Intolerance of uncertainty and difficulties in emotion regulation: Proposal for an integrative model of generalized anxiety disorder

Introduction

The Intolerance of Uncertainty Model (IUM) is a well-tested model of generalized anxiety disorder (GAD).

Forced choice reaction time paradigm in children with separation anxiety disorder, social phobia, and nonanxious controls

Cognitive distortions refer to cognitive processes that are biased and therefore yield dysfunctional and maladaptive products (e.g., interpretation bias). Automatic aspects of information processing need to be considered and investigating these aspects requires forms of assessment other than self-report. Studies focussing on the specificity of cognitive biases across different types of anxiety disorders in childhood are rare. Thus, a forced choice reaction time paradigm with picture stimuli was used to assess the interpretation bias in anxious children online. The study investigated disorder-specific interpretation bias in 71 children with separation anxiety disorder (SAD), 31 children with social phobia, and 42 children without mental disorders, aged 5–13 years. Results indicated that children with SAD rated ambiguous separation pictures as significantly more unpleasant and more arousing than nonanxious children. However, no support was found that children with SAD and social phobia interpret ambiguous separation or social pictures in a more negative way than nonanxious children. Furthermore, no group differences were found in reaction times to all picture categories.     

Superordinate identity and intergroup roommate friendship development

A common ingroup identity promotes positive attitudes and behavior toward members of outgroups, but the durability of these effects and generalizability to relationships outside of the laboratory have been questioned. The present research examined how initial perceptions of common ingroup identity among randomly assigned college roommates provide a foundation for the development of intergroup friendships. For roommate dyads involving students who differed in race or ethnicity, respondents who were low on perceived intergroup commonality showed a significant decline in friendship over-time, whereas those high on perceived commonality showed consistently high levels of friendship. Similarly, participants in these dyads demonstrated a significant decline in feelings of friendship when their roommate was low in perceived commonality but not when their roommate was high in perceived commonality. These effects were partially mediated by anxiety experienced in interactions over-time. The implications of a common identity for intergroup relationship development are discussed.     

Relations between general goal orientations and task-specific self-appraisals

Abstract:   The purpose of the present study was to examine the influence of goal orientations on ninth-grade students' (54 girls and 55 boys) task-specific appraisals (i.e., anticipated interest, self-efficacy, test anxiety, and physical symptoms) and subsequent task performance. The results of structural equation modeling showed that different goal orientations had different effects on task-specific appraisals. In addition, task performance was directly influenced by self-efficacy and physical symptoms, whereas the goal orientation served as a predictor of task performance indirectly through task-specific appraisals. Students' posttask estimation of success and involvement were differently predicted by the pretask appraisal and actual task performance. Thus self-appraisals that students experience after performing the task are not only influenced by the actual performance, but also by the task-related appraisal they form before the task, which is partially determined by their goal orientations. Cluster analysis revealed students with multiple goals, in whom learning and performance goals can work together to facilitate performance and motivation.     

Further Evidence of the Reliability and Validity of the Multidimensional Anxiety

The psychometric properties of the Multidimensional Anxiety Scale for Children (MASC) were examined in adolescent psychiatric inpatient samples. In Study 1 (n = 287), confirmatory factor analyses provided satisfactory fit for the four-factor (comparative fit index; CFI = 0.856) and higher-order (CFI = 0.854) solutions. Using parcels as items, the fit of the four-factor model was improved substantially (CFI = 0.935). Next, in the bifactor analyses, support was attained for a model that included a general factor and four domain specific subfactors. In Study 2 (n = 195 inpatient youths), the MASC showed good scale reliability and concurrent validity. Results of the receiver operating characteristic curve and binary logistic regression analyses provided adequate evidence for discriminative validity. In Study 3 (n = 40), test–retest reliability of scores on the MASC-10 scale over a 3-week period was adequate (r _tt = 0.83, p < 0.001) for children ages 8 to 11 years.     

