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Exploring the boundary between temperament and generalized anxiety disorder: a receiver operating characteristic
David C Rettew1, Alicia C Doyle, Monica Kwan
1Department of Psychiatry, University of Vermont College of Medicine, 89 Beaumont Avenue, Given Building Room B227, Burlington, VT 05405, USA. david.rettew@uvm.edu
Journal of Anxiety Disorders
|April 18, 2006
Summary
High harm avoidance (HA) strongly predicts generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) in children and adults. However, elevated HA is neither necessary nor sufficient for developing clinically significant anxiety symptoms.
Area of Science:
- Psychiatry
- Clinical Psychology
- Behavioral Science
Background:
- Temperamental traits, like a tendency towards negative emotions, are linked to anxiety disorders.
- The exact role of high temperamental traits in meeting diagnostic criteria for anxiety disorders is debated.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess the relationship between harm avoidance (HA) levels and generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) diagnoses.
- To determine if high HA is a necessary or sufficient factor for GAD in children and adults.
Main Methods:
- Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analyses were used.
- The study included 334 children and their parents.
- Examined the predictive power of HA scores for GAD diagnoses.
Main Results:
- HA scores were highly predictive of GAD diagnoses in both children (AUC=.791) and adults (AUC=.818).
- A significant number of individuals with high HA scores did not meet the criteria for GAD.
Conclusions:
- There is a strong association between high harm avoidance and generalized anxiety disorder.
- High HA is neither a necessary nor sufficient condition for the development of clinically significant anxiety symptoms.
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