Tripartite Model Of Anxiety Research Articles

Structure of anxiety and depression in urban youth: an examination of the tripartite model.

In this study, the authors examined the validity of the tripartite model of anxiety and depression in a community epidemiological sample of 467 urban African American youth. Participants completed the Baltimore How I Feel, a measure of anxiety and depressive symptoms, in Grades 6 and 9. Confirmatory factor analyses indicated that a 3-factor model representing the tripartite model fit the data well and better than competing models. Longitudinal confirmatory factor analysis revealed configural invariance of the tripartite factor structure. However, a predicted divergence among dimensions over time was not evidenced. High correlations among the tripartite dimensions suggest that anxiety and mood symptoms may not differentiate in urban youth. Results are discussed in terms of the ethnicity and urban context of this community sample.

Relations of positive and negative affectivity to anxiety and depression in children: evidence from a latent variable longitudinal study.

The tripartite model of anxiety and depression has been studied with adults; however, support is still emerging with children concerning measurement and relations between positive (PA) and negative (NA) affect and psychopathology. In this longitudinal study of 270 4th- to 11th-grade children (mean age = 12.9 years, SD = 2.23). confirmatory factor analysis supported a 2-factor orthogonal model of children's self-reported affect and revealed that the concurrent relations of NA and PA to anxiety and depression symptoms were consistent with the tripartite model. Structural equation modeling demonstrated moderate cross-time stability of trait PA and NA, consistent with a temperament view of these factors, as well as partial support for the role of NA and PA in the development of anxiety and depression symptoms in children.

Factorial and construct validity of the Italian Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS).

This study provides evidence that an Italian version of the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS) is a reliable and valid self-report measure. In an Italian sample (N = 600), the PANAS showed solid psychometric properties, and several American findings with the PANAS were replicated. The replicability of the PANAS factor structure was confirmed by high congruence coefficients between the American and Italian varimax solutions. Alternative models were tested with Confirmatory Factor Analysis; as in previous studies, the two-factor model achieved the best fit, but absolute fit indices varied with the estimation methods used. The independence/bipolarity issue was also explored: Positive and negative affect scales remain substantially independent after accounting for measurement error and acquiescence. Some predictions from the tripartite model of anxiety and depression were confirmed, and external correlates of the PANAS replicated those found in other languages and cultures. These analyses offer strong support for the construct validity of the Italian PANAS.

The Tripartite Model of Anxiety and Depression: Symptom Structure in Depressive and Hypertensive Patient Groups

The structure of self-reported symptoms representative of the tripartite model was examined using data drawn from the Medical Outcomes Study (Tarlov et al., 1989). Participants were persons who had been diagnosed 48 months previously as suffering from either depression (N = 315) or hypertension (N = 403). Results of confirmatory factor analyses were broadly consistent with the tripartite model (L. A. Clark & Watson, 1991). Factors emerged corresponding to each of the 3 posited first-order dimensions of negative affect, positive affect, and physiologic arousal. Nonetheless, some discrepancies were found between the observed data and the hypothesized tripartite model. First, the obtained physiologic arousal factor was best viewed as reflecting nonspecific somatic distress rather than physiologic arousal. Finally, although differentiable in the strictest statistical sense, all three domains were significantly correlated (.36 to .86, absolute value). In particular, contrary to the tripartite model, positive and negative affect covaried markedly (-.81 to -.86). Findings raise issues concerning the utility of the tripartite model as a heuristic framework for enhancing understanding of individual differences in normal mood as well as mood disorders.

Psychological vulnerabilities in patients with major depression vs panic disorder

The tripartite model ( Clark & Watson, 1991: Clark, L. A., & Watson, D. (1991). Tripartite model of anxiety and depression: Psychometric evidence and taxonomic implications. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 100, 316–336) posits that anxiety and depression share nonspecific features of neuroticism but that somatic arousal appears unique to anxiety, and low positive affect appears unique to depression. The present study controlled for these higher-order effects and evaluated the relative contributions of four, specific lower-order vulnerabilities (anxiety sensitivity, rumination, self-criticism, self-oriented perfectionism). Participants were 38 depressed patients and 38 patients with panic disorder matched as closely as possible for age and gender, and all were diagnosed using the same structured interview by an experienced clinician. Results from hierarchical logistic regression analysis were consistent with predictions from the tripartite model in that only the unique features of arousal and positive affectivity differentiated the two diagnostic groups. At a lower-order level, only anxiety sensitivity (and its facet of fear of physical symptoms) and a ruminative response style demonstrated incremental predictive ability. The discussion focuses on the relationships among these higher-order and lower-order variables, and their potential importance for understanding specific manifestations of psychopathology.

