Autonomic correlates of the subjective anxiety scale

The subjective anxiety scale is an assessment tool commonly used in behavioral research and therapy to quantify verbal report of private events, usually states of fear. An investigation was undertaken to determine the extent of relationship between the subjective anxiety scale and two concurrent measures of autonomic arousal, peripheral vasoconstriction and heart rate. Measures were recorded during baseline, surgical film and second baseline phases for 20 subjects. The subjective and autonomic measures indicated increased anxiety during the film phase and significant correlations were found between subjective report of anxiety and the two physiological indices. The results support the continued use of the subjective anxiety scale as a clinical assessment tool. Practice and research implications are discussed.