The effects of social evaluation and looming threat on self-attentional biases and social anxiety

Relationships among inferiority feelings, fear of negative evaluation, and social anxiety in Chinese junior high school students

Introduction

This study aimed to explore the relationship between feelings of inferiority and social anxiety in Chinese junior high school students. In addition, it examined the potential mediating effect of fear of negative evaluation in this relationship.

Methods

A survey was administered to a sample of 734 Chinese junior high school students. The Feelings of Inadequacy Scale, Brief Fear of Negative Evaluation Scale, and Social Avoidance Distress Scale were used.

Results

First, there were significant positive correlations between all subscales for the inferiority feelings, social anxiety, and fear of negative evaluation. Furthermore, fear of negative evaluation mediated the predictive effects of four inferiority subscales (i.e., self-esteem, academic ability, appearance, and physical ability) for social anxiety. However, the total score for the sense of inferiority and social confidence subscale lacked this mediating effect.

Conclusion

The inferiority feelings of self-esteem, academic ability, appearance, and physical ability may directly and indirectly predict social anxiety through fear of negative evaluation.

Eating disorder and social anxiety symptoms in Iranian preadolescents: a network analysis

PURPOSE

Network studies of eating disorder (ED) symptoms have identified central and bridge symptoms in Western samples, yet few network models of ED symptoms have been tested in non-Western samples, especially among preadolescents. The current study tested a network model of ED symptoms in Iranian preadolescents (ages 9 to 13), as well as a model of co-occurring social anxiety disorder (SAD) and ED symptoms.

METHOD

Preadolescent boys (n = 405) and girls (n = 325) completed the Children Eating Attitudes Test-20 and Social Anxiety Scale for Children. We estimated two network models (ED and ED/SAD networks) and identified central and bridge symptoms, as well as tested if these models differed by sex.

RESULTS

We found that discomfort eating sweets were the most central symptoms in ED networks. Concern over being judged was central in networks including both ED and SAD symptoms. Additionally, concern over being judged was the strongest bridge symptoms. Networks did not differ by sex.

CONCLUSION

Future research is needed to test if interventions focused on bridge symptoms (i.e., concern over being judged) as primary intervention points target comorbid ED-SAD pathology in preadolescents at risk for ED and SAD.

LEVEL OF EVIDENCE

Level III; Evidence obtained from well-designed observational study, including case-control design for relevant aspects of the study.

Cognitive risk factors and the experience of acute anxiety following social stressors: An ecological momentary assessment study

To better understand how social anxiety develops, it is crucial to identify mechanisms that influence anxiety following social stressors. Anxiety sensitivity social concerns (ASSC; fear of publicly observable anxiety symptoms) and fear of negative evaluation (FNE; distress arising from concerns about negative judgment) are constructs that amplify anxiety following social stressors. However, it is unclear how ASSC and FNE influence acute anxiety following stressors in naturalistic settings. In the current study, the impact of ASSC and FNE on anxious arousal and anxious apprehension following stressors was examined in community adults (N = 83; M age = 29.66 years, SD = 12.49, 59.0% female) who completed questionnaires five times per day for two-weeks. Dynamic structural equation modeling was used to examine predictors of overall levels of anxiety as well as anxiety following social and nonsocial stressors. ASSC interacted with the presence of social stressors, such that ASSC positively predicted anxious arousal following social stressors. FNE interacted with the presence of nonsocial stressors to predict both forms of anxiety, such that FNE positively predicted anxiety following nonsocial stressors. These findings suggest ASSC may specifically amplify anxious arousal following social stressors, whereas FNE may broadly amplify anxiety following nonsocial stressors.

Effects of Social Media and Smartphone Use on Body Esteem in Female Adolescents: Testing a Cognitive and Affective Model

We examined the predictive relations of social media and smartphone use to body esteem in female adolescents and the mechanism that underlies these relations. As a result of frequent social media and smartphone use, adolescents are continually exposed to appearance-related media content. This likely reinforces a thin ideal and fosters appearance-based comparison and increases fear of external evaluation. Hence, we investigated a cognitive-affective framework in which the associations of social media and smartphone use with body esteem are serially mediated by cognitive internalization of an ideal body image, appearance comparisons, and social appearance anxiety. By testing female adolescents (N = 100) aged 13 to 18, we found that excessive social media use leads to unhealthy body esteem via intensified cognitive internalization, which aggravates appearance comparisons and anxiety regarding negative appearance evaluation. Further, we found that screen time for specific smartphone activities also harmed body esteem, independent of social media use. However, overall smartphone screen time did not affect body esteem when social media use was taken into consideration. Our findings underscore the multifactor mechanism that elucidates the negative impacts of social media and smartphone activities on body esteem in female adolescents, who are developmentally susceptible to poor body esteem.

