The role of experiential avoidance, mindfulness and anxiety sensitivity as transdiagnostic factors in prediction of emotional disorder

Abstract

The purpose of present study was to investigate the role of experiential avoidance, mindfulness and anxiety sensitivity in emotional disorders symptoms. To this aim, 297 students (age mean 21.6±5.8) were selected by multi-stage cluster sampling from Azad Islamic university students and completed the Acceptance and Action Questionnaire-II (AAQ-II), Anxiety Sensitivity Index-Revised (ASI-R) and Inventory of Depression and Anxiety Symptoms (IDAS). Results showed acceptance is correlated strongly with almost all depression symptoms and all of anxiety symptoms (P>0.01); Moreover mindfulness were correlated moderatly with some of depression and two anxiety symptoms (P>0.01); finally anxiety sensitivity was moderately correlated with some depression and strongly with anxiety symptoms (P>0.01). Regression analysis revealed experiential avoidance has significant role in depression symptoms like Lassitude, Insomnia, Suicidality, Appetite gain, Ill Temper and Well-being, but mindfulness and anxiety sensitivity have weaker role in some symptoms of depression (P>0.01). Also results showed anxiety sensitivity has a dominate role, but experiential avoidance moderate and mindfulness a weak role in anxiety symptoms (P>0.01). Experiential avoidance can be seen as a dominant and common transdiagnostic process in emotional disorders, but anxiety sensitivity is just more influencing process in anxiety symptoms of emotional disorder and mindfulness is a weak transdiagnostic process in emotional disorders.