Health perception is a unique predictor of anxiety symptoms in non-clinical participants

This study evaluated the role of perceived health in predicting anxiety symptoms, bodily vigilance and agoraphobic cognitions among 71 individuals (30 females; mean age 19.9 years, SD=3.1) without a psychiatric history, including non-clinical panic attacks. Results indicated that, relative to anxiety sensitivity, perceived health was a distinct construct that incrementally predicted bodily-oriented catastrophic thinking (8% of unique variance) and heart-focused anxiety (13% of unique variance). Moreover, perceived health significantly incrementally predicted anxious arousal symptoms (9% of unique variance). Results are discussed in relation to the role of perceived health as a cognitive vulnerability factor for anxiety-related problems.