Fear of negative appearance evaluation and attitude towards mammography: Moderating role of internal health locus of control,cancer worry and age

Background: Mammography screening tends to reduce mortality rate through early detection. One of the barriers to mammography screening is fear of negative appearance evaluation(FNAE). This study investigated the impact of internal health locus of control, breast cancer worries and age on the relationship between FNAE and attitude towards mammography. Methods: A cross-sectional, questionnaire-based survey design was used. Samples were Iranian women, living in Iran, aged at least 30 years old, without any history of cancer, and had not performed mammography previously based on self-report. In total, 823 samples were collected through conducting an online survey from April to June 2016. The questionnaire consisted of several instruments including attitude toward breast cancer screening procedures scale, FNAEscale, the internal dimension of the multidimensional health locus of control, and two items to measure breast cancer worry. Using covariance-based structural equation modeling the model was tested. Results: The interaction of FNAE with internal health locus of control (β = -0.128, P<0.05,CI: -0.200, -0.056), breast cancer worry (β = 0.090, P<0.05, CI: -0.162, -0.017), and age (β =-0.095, P<0.05, CI = -0.163, -0.026) was significant. The three tested moderators dampened the positive relationship between FNAE and negative attitude towards mammography. Conclusion: More information about the screening procedure should be given to women to overcome their fear. The findings indicate the need for interventions seeking to shift women's health locus of control from external to internal. Women with low level of cancer worry need more attention.

Depressive symptoms among dance artists in South Korea: balance between self- and social identity on job value

Background

The balance between self- and social identity on job value of Korean dance artists, considered as performing artists, was measured to investigate the relationship between balance and depressive symptoms.

Methods

Data of 139 dance artists were analyzed for depressive symptoms assessed by their responses to questionnaires from the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression (CESD) translated into Korean. The balance score of each aspect of social identity compared to that of self-identity on job value was measured and classified as lower, equal, or higher. Following a graphical approach, we performed locally weighted scatterplot smoothing algorithm, simple linear regression, and quadric equation regression.

Results

The mean of CESD was highest in the higher balance group and lowest in the lower balance group. There was a linear relationship between balance score and CESD regarding specific audience, unspecified audience, and unspecified public. Balance score showed no association with other aspects of social identity. In the balance score range of 1 or higher, it was associated with CESD with respect to artist colleague, unspecified audience, and unspecified public.

Conclusions

Dance artists should maintain a balance between self- and social identity in job value to prevent depressive symptoms.

Moderator Role of Looming Cognitive Style (LCS) in the Relationship Between Attentional Control and Anxiety: Difference Between Shifting and Focusing Dimensions

Attentional control (AC) that is composed of shifting and focusing dimensions had been suggested as a transdiagnostic risk factor, associated with development and maintenance of various psychological disorders. In comparison, Looming Cognitive Style (LCS) had been documented as a trait-based, disorders-specific characteristic that is linked to high levels of subjectively felt anxiety. The present study investigated whether individual differences in LCS moderated the association of shifting and focusing with anxiety. Participants were 402 individuals between ages 18 and 68 recruited through advertisements posted on various forums, e-mail groups, and social media websites. They filled out questionnaires assessing AC, LCS, anxiety, and depression online. Results of the moderation analyses indicated that at high levels of LCS, low attentional shifting ability was associated with more intense anxiety. A similar relationship with LCS was not observed for focusing. In conclusion, for individuals who have high LCS and low shifting ability, content of and distress coming from looming images is experienced in a more intense manner due to difficulty in shifting to another (perhaps less anxiety provoking) content more flexibly. The findings are providing support for the interactive-synergistic perspective, indicating that deficits in shifting capacity may potentiate negative impact of looming cognitions.

A Randomized, Double-Blinded, Clinical Trial on Effects of a Vitis vinifera Extract on Cognitive Function in Healthy Older Adults

Introduction: Gradual population aging is creating a new set of needs in the general population. Memory capacity decreases with age, and memory deficits are considered an early symptom of Alzheimer’s Disease (AD), one of the most prevalent cognitive disorders in older people. Numerous studies have shown that grape polyphenolic compounds (GPs) are able to attenuate cognitive impairment and reduce brain lesions in experimental AD animal models. These GP effects are associated with improvement in brain antioxidant status and prevention of free radical-induced neuronal damage. We designed a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial to investigate the potential beneficial effects of a Vitis vinifera-based dietary supplement on cognitive function and neuropsychological status in healthy older adults.

