (e) a unifactorial ASI is the most reliable (replicable) factor structure. However, several studies have found support for multidimensional structures. There is growing evidence that the construct of AS is probably multidimensional, consisting of at least three dimensions: fear of somatic sensations, fear of cognitive sensations, and fear of publicly observable sensations; (f) The hypothesis that the AS-by-trait anxiety interaction predicts fear proneness received partial support from a methodologically flawed study. The hypothesis was not supported by methodologically sound research. These conclusions are supported by the available literature and by new findings presented here for the first time.
This investigation attempts to establish what behaviors are both predictive and persistent throughout the developmental span. Repeated ratings of a wide variety of behaviors shown by normal children from age 5 to 16 were analyzed. The measures which at all times and for both sexes were most general (predictive) and persistent were found to group into three dimensions: withdrawal-expressiveness, reactivity-placidity, and passivity-dominance. Sex differences and over-time changes in the pattern of correlates of the three dimensions suggest that both their meaning and their expression may vary as a function of shifting developmental demands.
Monte Carlo research increasingly seems to favor the use of parallel analysis as a method for determining the "correct" number of factors in factor analysis or components in principal components analysis. We present a regression equation for predicting parallel analysis values used to decide the number of principal components to retain. This equation is appropriate for predicting criterion mean eigenvalues and was derived from random data sets containing between 5 and 50 variables and between 50 and 500 subjects. This relatively simple equation is more accurate for predicting mean eigenvalues from random data matrices with unities in the diagonals than a previously published equation. Moreover, given that the parallel analysis decision rule may be too dependent on chance, our equation is also used to predict the 95th percentile point in distributions of eigenvalues generated from random data matrices. Multiple correlations for all analyses were at least .95. Regression weights for predicting the first 33 mean and 95th percentile eigenvalues are given in easy-to-use tables.
Previous studies on common fears have been vague and have not met requirements for using factor analysis. To avoid some of these problems, a broader age range and a separate analysis of males and females were designed for a sample of 545 individuals, ages 15-89, who responded to 133 fear-scale items. "Death of a loved one" was the greatest fear for both sexes. Items with a mean of three or more on the seven-point scale were factor analyzed. The items meeting the criteria for the female sample resulted in five "fear" factors including: (1) social rejection; (2) unpredictable danger; (3) aggression; (4) small animals; and (5) death of self or loved one. The items analyzed for males resulted in two "fear" factors similar to the first two "fear" factors analyzed for women, i.e., social rejection and unpredictable danger. The findings suggest that these results may be closer than those of previous studies to the structure of the cognitive component of fears in the general population. (Author/JAC)
Electronic computers facilitate greatly carrying out factor analysis. Computers will help in solving the communality problem and the question of the number of factors as well as the question of arbitrary factoring and the problem of rotation. "Cloacal short-cuts will not be necessary and the powerful methods of Guttman will be feasible." A library of programs essential for factor analysis is described, and the use of medium sized computers as the IBM 650 deprecated for factor analysis. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
151 college students to whom the Anxiety Sensitivity Index (ASI) was administered in 1984 were retested in 1987 for anxiety sensitivity and tested for panic attacks, state-trait anxiety, and anxiety disorder history. ASI scores in 1984 predicted the frequency and intensity of panic attacks in 1987. Compared to Ss with low 1984 ASI scores, Ss with high 1984 ASI scores were 5 times more likely to have an anxiety disorder during the period 1984 to 1987. Test-retest reliability for the ASI across 3 yrs was .71. Data provide evidence for the stability of anxiety sensitivity over time and that the concept of anxiety sensitivity should be considered a personality variable. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
Fears of anxiety symptoms, panic attacks, and negative evaluation as well as assertiveness were examined in 102 patients with a diagnosis of panic disorder alone, social phobia alone, comorbid social phobia and panic disorder, or comorbid social phobia and depressive disorder. The results indicated that social phobia and panic disorder can be differentiated by fears of negative evaluation and by assertiveness, but a substantial overlap between these disorders exists with regard to anxiety sensitivity and catastrophic beliefs about panic attacks. The boundaries between social phobia and panic disorder were especially blurred by the presence of comorbid depression within social phobia. Mood-specific biases in catastrophic thoughts and pessimistic attitudes may account for the findings for depression. Treatment implications are discussed.
