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01-01-2017

A Prospective Examination of the Relations Between Emotional Abuse and Anxiety: Moderation by Distress Tolerance

Authors: Anne N. Banducci, C. W. Lejuez, Lea R. Dougherty, Laura MacPherson

Published in: Prevention Science | Issue 1/2017

Abstract

Anxiety, the most common and impairing psychological problem experienced by youth, is associated with numerous individual and environmental factors. Two such factors include childhood emotional abuse (CEA) and low distress tolerance (DT). The current study aimed to understand how CEA and low DT impacted anxiety symptoms measured annually across 5 years among a community sample of youth. We hypothesized DT would moderate the relationship between CEA and anxiety, such that youth with higher levels of CEA and lower levels of DT would have elevated anxiety over time. Community youth (N = 244) were annually assessed across 5 years using the Revised Child Anxiety and Depression Scale, Childhood Trauma Questionnaire, and Behavioral Indicator of Resiliency to Distress. Higher CEA at baseline was associated with higher anxiety at baseline, higher anxiety at each annual assessment, and with greater overall decreases in anxiety over time. Lower DT was associated with higher anxiety at baseline, but did not predict changes in anxiety over time. Baseline DT significantly moderated the relationship between baseline CEA and anxiety, such that youth with both higher CEA and lower DT had the highest anxiety at each annual assessment. Youth with lower DT and higher CEA scores had the highest level of anxiety symptoms across time.

Using multiple linear regression (CEA and DT were z score transformed and multiplied to create interaction terms), we found higher baseline CEA scores were significantly associated with higher anxiety at Waves 2, 3, 4, and 5 (all ps < 0.01). We found lower DT was significantly associated with higher anxiety at Waves 2, 4, and 6 (all ps < 0.05). We found the interaction between DT and CEA was significantly associated with anxiety at Waves 2, 3, 4, and 5 (all ps < 0.05). Probing with simple slopes (±1 standard deviation for DT), we found for youth with lower DT, CEA predicted higher anxiety at all time points, except Wave 6 (all ps < 0.01), whereas for youth with higher DT, CEA predicted lower anxiety at Waves 2–4 (all ps < 0.05) and was not associated with anxiety at Waves 5 and 6.

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Title: A Prospective Examination of the Relations Between Emotional Abuse and Anxiety: Moderation by Distress Tolerance
Authors: Anne N. Banducci
C. W. Lejuez
Lea R. Dougherty
Laura MacPherson
Publication date: 01-01-2017
Publisher: Springer US
Published in: Prevention Science / Issue 1/2017
Print ISSN: 1389-4986
Electronic ISSN: 1573-6695
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11121-016-0691-y

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A Prospective Examination of the Relations Between Emotional Abuse and Anxiety: Moderation by Distress Tolerance

Abstract

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