Methods: One-hundred eleven subjects were recruited and randomly divided in two groups: one group received the V. vinifera-based dietary supplement Cognigrape^® for 12 weeks (250 mg/day) and the second group received placebo over the same period of time. Before and after the end of the supplementation period, cognitive function and neuropsychological status were evaluated using the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (HARS), and Repeatable Battery for the Assessment of Neuropsychological Status (RBANS) evaluations.

Results: MMSE scores were significantly improved after supplementation with Cognigrape^® in comparison with baseline levels (p < 0.0001) and placebo (r = 0.59, 0.95% CI 0.11, 1.22; p < 0.0001). Cognigrape^® supplementation produced a significant reduction in BDI (-15.8%) and HARS (-24.9%) scores with respect to baseline levels (p < 0.0001) and placebo (p < 0.0001 for BDI and p < 0.05 for HARS). RBANS total score was significantly improved by Cognigrape^® with respect to baseline levels and placebo (r = 0.55, 0.95% CI 0.48, 6.07; p < 0.0001). The comparison with the placebo revealed improvements in several parameters among participants receiving Cognigrape^®: attention (p < 0.001); language (p < 0.05); immediate memory (p < 0.0001); and delayed memory (p < 0.0001). Visuospatial/constructional abilities were not modified. During the study, no adverse effects were detected.

Conclusion: The results show that 12 weeks of Cognigrape^® supplementation is safe, can improve physiological cognitive profiles, and can concurrently ameliorate negative neuropsychological status in healthy older adults.

The Looming Maladaptive Style Questionnaire: Measurement invariance and relations to anxiety and depression across 10 countries

The Looming Maladaptive Style Questionnaire (LMSQ) is a self-report measure designed to assess the looming cognitive style, a tendency to interpret threats as rapidly approaching and increasing in magnitude. To date, no systematic evaluation on the psychometric properties of the LMSQ across diverse cultural contexts has been done. In the present research, the measurement invariance of the LMSQ test scores was examined in 10 countries (N=4000). Confirmatory factor analysis suggested that a two-factor model (i.e., physical looming and social looming) fitted the data well across countries. Partial measurement invariance was established for the LMSQ scores across the countries whereas full measurement invariance was achieved across gender. Meta-analytic structural equation modeling was applied to examine the unique contributions of the two looming factors to anxiety and depression symptoms. Results indicated that the test scores underlying two looming factors were crucial and valid predictors of symptoms. The LMSQ shows promise as a measure with cross-cultural generalizability and opens new avenues for its use in diverse cultural settings.

The Role of Self-esteem and Fear of Negative Evaluation in Compulsive Buying

Compulsive buying is a relatively new addictive disorder that interferes with everyday functioning and may result in serious psychological and financial problems (1). A very few data are currently available regarding this behavioral addiction. This study investigated gender differences in the relationships between contingent self-esteem (CSE), fear of negative evaluation (FNE), and compulsive buying. Participants included 240 Italian adults (170 females, M age = 33.80) who responded to self-report questionnaires. The results showed that women scored higher on CSE and FNE scales than men. No gender differences were found in compulsive buying tendencies. CSE and FNE were positively related to CB. Furthermore, structural equation modeling confirmed the evidence on CSE as a strong predictor of CB for both genders. Interestingly, FNE seems to play a mediating role between CSE and compulsive buying behaviors only for women. These findings highlight the importance of studying self-esteem in compulsive buying tendencies to inquire more deeply into the underlying mechanisms of some compulsive behaviors.

The Core Extrusion Schema–Revised

Cognitive behavioral models of social anxiety disorder (SAD) suggest that fear of negative evaluation is a core fear or vulnerability for SAD. However, why negative evaluation is feared is not fully understood. It is possible that core beliefs contribute to the relationship between fear of negative evaluation and SAD. One of these beliefs may be a core extrusion schema: a constellation of beliefs that one’s true self will be rejected by others and therefore one should hide one’s true self. In the current study ( N = 699), we extended research on the Core Extrusion Schema and created a shortened and revised version of the measure called the Core Extrusion Schema–Revised. The Core Extrusion Schema–Revised demonstrated good factor fit for its two subscales (Hidden Self and Rejection of the True Self) and was invariant across gender and ethnicity. The Hidden Self subscale demonstrated excellent incremental validity within the full sample as well as in participants diagnosed with generalized SAD. Specifically, the Hidden Self subscale may help explain severity of social interaction anxiety. This measure could be used with individuals diagnosed with generalized SAD to design exposures targeting these core beliefs.