Patterns of hemispheric perceptual asymmetries: left hemispatial biases predict changes in anxiety and positive affect in undergraduate women.

Consistent with the tripartite model of anxiety and depression, hemispheric asymmetries may be differentially associated with depressive and anxious symptoms. Indeed, research has demonstrated that asymmetries do exist when examining hemispatial biases in both anxious and depressed individuals; however, the magnitude and direction of these asymmetries has been variable. The Chimeric Faces Task was used here to measure these asymmetries, along with measures for current and future levels of anxiety and depression. Results indicated that (a) increased left hemispatial biases at Time 1 predict increased anxiety (i.e., physiological hyperarousal) at Time 2 among female undergraduate students and (b) decreased left hemispatial biases at Time 1 predict decreased positive affectivity at Time 2 among the same participants. The possibility that hemispatial biases represent a vulnerability to future anxiety and depression is discussed.

Positive and negative affectivity in children: Confirmatory factor analysis of a two-factor model and its relation to symptoms of anxiety and depression.

The positive affect (PA) and negative affect (NA) framework that is embodied in the tripartite model of anxiety and depression has proved useful with adult populations; however, there is as yet little investigation with children concerning either the measurement of PA and NA or the relation between PA and NA and levels of adjustment. A confirmatory factor analysis was used in this study to examine the structure of self-reported affect and its relation to depressive and anxious symptoms in school children (4th to 11th grade). Results supported a 2-factor orthogonal model that was invariant across age and sex. Support for the expected pattern of relations between NA and PA with symptoms of depression and anxiety was strong for the older sample (M = 14.2 years) but weaker for the younger sample (M = 10.3 years). Results also provide preliminary support for the reliability and validity of the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule for children.

Differentiating Anxious and Depressive Self-statements in Youth: Factor Structure of the Negative Affect Self-statement Questionnaire Among Youth Referred to an Anxiety Disorders Clinic

Conducted a factor analysis on the items from the Negative Affect Self-Statement Questionnaire (NASSQ; Ronan, Kendall, & Rowe, 1994). This analysis yielded 4 factors (Depressive Self-Statements, Anxiety/Somatic Self-Statements, Negative Affect Self-Statements, and Positive Affect Self-Statements) broadly consistent with both the content-specificity hypothesis (Beck & Clark, 1988) and L. A. Clark and Watson's (1991b) tripartite model of anxiety and depression. The association between children's self-talk and measures of trait anxiety and depression was also examined. Self-statements with content theoretically specific to depression were the best predictors of self-reported depressive symptoms, but the results were less clear for trait anxiety. Overall, these results provide evidence for the discriminability of anxious and depressive self-talk in youth and for the utility of the NASSQ as a cognitive assessment instrument.

Positive and negative affectivity in children: confirmatory factor analysis of a two-factor model and its relation to symptoms of anxiety and depression.

The positive affect (PA) and negative affect (NA) framework that is embodied in the tripartite model of anxiety and depression has proved useful with adult populations; however, there is as yet little investigation with children concerning either the measurement of PA and NA or the relation between PA and NA and levels of adjustment. A confirmatory factor analysis was used in this study to examine the structure of self-reported affect and its relation to depressive and anxious symptoms in school children (4th to 11th grade). Results supported a 2-factor orthogonal model that was invariant across age and sex. Support for the expected pattern of relations between NA and PA with symptoms of depression and anxiety was strong for the older sample (M = 14.2 years) but weaker for the younger sample (M = 10.3 years). Results also provide preliminary support for the reliability and validity of the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule for children.

Validity of selected MMPI–A content scales.