A revised Stroop color-naming task was used to test hypotheses derived from Beck's cognitive theory of anxiety disorders which proposes that social phobics are hypervigilant to social-evaluative threat cues. Color-naming latencies for social and physical threat words were compared to matched neutral words for both social phobics and individuals with panic disorder. As predicted, social phobics showed longer latencies for social threat words, and panickers had longer latencies for physical threat words. Latency for color-naming social threat words correlated with self-reported avoidance among social phobics. These results are consistent with Beck's notion of self-schemata which facilitate the processing of threat cues. Methodological issues and clinical implications are discussed.
The personality traits of anxiety sensitivity and dependency and their relationship to the experience of panic anxiety and panic disorder with agoraphobia were investigated. The Anxiety Sensitivity Index (ASI) and the Interpersonal Dependency Inventory (IDI) were completed by 116 university students and 23 clinical panic disorder (with agoraphobia) patients. Nineteen percent of the college control sample reported prior experience with spontaneous panic attacks. Patients scored significantly higher than controls on the ASI, total IDI, and the “lack of social self-confidence” subscale of the IDI. Non-clinical student panickers and non-panickers failed to differ significantly on any of the personality measures, suggesting that dependency and anxiety sensitivity may be more likely results of repeated experiences of panic over time and agoraphobic avoidance than they are predisposing factors. The ASI scores were found to correlate significantly with the IDI and with two of its subscales, suggesting that anxiety sensitive individuals tend to be low in social self-confidence and highly reliant on significant others.
The recent debates and commentaries about the construct validity of the Anxiety Sensitivity Index (ASI) suggest several issues that remain to be resolved. First, the factor structure of the ASI remains to be clarified. Second, the distinction between this instrument and measures of trait anxiety has yet to be elucidated. A third issue concerns the extent to which the ASI and the trait version of the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI-T) can discriminate between panic disorder and other anxiety disorders. These issues were investigated by administering the ASI and the STAI-T to 142 spider-phobic college students and 93 psychiatric outpatients. In both samples, the ASI was found to be unifactorial. When the pool of ASI and STAI-T items was subjected to a factor analysis with oblique rotation, both samples yielded a two-factor solution. The STAI-T items were responsible for almost all the salient loadings on the first factor, and the ASI items were responsible for almost all the salient loadings on the second factor. In both samples the correlation between the factors was .39. These results suggest that the ASI is not simply a measure of trait anxiety. Items that are particularly important in defining the ASI concern the fear of bodily sensations. Fear of the social consequences of anxiety played a minor role in this factor. Panic-disordered patients were differentiated from patients with other anxiety disorders by ASI items pertaining to fear and catastrophic misinterpretation of bodily sensations. The full-scale score and item responses of the STAI-T were unable to differentiate between the anxiety groups. The findings support the construct validity of the ASI and the recent cognitive models of panic disorder. The results also suggest that a three-item version of the ASI may be used for the diagnosis of panic disorder.
According to Reiss and McNally's expectancy theory, a high level of anxiety sensitivity (“fear of anxiety”) increases the risk for anxiety disorders, and plays a particularly important role in panic disorder (PD). There has yet to be a comprehensive comparison of anxiety sensitivity across the anxiety disorders. Using a measure of anxiety sensitivity known as the Anxiety Sensitivity Index (ASI), we assessed 313 patients, representing each of the six DSM-III-R anxiety disorders. ASI scores associated with each anxiety disorder were greater than those of normal controls, with the exception of simple phobia. The latter was in the normal range. The ASI scores associated with PD were significantly higher than those of the other anxiety disorders, with the exception of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). There was a trend for the ASI scores associated with PD to be greater than those associated with PTSD. Analysis of the ASI item responses revealed that PD patients scored significantly higher than PTSD patients on items more central to the concept of anxiety sensitivity, as determined by principal components analysis. The pattern of results did not change when trait anxiety was used as a covariate. The implications for the expectancy theory are considered, and directions for further investigation are outlined.