An Exploration of Social Functioning in Young People with Eating Disorders: A Qualitative Study

Previous research indicates adults with eating disorders (EDs) report smaller social networks, and difficulties with social functioning, alongside demonstrating difficulties recognising and regulating emotions in social contexts. Concurrently, those recovered from the illness have discussed the vital role offered by social support and interaction in their recovery. To date, little is known about the social skills and social networks of adolescents with EDs and this study aimed to conduct focus groups to explore the social functioning of 17 inpatients aged 12-17. Data were analysed using thematic analysis and six core themes were identified: group belonging, self-monitoring, social sensitivity, impact of hospitalisation, limited coping strategies and strategies for service provision. Key areas for service provision were: management of anxiety, development and/or maintenance of a social network and development of inter and intrapersonal skills. The most salient finding was that adolescents with EDs reported social difficulties which appeared to persist over and above those typically experienced at this point in the lifespan and therefore a key area for future focus is the development of appropriate coping strategies and solutions to deal with these reported difficulties.

Clarifying the prospective relationships between social anxiety and eating disorder symptoms and underlying vulnerabilities

Social anxiety and eating disorders are highly comorbid. Several explanations for these high levels of comorbidity have been theorized. First, social anxiety might be a vulnerability factor for eating disorders. Second, eating disorders might be a vulnerability factor for social anxiety. Third, the two kinds of disorders may have common, shared psychological vulnerabilities. The current study (N = 300 undergraduate women) investigates a model of social anxiety and eating disorder symptoms that examines each of these possibilities across two time points (Time 1 and six months later). We do not find support for either social anxiety or eating disorder symptoms per se predicting each other across time. Instead, we find that some underlying vulnerabilities prospectively predict symptoms of both disorders, whereas other vulnerabilities are specific to symptoms of one disorder. Specifically we find that maladaptive perfectionism is a shared prospective vulnerability for social anxiety and eating disorder symptoms. Alternatively, we find that social appearance anxiety is specific for eating disorder symptoms, whereas high standards is specific for social anxiety symptoms. These data help clarify our understanding of how and why social anxiety and eating disorder symptoms frequently co-occur.

Test of an hypothesized structural model of the relationships between cognitive style and social anxiety: a 12-month prospective study

The aim of this study was to test whether social looming cognitive style accounts for the predictive association between early maladaptive schema domains and social anxiety. We predicted that early maladaptive schema domains would predict the increase of social anxiety over time and that social looming would act as a mediator between schema domains and social anxiety. A three-wave longitudinal design was used. The participants (N=471, 56.95% women) were Spanish adolescents and young adults aged between 16 and 25 years old (Mage=17.81, SD age=3.19). The results showed that three schema domains (impaired autonomy and performance, impaired limits, and other-directedness) predicted the increase in social anxiety and that LCS for social threat acted as a mediator between other-directedness and social anxiety at T3. These results are important to improve the knowledge of the cognitive mechanisms that are involved in the occurrence and development of social anxiety.

Negative Social Evaluative Fears Produce Social Anxiety, Food Intake, and Body Dissatisfaction: Evidence of Similar Mechanisms through Different Pathways

Social anxiety and eating disorders are highly comorbid, suggesting there are shared vulnerabilities that underlie the development of these disorders. Two proposed vulnerabilities are fear of negative evaluation and social appearance anxiety (i.e., fear of negative evaluation regarding one's appearance). In the current experimental study (N=160 women) we measured these fears: (a) through a manipulation comparing fear conditions, (b) with trait fears, and (c) state fears. Results indicated that participants in the fear of negative evaluation condition increased food consumption, whereas participants in the social appearance anxiety condition and high in trait social appearance anxiety experienced the highest amounts of body dissatisfaction. Participants in the fear of evaluation and social appearance anxiety conditions experienced elevated social anxiety. These results support the idea that negative evaluation fears are shared vulnerabilities for eating and social anxiety disorders, but that the way these variables exert their effects may lead to disorder specific behaviors.

