Anxiety sensitivity: Prospective prediction of anxiety among early adolescents

Abstract

Emerging evidence suggests that anxiety sensitivity (AS) predicts subsequent development of anxiety symptoms and panic attacks as well as clinical syndromes in adult samples. The primary aim of the present study was to determine whether AS similarly acts as a vulnerability factor in the pathogenesis of anxiety symptoms among youth in early adolescence (ages 9–13). A large nonclinical community sample of youth ( n = 277) was prospectively followed over 1 year. The Childhood Anxiety Sensitivity Index (CASI: Silverman, Fleisig, Rabian, & Peterson, 1991) served as the primary predictor. After controlling for baseline anxiety symptoms as well as depression, AS significantly predicted the future development of anxiety symptoms. Consistent with the adult literature and expectancy theory, AS appears to act as a risk factor for anxiety symptoms in youth.