The purposes of this article are to summarize the author's expectancy model of fear, review the recent studies evaluating this model, and suggest directions for future research. Reiss' expectancy model holds that there are three fundamental fears (called sensitivities): the fear of injury, the fear of anxiety, and the fear of negative evaluation. Thus far, research on this model has focused on the fear of anxiety (anxiety sensitivity). The major research findings are as follows: simple phobias sometimes are motivated by expectations of panic attacks; the Anxiety Sensitivity Index (ASI) is a valid and unique measure of individual differences in the fear of anxiety sensations; the ASI is superior to measures of trait anxiety in the assessment of panic disorder; anxiety sensitivity is associated with agoraphobia, simple phobia, panic disorder, and substance abuse; and anxiety sensitivity is strongly associated with fearfulness. There is some preliminary support for the hypothesis that anxiety sensitivity is a risk factor for panic disorder. It is suggested that future researchers evaluate the hypotheses that anxiety and fear are distinct phenomena; that panic attacks are intense states of fear (not intense states of anxiety); and that anxiety sensitivity is a risk factor for both fearfulness and panic disorder.
We have examined the stability of psychometric g, the general factor in all mental ability tests or other manifestations of mental ability, when g is extracted from a given correlation matrix by different models or methods of factor analysis. This was investigated in simulated correlation matrices, in which the true g was known exactly, and in typical empirical data consisting of a large battery of diverse mental tests. Theoretically, some methods are more appropriate than others for extracting g, but in fact g is remarkably robust and almost invariant across different methods of analysis, both in agreement between the estimated g and the true g in simulated data and in similarity among the g factors extracted from empirical data by different methods. Although the near-uniformity of g obtained by different methods would seem to indicate that, practically speaking, there is little basis for choosing or rejecting any particular method, certain factor models qua models may accord better than others with theoretical considerations about the nature of g. What seems to us a reasonable strategy for estimating g, given an appropriate correlation matrix, is suggested for consideration. It seems safe to conclude that, in the domain of mental abilities, g is not in the least chimerical. Almost any g is a “good” g and is certainly better than no g.
The construct of anxiety sensitivity (AS) has occupied an increasingly important place in theorizing and research on anxiety and anxiety disorders. Although a number of recent studies have provided support for the construct validity of the principal operationalization of AS, the Anxiety Sensitivity Index (ASI), the relation of the AS construct and the ASI to trait anxiety continues to be a source of controversy. Key issues in the AS-trait anxiety debate include the assimilative nature of traits and the concept of incremental validity. Recent research on AS lends some support to the claim that trait anxiety cannot fully account for AS findings. Important areas for future AS research include (1) demonstrating that AS is a risk factor for panic disorder and related conditions, lather than simply a consequence of these conditions, (2) developing and utilizing multiple operationalizations of constructs, (3) minimizing the impact of potentially inapplicable items, (4) testing for interactions between AS and other variables, and (5) testing hierarchical factor models that allow trait anxiety and AS to coexist as higher- and lower-order factors, respectively. Researchers in this area will need to develop alternative measures of the AS construct, recognize the distinction between different levels of trait specificity, clarify a number of theoretical issues relevant to the AS construct, and continue to subject predictions to stringent theoretical risks.
Sixty male and sixty female undergraduate subjects verbally reporting high or low fear of snakes were administered a behavioral avoidance test (BAT) under low or high social demand conditions. Overall, males displayed significantly less avoidance as well as more frequent snake contact and task completion than females, although the sex differences held only among high fear subjects and no sex effect was found on other measures. Reported fear level was significantly associated with latency to touch, approach score, touch frequency, and task completion (high fear subjects displayed less boldness) but, on all measures except latency, this was true only for female subjects. High demand conditions produced significantly more approach, target contact, and task completion than low demand. The highest correlation between reported fear and BAT behavior accounted for less than 25% of the variance common to verbal and overt responses.
Reliability, factor structure, and factor independence from other anxiety measures for the Anxiety Sensitivity Index (ASI) was assessed. One hundred and twenty-two anxious college students were administered the ASI, Cognitive-Somatic Anxiety Questionnaire, and the Reactions to Relaxation and Arousal Questionnaire. The results suggest that the ASI is a reliable measure which is factorially independent of other anxiety measures. Further, the ASI was supported as a measure of the variable anxiety sensitivity which has been suggested as an important personality variable in fear behavior.
Typescript. Binder's title: Stability of component patterns. Thesis (M.A.)--University of Rhode Island, 1984. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 43-47).