Assessing the Straightforwardly-Worded Brief Fear of Negative Evaluation Scale for Differential Item Functioning Across Gender and Ethnicity

The Brief Fear of Negative Evaluation Scale (BFNE; Leary Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 9, 371-375, 1983) assesses fear and worry about receiving negative evaluation from others. Rodebaugh et al. Psychological Assessment, 16, 169-181, (2004) found that the BFNE is composed of a reverse-worded factor (BFNE-R) and straightforwardly-worded factor (BFNE-S). Further, they found the BFNE-S to have better psychometric properties and provide more information than the BFNE-R. Currently there is a lack of research regarding the measurement invariance of the BFNE-S across gender and ethnicity with respect to item thresholds. The present study uses item response theory (IRT) to test the BFNE-S for differential item functioning (DIF) related to gender and ethnicity (White, Asian, and Black). Six data sets consisting of clinical, community, and undergraduate participants were utilized (N=2,109). The factor structure of the BFNE-S was confirmed using categorical confirmatory factor analysis, IRT model assumptions were tested, and the BFNE-S was evaluated for DIF. Item nine demonstrated significant non-uniform DIF between White and Black participants. No other items showed significant uniform or non-uniform DIF across gender or ethnicity. Results suggest the BFNE-S can be used reliably with men and women and Asian and White participants. More research is needed to understand the implications of using the BFNE-S with Black participants.

Unique and interactive effect of anxiety and depressive symptoms on cognitive and brain function in young and older adults

OBJECTIVE

Depression and anxiety and are associated with cognitive deficits and brain changes, especially in older adults. Despite the frequent co-occurrence of these conditions, cognitive neuroscience studies examining comorbid depression and anxiety are limited. The goal of the present study was to examine the unique and combined effect of depressive and anxiety symptoms on cognitive and brain functioning in young and older adults.

METHODS

Seventy-one healthy, community-dwelling adults between the ages of 18 and 81 were administered a neuropsychological battery and completed the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D) and the trait form of the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI-T). A subset of 25 participants also underwent functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) scanning while completing the n-back working memory task.

RESULTS

Total depressive symptoms, depressed mood symptoms, and somatic symptoms were associated with deficits in speed, working memory and executive functions, especially in older adults. Symptoms of lack of well-being were not associated with any neuropsychological test. Anxiety was associated with better attention and working memory. Moreover, anxiety modified the relationship between depressive symptoms and executive functioning in older adults, as elevated depressive symptoms were associated with worse performance at low levels of anxiety, but not at higher anxiety levels. Similarly, analysis of fMRI data showed that total depressive symptoms and depressed mood symptoms were associated with decreased activity in the superior frontal gyrus at low anxiety levels, but not at high anxiety levels.

CONCLUSION

Results confirm previous reports that subthreshold depression and anxiety impact cognitive and brain functioning and suggest that the interaction of depression and anxiety results in distinct cognitive and brain changes. Findings highlight the importance of assessing and controlling for symptoms of depression and anxiety in research studies of either condition.

Social appearance anxiety, perfectionism, and fear of negative evaluation: distinct or shared risk factors for social anxiety and eating disorders?

Social anxiety and eating disorders are highly comorbid. Social appearance anxiety (i.e., fear of negative evaluation of one's appearance), general fear of negative evaluation, and perfectionism have each been proposed as risk factors for both social anxiety disorder and the eating disorders. However, no research to date has examined all three factors simultaneously. Using structural equation modeling in two diverse samples (N=236; N=136) we tested a model in which each of these risk factors were uniquely associated with social anxiety and eating disorder symptoms. We found support for social appearance anxiety as a shared risk factor between social anxiety and eating disorder symptoms, whereas fear of negative evaluation was a risk factor only for social anxiety symptoms. Despite significant zero-order relationships, two facets of perfectionism (high standards and maladaptive perfectionism) did not emerge as a risk factor for either disorder when all constructs were considered. These results were maintained when gender, body mass index, trait negative affect, and depression were included in the model. It is possible that treating negative appearance evaluation fears may reduce both eating disorder and social anxiety symptoms.

Anxious symptoms and cognitive function in non-demented older adults: an inverse relationship

BACKGROUND

The goals of this study were to determine the relationship between anxious symptoms and cognitive functioning in a non-demented, community-dwelling older adults sample (n = 48), and to determine the effect of depressive symptoms upon this relationship.

METHODS

Anxious and depressive symptoms were assessed using the Symptom Checklist 90--Revised. Cognitive functioning was assessed with the Repeatable Battery for the Assessment of Neuropsychological Status.

