Anxiety is a disorder many people are quick to self-diagnose. While anxiety is a very serious disorder, I believe it is important to educate and seek professional advice before assuming you are someone who suffers from this disorder. I chose the article by Alexander M. Penney, Dwight Mazmanian, & Caitlin Rudanycz because I was that person I previously mentioned. I suffered for years from what I assumed was severe anxiety and it wasn’t until I sought professional help that I was finally able to understand and better control the situation at hand.
1. Background – Positive and negative beliefs play a major role in much of society’s thinking processes, decision-making, attitude and outlook on life. These beliefs contribute to trait
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c. Procedures used & Description of “what they did”. - Each participant was given a set of four different self-report questionnaires. 1. The English Worry and Anxiety Questionnaire asked participants to provide a list of their six daily worry subjects. 2. The Penn State Worry Questionnaire to determine how often they worry about said subject and the level of worry it causes them. 3. The English Why Worry II, a questionnaire that pertained only to positive beliefs. 4. The Metacognitions Questionnaire; a tool that measures beliefs, memory and through awareness.
d. What was measured? What were the variables? – The English Worry and Anxiety Questionnaire measured general anxiety disorder symptoms. A high score represented more symptoms. The Penn State Worry Questionnaire measured the severity of trait worrying. The higher the score the more severe. The English Why Worry II measured the correlation of positive beliefs and worry. A high score indicated stronger beliefs in positive correlation. A subscale was also implemented to measure worry aids, worry motivates, worry protects from negative emotions after negative events, the act of worrying prevents negative events, being a high worrier is a good personality trait. The Metacognitions Questionnaire measured beliefs regarding worry, memory and thought awareness. It also consisted of five subscales that measured: positive beliefs,
The following tests were administered to the patient: Penn State Worry Questionnaire (PSWQ)—a 16-item self-report measure of the affinity, strength, and uncontrollability of excessive and uncontrollable worry; Intolerance of Uncertainty Scale (IUS)—a 27-item self-report mechanism measuring the general idea that uncertainty in life is frustrating, unacceptable, or bad; Why Worry-II (WW-II)—a 25item- questionnaire of positive attitudes about worry; and the Ahwaz Worry Inventory (AWI)—an assessment of economic worry, self-esteem, worry about the future, worry about relations, cognitive worry, worries of insecurity, and worry about
In the second study they took 48 undergraduate students (24 male, 24 female) who were enrolled in a basic communication course. They were assigned to give a five-minute speech in front of the class and videotaping. They were asked to fill out Spielberger's scale three times. The first time was directly after the speech was assigned, the second was while they were preparing for the speech, the third time was directly before the speech. Anxiety was highest directly before the speech. It was second
Anxiety is one of the banalest features in the human mind. People with severe anxiety can have strenuous difficulties in life. In the past, anxiety was deemed irrelevant, and it was assumed to be benign. In recent years, Researchers have concluded that anxiety can be detrimental to one’s health. Anxiety can range from mild to strong, but nonetheless, it can affect lives severely. Almost everybody in the world has at least some type of anxiety. Whether it is presenting in front of a crowd, going to social events, reliving a traumatic experience, or even going on a rollercoaster. Psychology doctor, Peg O-Conner declares in her article that anxiety is, in fact, part of human nature (Conner). Conner argues that becoming unable to prioritize matters,
In the study conducted by Borkovec and Roemmer, entitled “Perceived Functions of Worry Among Generalized Anxiety Disorder Subjects: Distraction from More Emotionally Distressing Topics?”, the researchers used a rating scale of six reasons for worry commonly reported by individuals with generalized anxiety disorder (GAD). The study explored the participants beliefs as to the purpose of their worry. The six reasons often shared by the study’s participants were motivation to complete tasks, problem solving, preparation for the worst, planning to avoid negative events, distraction from more emotional thoughts and superstitious concerns. Data from the participants was collected by using a self-reporting questionnaire. The questionnaire asked the subjects to rate each item by the level or degree to which they experienced each specific reason. The responses that received the highest ratings included, motivation, preparation and avoidance
To the general public, anxiety tends to be known simply as the feeling of being overly nervous. However, in the sense of this paper, anxiety is an umbrella term for a group of psychological disorders that, while similar in many ways, can vary greatly in their symptomology. For the sake of simplicity, this paper will focus mainly on Generalized Anxiety Disorder; however, the National Institute of Mental Health (2016) states that the three most common forms of anxiety disorders are Generalized Anxiety Disorder, Social Anxiety Disorder, and Panic Disorder (National Institute of Mental Health, 2016). In fact, these disorders are much more common than many think: according to the NIMH, the lifetime prevalence of any anxiety disorder in U.S. adults
