Setting the research and practice agenda for anxiety in children and adolescence: A topic comes of age

Abstract

Select research and practice issues that merit further attention are described. Specifically, we argue that the pathways for profitable research include studies of normative development, assessment and diagnostic considerations, the role of parents, and the ways to optimize the conduct and evaluation of treatment. At present, the field is too uninformed about the development of emotions (e.g., anxiety) and emotion regulation, about adolescence and particular vulnerabilities associated with adolescence, and about the longitudinal course of anxiety in youth. Improved measures, as well as a better understanding of and recommended solutions for parent-child disagreements are needed. How do parents maintain distressing anxiety in their children, and what is the optimal role for parents in the treatment of anxious children? The role of parents may vary across development, and there may be differential advantages and disadvantages for younger children, middle-aged children, and adolescents, and for the different types of anxiety disorders. Although cognitive-behavioral therapy is a probably efficacious treatment, and well on its way to becoming a well-established treatment, much more information is needed about the potential role of medications and the merits of enhancing the therapeutic alliance. Our discussion focuses on mapping the further evolution and maturation of the field of child anxiety.