The authors examined the convergent and discriminant validity of selected Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-Adolescent (MMPI-A) content scales, including Anxiety, Depression, Health Concerns, Alienation, Anger, Conduct Problems, and Social Discomfort. Sixty-two adolescent psychiatric inpatients completed the MMPI-A and a battery of self-report measures of constructs similar to those measured by the content scales. Evidence for convergent and discriminant validity was generally strong, although the Anxiety and Depression content scales did not discriminate well between these 2 constructs. This finding is discussed in terms of L. A. Clark and D. Watson's (1991) tripartite model of anxiety and depression. Overall, findings support the validity and potential utility of the content scales.

An investigation of negative affectivity in Australian adolescents

Investigated the relation between anxiety and depression in a sample of 783 nonreferred adolescents from metropolitan and rural areas of Melbourne, Australia. Participants were administered the Revised Children's Manifest Anxiety Scale (Reynolds & Richmond, 1985) and the Reynolds's Adolescent Depression Scale (Reynolds, 1986). Correlations showed that anxiety and depression were closely related. However, exploratory factor analyses revealed that depression and anxiety items loaded on separate and quite distinct factors. These findings are discussed with reference to the construct of negative affectivity and Clark and Watson's (1991) tripartite model of anxiety and depression.

On Clark-Watson's Tripartite Model of Anxiety and Depression

Clark and Watson's tripartite model of anxiety and depression symptoms is reinterpreted using their data. It is suggested that a parsimonious view of the factor loadings is a three-factor structure of "general psychological distress," "high positive affect," and "somatic anxiety."

ON CLARK-WATSON'S TRIPARTITE MODEL OF ANXIETY AND DEPRESSION

Clark and Watson's tripartite model of anxiety and depression symptoms is reinterpreted using their data. It is suggested that a parsimonious view of the factor loadings is a three-factor structure of “general psychological distress,” “high positive affect,” and “somatic anxiety.”

Threat expectancy mediates the relationship between attributional style for negative outcomes and anxiety

Recent research has failed to support the prediction that expectancy mediates the relationship between attributional style for negative outcomes and anxiety. The proposal in the present study was that the mediation hypothesis had not been supported because the measure of expectancy failed to evaluate the type of expectations directly involved in the etiology of anxiety. Beck has proposed that the expectations responsible for generating anxiety often reflect the degree of threat posed by an undesirable life event that may occur in the future. A sample of 104 students nearing the end of university were interviewed and scores obtained on measures of attributional style for positive and negative outcomes, threat expectancy regarding the prospect of future unemployment, and anxiety about future unemployment (“unemployment anxiety”). The findings supported the prediction that threat expectancy mediates the relationship between attributional style for negative outcomes and unemployment anxiety. There was also evidence consistent with the tripartite model of anxiety and depression that attributional style for positive outcomes is unrelated to the cognitive processes that generate anxiety. Directions for future research are proposed and limitations of the present study outlined.

Symptom dimensions of the SCL-90-R: a test of the tripartite model of anxiety and depression.

To determine the extent to which the SCL-90-R assesses general distress or specific dimensions of psychopathology, two principal components analyses were conducted based on 900 outpatients diagnosed with mixed psychiatric disorders. The first component explained 30.5% of the total variance and was interpreted as reflecting overall symptom distress. Partialling the first component out of the correlations among the symptoms in a second principal components analysis, we found four specific residual components reflecting somatic anxiety, depression, irritability, and attention problems. The results were discussed as partially supporting Clark and Watson's (1991) tripartite model of anxiety and depression.

Tripartite model of anxiety and depression: Psychometric evidence and taxonomic implications.

Tripartite model of anxiety and depression: Psychometric evidence and taxonomic implications.

Tripartite model of anxiety and depression: Psychometric evidence and taxonomic implications.

We review psychometric and other evidence relevant to mixed anxiety-depression. Properties of anxiety and depression measures, including the convergent and discriminant validity of self- and clinical ratings, and interrater reliability, are examined in patient and normal samples. Results suggest that anxiety and depression can be reliably and validly assessed; moreover, although these disorders share a substantial component of general affective distress, they can be differentiated on the basis of factors specific to each syndrome. We also review evidence for these specific factors, examining the influence of context and scale content on ratings, factor analytic studies, and the role of low positive affect in depression. With these data, we argue for a tripartite structure consisting of general distress, physiological hyperarousal (specific anxiety), and anhedonia (specific depression), and we propose a diagnosis of mixed anxiety-depression.