Journal of anxiety disorders
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Comparative Study
A psychometric analysis of the Intolerance of Uncertainty Scale among four racial groups.
Recent psychometric analyses examining the cross-cultural validity of key anxiety measures have suggested that some, such as the Anxiety Sensitivity Index (ASI), may hold different psychometric characteristics among different racial or national groups. The Intolerance of Uncertainty Scale (IUS) is a self-report measure that, like the ASI, appears to assess a predispositional risk for developing some anxiety and mood disorders. Despite its validation in both a French and English version, the majority of the research conducted on the IUS has used predominantly Caucasian samples. ⋯ The data suggested generally strong, and highly similar, estimates of reliability and validity across the four racial groups. The factor structure of the IUS, however, was poorly interpretable among any of the groups. Implications for use of the IUS with different racial groups are discussed.
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The present study examined results of cognitive-behavioral treatment (CBT) in a 22-year-old, male, tortured asylum-seeker living in Sweden. The patient received 16 sessions of CBT involving mainly self-exposure to trauma-related cues. ⋯ The improvement was maintained at 6-month follow-up. The results suggest that CBT could be useful in treating tortured asylum-seekers and refugees despite the additional stressors experienced by asylum-seekers and refugees.
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Comparative Study
Insomnia and generalized anxiety disorder: effects of cognitive behavior therapy for gad on insomnia symptoms.
Although clinical practice suggests that sleep complaints are frequent among patients with generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), frequency, severity, types of insomnia complaints, and relationship to GAD diagnosis severity in patients diagnosed using Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV) criteria are not well documented. Clinical data about the impact on insomnia symptoms of treating GAD worries are also lacking. The present study examined these aspects in 44 GAD patients who participated in a treatment study specifically addressing excessive worries through CBT interventions. ⋯ Regarding treatment impact on insomnia complaints, ISI post-treatment scores were significantly lower after treatment. Mean post-treatment scores almost reached ISI's "absence of clinical insomnia" category. Results indicate that this CBT package for GAD does have a significant impact on sleep quality even if sleep disturbances were not specifically addressed during treatment.
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We examined the psychometric characteristics of the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory for Children-Parent Report-Trait Version (STAIC-P-T) [Strauss, C. (1987). Modification of trait portion of State-Trait Anxiety Inventory for Children-Parent Form. Gainesville, FL: University of Florida], a brief, parent report paper-and-pencil measure of child chronic anxiety, in a large clinic-referred sample. ⋯ Divergent validity evidence provided less support for the measure, but was largely consistent with past research. Regression analyses indicated that parent reports on the STAIC-P-T were not significantly related to a parent's own level of symptomatology. Overall, the study provides mixed support for the psychometrics of the STAIC-P-T.
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Much of the Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) efficacy research has been widely criticized, limiting scientific understanding of its therapeutic components. The present investigation of Eye Movement Desensitization (EMD) effectiveness included undergraduate students reporting current intrusive cognitions conceming a traumatic event. Forty-five participants received a single treatment session of either: (a) EMD, as described by Shapiro [J. ⋯ During the treatment session, both desensitization groups were superior to the non-directive group in reducing reported vividness of the mental image of the original event. However, the non-directive group improved to the level of the two other groups by the following week. Rapid saccadic eye movements were therefore unrelated to immediate treatment effects for this sub-clinical sample, and non-directive treatment largely yielded eventual outcomes equivalent to the two desensitization conditions.