Perfectionism: A contributor to social anxiety and its cognitive processes

The present study aimed to examine how perfectionism is contributing to social anxiety and its cognitive processes of post‐event rumination and self‐perception of performance following a speech task. Forty‐eight undergraduate students completed measures of perfectionism and trait social anxiety prior to performing a 3‐min impromptu speech task. Immediately following the speech task, participants rated their state anxiety and self‐perception of performance, and 24 hr later, their level of post‐event rumination was measured. Structural equation modelling revealed that perfectionism, in the form of socially prescribed perfectionism and doubts about actions, directly influences trait social anxiety, and indirectly influences post‐event rumination and self‐perception of performance through its relationship with trait social anxiety and state anxiety. This is the first study to investigate how perfectionism is contributing to social anxiety and its cognitive processes. The findings of this study provide evidence in support of the potential predictive role of perfectionism in social anxiety.     

Trust in God and psychological distress: exploring variations by religious affiliation

Trust in God has been widely identified as a central aspect of religious life, yet relatively few studies have examined whether trust in God is associated with better mental health. This study has two goals. The first is to see if Conservative Christians have greater trust in God than moderate or liberal Christians. The second goal is to see if trusting in God is associated with lower levels of death anxiety, fewer depressed affect symptoms, and fewer somatic symptoms among Conservative Christians than moderate or liberal Christians. The data come from a nationwide survey of middle-aged and older adults (N?=?1535). The findings reveal that, compared to moderate or liberal Christians, trust in God is associated with lower levels of death anxiety as well as fewer symptoms of a depressed affect and lower somatic symptom scores among Conservative Christians.     

社交焦虑障碍中的注意偏差三成分研究述评

社交焦虑障碍表现为对一种或多种社交情境存在显著并持续的害怕,并表现出对社交刺激具有注意偏差,即注意增强、注意固着和注意回避,这三个成分交互作用促使社交焦虑持续发展.目前主要采用视觉搜索任务、点探测任务、空间线索任务,并结合眼动技术对此进行研究,但三成分之间的关系仍然存在疑惑,三者是否具有时间进程,如何衔接转换,仍需进一步检验.     

Paternal Child-Rearing Style and Child Social Anxiety: Investigation of Child Perceptions and Actual Father Behavior

This study examined associations among perceived and actual father behavior and child social anxiety. Forty-eight children (22 high socially anxious, 26 low socially anxious) completed self-report measures of social anxiety, general anxiety, and depression. Children also completed a measure of perceived parental style and subsequently collaborated with their fathers on a challenging task (origami). After controlling for general anxiety and depression, fathers of high socially anxious children exhibited more controlling behavior during the origami task; high and low socially anxious children, however, did not differ behaviorally from one another. Perceptions of father child-rearing style did not differ as a function of child social anxiety, nor were significant relations found between perceived parenting and specific father behaviors. Findings underscore the importance of assessing various types of internalizing symptoms (i.e., controlling for shared construct variance), obtaining children's perceptions of parental style in conjunction with conducting behavioral observations, and including fathers in psychopathology research.     

Do socially anxious individuals fear embarrassment by close others? Development of the Fear of Embarrassment by Others Scale

Social anxiety disorder is characterized by an intense fear of social or performance situations, and a fear of acting in a way that will be humiliating or embarrassing. However, the extent to which socially anxious individuals fear embarrassment due to the behavior of close others remains unknown. The Fear of Embarrassment by Others Scale (FEOS) was developed to assess the extent to which individuals with social anxiety fear being embarrassed by others. To assess the psychometric properties of this measure, 162 undergraduate students low or high in social anxiety completed the FEOS, along with additional questionnaires. An exploratory factor analysis suggested a single factor. The measure demonstrates high internal consistency, and is correlated with measures of social anxiety, fear of negative evaluation, and anxiety sensitivity. Fear of embarrassment by others was not found to be a significant predictor of social anxiety, as compared to anxiety sensitivity and fear of negative evaluation. The FEOS discriminated among participants high and low in social anxiety, as those high in social anxiety scored significantly higher on the measure than did participants low in social anxiety. The utility of this scale for research and clinical practice is discussed.