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Dysfunctional beliefs in panic disorder: The Panic Belief Inventory
Amy Wenzel1, Ian R Sharp, Gregory K Brown
1Psychopathology Research Unit, Department of Psychiatry, University of Pennsylvania, 3535 Market St., Room 2032, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA. awenzel@mail.med.upenn.edu
Behaviour Research and Therapy
|August 10, 2005
Summary
The Panic Belief Inventory (PBI) effectively measures catastrophic beliefs in panic disorder. This scale shows significant reductions during cognitive therapy, aiding treatment assessment and advancing panic disorder theories.
Area of Science:
- Psychology
- Clinical Psychology
- Psychiatry
Background:
- Panic disorder is characterized by catastrophic beliefs.
- Assessing these beliefs is crucial for understanding and treating panic disorder.
- Existing measures may not fully capture these specific cognitive patterns.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop and validate the Panic Belief Inventory (PBI).
- To assess the PBI's utility in measuring changes in dysfunctional beliefs during cognitive therapy for panic disorder.
- To explore the PBI's relationship with anxiety and depression-related cognitions.
Main Methods:
- Scale development involved 197 panic disorder patients completing the PBI and other psychiatric inventories.
- Exploratory factor analysis resulted in a 35-item, 4-scale instrument.
- 22 patients undergoing cognitive therapy completed the PBI at multiple time points.
Main Results:
- The 35-item PBI demonstrated good internal consistency and convergent validity.
- The PBI scores significantly decreased during cognitive therapy, particularly in the initial 4 weeks.
- The PBI showed stronger correlations with anxiety cognitions than depression cognitions.
Conclusions:
- The PBI is a psychometrically sound instrument for assessing dysfunctional beliefs in panic disorder.
- The PBI effectively tracks changes in beliefs during cognitive therapy.
- The PBI has potential to enhance cognitive models of panic disorder.