Everyday someone is fighting a battle with an anxiety disorder. Anxiety is considered a mental illness that causes distress, worry, and fear to an individual. Some types of anxiety include the following: panic disorder, social anxiety disorder, specific phobias, and a generalized anxiety disorder with unrealistic worry (WebMD, 2016). The cause for anxiety is currently unknown, but environmental stress and changes in the brain can be linked factors (WebMD, 2016). Anxiety disorders affect 40 million adults who are 18 and older, this is 18% of the population in the United States (ADAA, 2014). General Anxiety Disorder alone affects 3.1% of the United States population and it most often affects
Available research points out the fact that evidence based assessment methods are as important and evidence based treatment methods (Therrien & Hunsley 2012, p. 1). The research that I reviewed identified a variety of evidence based anxiety assessment tools. The two most commonly identified throughout the literature were the Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI), (Brandeis, 2016) (see Appendix B) and the Penn State Worry Questionnaire (PSWQ), (Davis et al., 2016, p. 20). The BAI consists of twenty-one items describing anxiety symptoms and is utilized by the respondent’s self-reported responses to how much they were bothered by the symptoms in the previous week (Gillis et al., 1995: Palmer et al., 2016). The PSWQ is a sixteen item tool that measures concerns associated with anxiety (Fergus 2013; Gillis et al., 1995). Both tools have been
According to Abnormal Psychology: An Integrative Approach (2015), anxiety is defined as a “negative mood state characterized by bodily symptoms of physical tension and apprehension about the future” (Barlow, 2015). Anxiety is a set of behaviors, such as looking worried, anxious or fidgety, or a physiological response in the brain that is reflected by increased heart rate and muscle tension (Barlow et al., 2015). Within the spectrum of anxiety disorder, there are many disorders that are classified under anxiety, such as panic disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, agoraphobia, generalized anxiety disorder, social anxiety and obsessive-compulsive disorder. In regards to this essay, the anxiety disorders of obsessive-compulsive disorder, post-traumatic
Anxiety is a medical condition that is becoming more and more common these days, and we have come to fill you in on all the misunderstood facts about this complicated diagnosis. This disorder can come in quite a variety of forms, so it’s needless to say it can be a bit confusing to understand. Whether you have been diagnosed, are experiencing symptoms, or are just curious about the fight against this condition, we have all of the most crucial information for you right here! Don’t forget to return for our part two article, coming soon to explain the top eight misunderstood facts about anxiety!
Psychiatric studies that were part of this study include Beck Depression Inventory, Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale, and SCL-90-R questionnaires. The Beck Depression Inventory questionnaire measures the severity of depression and screens patients who require intervention. BDI scores minimal depression from 0-13, mild depression from 14-19, moderate depression from 20-28, with severe depression scoring lying within the 29-63 range (Beck AT. Depression: Causes and Treatment. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2006). HARS provides an overall measure of global anxiety that is psychiatric and somatic symptomatically. Scoring ranges from 0-56 with a score over 14 indicating high levels of anxiety (Bagby RM, Ryder AG, Schuller DR, Marshall MB. "The Hamilton Depression Rating Scale: has the gold standard become a lead weight?" Am J Psychiatry 2004; 161(12):2163-77). SCL-90-R questionnaire presented
From the beginning I was very curious about the different types of anxiety and what triggered them
All of the subjects completed the Fear Questionnaire (FQ) at the beginning of the study and at each session. Other methods used were such as Panic Disorder Severity Scale (PDSS), the Chambless Agoraphobic Cognitions (CAS) scale, and Panic, Phobia and Generalized Anxiety scale. More scales were used as well, also at the start of the study the therapist and subjects each completed the Expectancies Rating Scale (ERS), this rated the possibility of improvement from
In comparison, the three-factor model was found to have acceptable CFI results for both age groups. In cohort one, the CFI for single and there factor model were 0.86 and 0.97 respectively; in cohort two 0.76 and 0.95 respectively. Based on these results, it is determined that the three-factor model of anxiety is most appropriate for adolescents.
The State-Trait Anxiety Inventory for Adults™ (STAI-AD) is the definitive instrument for measuring anxiety in adults. It clearly differentiates between the temporary condition of state anxiety and the more general and long-standing quality of trait anxiety. It helps professionals distinguish between a client’s feelings of anxiety and depression. The inventory’s simplicity makes it ideal for evaluating individuals with lower educational backgrounds. Adapted in more than forty languages, the STAI is the leading measure of personal anxiety worldwide. The STAI has forty questions with a range of four possible responses to each (Spielberger, 1977).
Another prominent bias characterizing anxiety is in interpretation or processing of the uncertain and the unknown. We encounter ambiguous situations in our life daily, but what differs is our subjective interpretation and processing of that situation. Anxious individuals find themselves to be uneasy all the time, the main culprits being their thoughts and perceptions about themselves and the world, which are revealed by the way they process and resolve ambiguity. In an ambiguous situation, processing in anxiety could be mood-congruent or context-related (Richards, Holmes, Pell & Bethell, 2013). Bower (1981) and Blanchette, Richards and Cross, (2007) have found evidence for mood congruent hypothesis whereas evidence to support a context effect