The longitudinal relationship between well-being comparisons and anxiety symptoms in the context of uncontrollability of worries and external locus of control: a two-wave study

Abstract

ABSTRACT Background Anxiety is a prevalent mental health condition. Comparisons of one’s own well-being to different aversive standards may contribute to the development and maintenance of anxiety symptoms. Objectives Our primary goal was to investigate whether aversive well-being comparisons predict anxiety symptoms and vice versa. Additionally, we aimed at examining exploratorily whether well-being comparisons are reciprocally related to metacognitive beliefs about worrying and external control beliefs. Methods In this two-wave longitudinal survey design, 922 participants completed measures of anxiety, metacognitions about the uncontrollability of worries, external locus of control, and the Comparison Standards Scale for Well-being (CSS-W) at two timepoints, three-months apart. The CSS-W assesses the frequency, perceived discrepancy, and affective impact of social, temporal, counterfactual, and criteria-based comparisons. Results When autoregressive effects were adjusted for, aversive comparison frequency, comparison affective impact, and uncontrollability of worries at the first timepoint predicted subsequent anxiety symptoms. Furthermore, well-being comparison frequency and discrepancy at the second timepoint were predicted by baseline anxiety symptoms. External locus of control predicted comparison frequency and discrepancy. Conclusions Well-being comparisons contribute distinct variance to anxiety symptoms and vice versa, pointing to a vicious cirlcle of symptom escalation. These findings have significant implications for future research.