RESULTS

Results indicated that although both cognitive functioning and anxious symptoms were within normal limits in this sample, anxious symptoms showed a significant, inverse relationship with global cognitive function [r(47) = -0.400, p = 0.005]. In addition, specific relationships were noted between severity of anxious symptoms and visuospatial/constructional ability as well as immediate and delayed memory. With regard to the secondary objective, both anxiety and depressive symptoms together accounted for the highest level of variance [R(2)  = 0.175, F(2, 45) = 4.786, p = 0.013] compared with anxiety [R(2) (47) = 0.160, p = 0.005] and depression [R(2) (47) = 0.106, p = 0.024] alone. Nevertheless, neither anxious nor depressive symptoms emerged as a unique correlate with cognitive ability [r(47) = -0.278, p = 0.058; r(48) = -0.136, p = 0.363, respectively].

CONCLUSION

This study demonstrates that subthreshold anxiety symptoms and cognitive functioning are significantly related even among generally healthy older adults whose cognitive ability and severity of anxious symptoms are within broad normal limits. These findings have implications both for clinical care of older patients, as well as for cognitive research studies utilizing this population.

Social anxiety and eating disorder comorbidity: the role of negative social evaluation fears

Social anxiety and eating disorders are highly comorbid. However, it is unknown how specific domains of social anxiety relate to disordered eating. We provide data on these relationships and investigate social appearance anxiety and fear of negative evaluation as potential vulnerabilities linking social anxiety with disordered eating. Specifically, we examined five domains of social anxiety: Social interaction anxiety, fear of scrutiny, fear of positive evaluation, fear of negative evaluation, and social appearance anxiety. Results indicated that social appearance anxiety predicted body dissatisfaction, bulimic symptoms, shape concern, weight concern, and eating concern over and above fear of scrutiny, social interaction anxiety, and fear of positive evaluation. Fear of negative evaluation uniquely predicted drive for thinness and restraint. Structural equation modeling supported a model in which social appearance anxiety and fear of negative evaluation are vulnerabilities for both social anxiety and eating disorder symptoms. Interventions that target these negative social evaluation fears may help prevent development of eating disorders.

Examination of the convergent validity of looming vulnerability in the anxiety disorders

The looming vulnerability model proposes that individuals with anxiety generate dynamic mental scenarios of threats as intensifying and approaching faster than they can cope or respond. In addition to the looming cognitive style posing a general cognitive vulnerability for anxiety, the looming vulnerability model posits that different anxiety disorders can be distinguished based on the specific content of their looming vulnerability themes. The current study examined whether different anxiety disorders have distinct looming vulnerability content along the lines of disorder-specific themes. A treatment-seeking sample of individuals with DSM-IV anxiety disorders (N=172) completed measures of looming vulnerability prior to treatment initiation. Consistent with the looming vulnerability model, the results indicated that individuals with social phobia, obsessive compulsive disorder, and panic disorder reported significantly greater disorder-specific looming content compared to non-disorder specific looming content. Individuals with generalized anxiety disorder reported the same level of looming social threat as those with social phobia. The results suggest that different anxiety disorders can be distinguished by the specific content of looming vulnerability themes and provide empirical support for the convergent validity of the Looming Vulnerability Scale.

Current research on cognitive aspects of anxiety disorders

PURPOSE OF REVIEW

Cognitive dysfunction is frequently reported in anxiety disorders. Our aim is to describe recent advances concerning these cognitive aspects.

RECENT FINDINGS

Cognitive dysfunction in anxiety disorders can be classified into four domains. The first concerns executive functions, mainly attentional processes. The second concerns memory, including deficits in working, episodic, and autobiographical memory. The third encompasses maladaptive cognitions, or thoughts and beliefs. Finally, a burgeoning area of research (mainly in obsessive-compulsive disorder and posttraumatic stress disorder) concerns metacognitions, or thoughts and beliefs about one's own thoughts and beliefs. All of these dysfunctions may contribute to maintain or aggravate anxiety disorders. When developing and implementing interventions, researchers and clinicians alike must consider these cognitive aspects, and may need to tailor their approaches accordingly.

SUMMARY

Advances have clearly been made in the elucidation of the cognitive functioning associated with anxiety disorders. It remains unclear if particular cognitive profiles can help to distinguish anxiety disorders from one another, although emerging evidence suggests this may be the case. Further clarification will add to our understanding of the development and maintenance of these disorders, and may provide targets for future therapy and endophenotypes.