Childhood Anxiety Sensitivity Index Research Articles

Behavioral validation of the Childhood Anxiety Sensitivity Index in children

Examined the construct validity of the Childhood Anxiety Sensitivity Index (CASI) in young children through the use of a behavioral challenge task. Elementary-school children completed the CASI as well as seff-report measures of state and trait anxiety and subjective fear prior to and immediately following a stair-stepping task designed to increase physiological arousal. Results indicate that the CASI was a significant predictor of the degree of state anxiety and subjective fear reported in response to the challenge task, even after controlling for pretask levels of state anxiety and fear, respectively. Additionally, the CASI predicted changes in fear experienced in response to the challenge task. The findings lend support to the validity of the CASI in preadolescent children and suggest that the CASI possesses unique clinical utility relative to measures of trait anxiety. However, results of this study must be interpreted cautiously, because a large portion of the variance in response to arousal was left unaccounted for by the CASI and the overall model.

Testing the Utility of the Anxiety Sensitivity Construct in Children and Adolescents Referred for Anxiety Disorders

Tested the utility of assessing anxiety sensitivity in children by investigating the incremental validity of the Childhood Anxiety Sensitivity Index (CASI) in a sample of clinic-referred children and adolescents ages 6 to 17 (N = 280). In the first test we examined whether the CASI would predict variance in trait anxiety beyond that predicted by measures of manifest anxiety and fear in children ages 6 to 11 (n = 202) and adolescents ages 12 to 17 (n = 78). In the next test, we examined whether the CASI would predict variance in fear beyond that predicted by a measure of trait anxiety for both age groups. In addition, age was tested as a continuous moderator of the CASI's incremental validity. No evidence was found to suggest that age systematically influences the CASZ's incremental validity in the age ranges for which the CASI was designed. We discuss the results in term 0 the utility of the CASI with younger and older age groups of children and the importance of such a measure for investigating the development of anxiety disorders in Children.

The relation between anxiety sensitivity and depression in children and adolescents referred for anxiety

Research conducted with adult samples suggests that anxiety sensitivity is positively related to depression (Otto et al., 1995, Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 10, 117–123). The Childhood Anxiety Sensitivity Index (CASI, Silverman et al., 1991, Journal of Clinical Child Psychology, 20 162–168) was used in this study to provide an examination of the relation between anxiety, anxiety sensitivity, and depression in a sample of children and adolescents ( N = 234) referred for anxiety disorders. A significant correlation between depression and anxiety sensitivity was found. This relation remained statistically significant when controlling for other aspects of anxiety (i.e. worry, physiological anxiety, and concentration). The similarities between these findings and findings obtained with adults are discussed, as well as suggestions for future research.

Panic attack symptomatology and anxiety sensitivity in adolescents

The relationship between panic attack symptoms, anxiety sensitivity, and academic performance was evaluated in a sample of 77 high school students. Although it has been suggested that children and adolescents are unlikely to experience panic attacks and panic disorder, the results of recent studies suggest that symptoms frequently occur in this age group. Evaluation of symptoms reported on the Panic Attack Questionnaire revealed that 39% of our sample experienced panic attacks, and that five subjects (6.5%) met diagnostic criteria for panic disorder at some time during their life. Furthermore, a significant correlation between scoring on the PAQ and scores on the Childhood Anxiety Sensitivity Index, a fear of anxiety measure, was found. Results suggest that there is a relationship between anxiety sensitivity and panic symptomatology in adolescents, a finding comparable with the adult literature. The observed relationship between anxiety sensitivity and panic symptomatology in adolescents is congruent with theorizing that anxiety sensitivity is a cognitive risk factor for the development of panic disorder.

Child Anxiety Sensitivity Index: Considerations for Children With Anxiety Disorders

Investigated the phenomenon of anxiety sensitivity in children diagnosed with anxiety disorders using the Child ,4nxiety Sensitivity Index (CASI; Silverman, Fleisig, Rabian, & Peterson, 1991). Among children 12 years and older, the CASI was found to predict unique variance in trait anxiety beyond simpler constructs of physical distress or fear. In 7- to 11-year olds, however, the CASI did not predict unique variance in the same analyses. Product-tern regression analysis demonstrated a significant nonlinear interaction of age with anxiety sensitivity. Although there is support for the construct of anxiety sensitivity in children with anxiety disorders, it appears that such a phenomenon may be limited to older developmental levels. Findings challenge existing notions of the applicability of the CASI across ages.

Anxiety Sensitivity Among Anxious Children

Employed the Diagnostic Interview Schedule for Children to show that children diagnosed with an anxiety disorder score significantly higher on the Childhood Anxiety Sensitivity Index (CASI) than nondiagnosed children. Interviews and self-report measures regarding the child were completed by 201 children and their parents from a metropolitan area military community who were participating in a National Institute of Mental Health epidemiological survey. An analysis of variance was used to compare CASI scoring across three groups: children receiving anxiety diagnoses, children receiving externalizing diagnoses but no anxiety diagnosis, and children receiving no diagnoses. Although scoring on the CASI differentiated anxious children from the no-diagnosis control group, it did not differentiate anxious children from those receiving externalizing diagnoses. Implications of the findings for the validity of the CASI, the issue of anxiety sensitivity as a component of some externalizing disorders, and suggestions f...

Childhood Anxiety Sensitivity Index

Presents a scale for measuring anxiety sensitivity (i.e., the belief that anxiety symptoms have negative consequences): the Child Anxiety Sensitivity Index (CASI). The CASI is shown to have sound psychometric properties for both a normal and a clinical sample. Support is provided for the view that anxiety sensitivity is a separate concept from that of anxiety frequency and that it is a concept applicable with children. The CASI is shown to correlate with measures of fear/ anxiety and also to account for variance on the Fear Survey Schedule for ChildrenRevised and the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory for Children (Trait form) that cannot be explained by a measure of anxiety frequency. The possible role of anxiety sensitivity as a predisposing factor in the development of anxiety disorders in children is discussed.