The factor structure of the Anxiety Sensitivity Index was assessed in 166 agoraphobic clients who had applied to a behavioral treatment programme and 120 age and sex-matched normal controls. In both samples a four factor solution emerged as the most useful, and it explained more than 60% of the total variance. The item loading in the agoraphobic sample revealed a coherent theme with factors reflecting fear of heart and breathing symptoms, fear of loss of mental control, fear of gastrointestinal difficulties, and concern about other people detecting anxiety. The item loading in the normal sample made less psychological sense. The results are discussed both in the light of the trait model of anxiety sensitivity and with respect to the clinical implications of anxiety sensitivity.
Self-regulation is a complex process that involves consumers’ persistence, strength, motivation, and commitment in order to be able to override short-term impulses. In order to be able to pursue their long-term goals, consumers typically need to forgo immediate pleasurable experiences that are detrimental to reach their overarching goals. Although this sometimes involves resisting to simple and small temptations, it is not always easy, since the lure of momentary temptations is pervasive. In addition, consumers’ beliefs play an important role determining strategies and behaviors that consumers consider acceptable to engage in, affecting how they act and plan actions to attain their goals. This dissertation investigates adequacy of some beliefs typically shared by consumers about the appropriate behaviors to exert self-regulation, analyzing to what extent these indeed contribute to the enhancement of consumers’ ability to exert self-regulation.
Although simple structure has proved to be a valuable principle for rotation of axes in factor analysis, an oblique factor solution often tends to confound the resulting interpretation. A model is presented here which transforms the oblique factor solution so as to preserve simple structure and, in addition, to provide orthogonal reference axes. Furthermore, this model makes explicit the hierarchical ordering of factors above the first-order domain.
The likelihood that males equivocate in their ratings of common fears was evaluated. A fear survey was given to 30 female and 26 male college students in a classroom setting. A second fear survey which contained duplicate items from the first was administered to the same students in a laboratory setting prior to watching videotaped scenes of fish, rats, mice and a shorter roller coaster ride. Before the second survey was given, the students received instructions which implied that their truthfulness could be independently evaluated through changes in their heart rate while they watched the videotape. Changes in the averaged fear ratings for the three high-fear items shown in the videotaped scenes were compared between males and females across the two survey conditions. Males' ratings of rats, mice, and roller coasters increased markedly from the first survey to the second, while fear ratings by females did not change. These results are consistent with the idea that the expression of fear by men is affected by conformation to the traditional male gender role.
A distinction is proposed between anxiety (frequency of symptom occurrence) and anxiety sensitivity (beliefs that anxiety experiences have negative implications). In Study 1, a newly-constructed Anxiety Sensitivity Index (ASI) was shown to have sound psychometric properties for each of two samples of college students. The important finding was that people who tend to endorse one negative implication for anxiety also tend to endorse other negative implications. In Study 2, the ASI was found to be especially associated with agoraphobia and generally associated with anxiety disorders. In Study 3, the ASI explained variance on the Fear Survey Schedule—II that was not explained by either the Taylor Manifest Anxiety Scale or a reliable Anxiety Frequency Checklist. In predicting the development of fears, and possibly other anxiety disorders, it may be more important to know what the person thinks will happen as a result of becoming anxious than how often the person actually experiences anxiety. Implications are discussed for competing views of the ‘fear of fear’.
Pierce and Kirkpatrick (1992, Behaviour Research and Therapy, 30, 415-418) addressed the finding that men reported lower levels of fear than women in response to specific fear items and concluded on the basis of their experiment that this was because the men were lying. Their conclusion is questioned on various grounds, including inappropriate statistical analyses, inadequate treatment of physiological data, failure to address the possibility of sample selection bias (signalled by the high drop-out rate) and the inadequacy of self-assessed fear measures based on a small number of single items. An alternative interpretation of their data is offered, based on the inverse correlation between initial response level and size of increment, demonstrable in their study in males but not in females. It is argued here that the increments may have been due to anticipatory arousal, a mediating factor that would also account for the facilitation of generalization between certain specific items. It is further suggested that, if this explanation is correct, the men were acting with more rather than less honesty, and it may on the other hand be the reports of the females that were affected by their sex-role stereotype. Another possible explanation of the findings is discussed. If men relatively high in masculinity had a greater tendency to drop out, the experimental sample at the second testing would be biased towards men relatively low in masculinity and reporting higher fear levels.
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