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There has been a good deal of research on the role of anxiety sensitivity in pain perception, but only recently have investigators begun to assess its role in labor pain. The aim of this study was to investigate the nature of this relationship as well as the relationship of state and trait anxiety with labor pain. Assessments of maximum and average labor pain were completed in three different time periods (before, during and immediately after labor, and 1 month postpartum). Anxiety and anxiety sensitivity measures were completed during the late stage of pregnancy. A total of 46 primiparous healthy pregnant women, carrying a single child, participated in the study. State anxiety correlated significantly with maximum (r?=?0.352, p?

The Looming Maladaptive Style Questionnaire (LMSQ) is a self-report measure designed to assess the looming cognitive style, a tendency to interpret threats as rapidly approaching and increasing in magnitude. To date, no systematic evaluation on the psychometric properties of the LMSQ across diverse cultural contexts has been done. In the present research, the measurement invariance of the LMSQ test scores was examined in 10 countries (N=4000). Confirmatory factor analysis suggested that a two-factor model (i.e., physical looming and social looming) fitted the data well across countries. Partial measurement invariance was established for the LMSQ scores across the countries whereas full measurement invariance was achieved across gender. Meta-analytic structural equation modeling was applied to examine the unique contributions of the two looming factors to anxiety and depression symptoms. Results indicated that the test scores underlying two looming factors were crucial and valid predictors of symptoms. The LMSQ shows promise as a measure with cross-cultural generalizability and opens new avenues for its use in diverse cultural settings.

Objective: Studies have only recently begun to explore the role of interpersonal factors in relation to anxiety sensitivity, a trait that has been hypothesised as a risk factor for the development of anxiety disorders. Therefore, the goal of this research was to further investigate the relations between anxiety sensitivity, worry, generalised anxiety disorder symptoms, and parent and peer attachment, more specifically-perceived parent and peer alienation on a clinical sample for the first time. The mediating role of anxiety sensitivity between perceptions of alienation and current worry and generalised anxiety disorder symptoms was also examined. Methods: Analyses were conducted on a total sample of 72 psychiatric patients with diagnosed anxiety or depression disorder, who completed the Generalized Anxiety Disorder Questionnaire-IV, Penn State Worry Questionnaire, Inventory of Parent and Peer Attachment, and Anxiety Sensitivity Index. All patients were Caucasian, and 48.6% of participants were men (M age = 44.2 years) and 51.2% were women (Mage = 41.1 years). Results: Participants with higher intensity of worry and generalised anxiety disorder symptoms reported higher perceptions of being alienated only from their peers. Also, anxiety sensitivity mediated the relation between perceptions of alienation from peers and worry and generalised anxiety disorder symptoms. Conclusion: Perceptions of peer rather than parent alienation appear to be a salient construct in relation to the present levels of anxiety sensitivity, uncontrollable worry, and generalised anxiety disorder symptoms in individuals with a diagnosis of mental illness. Implications for cognitive-behavioural therapy practitioners are also shortly discussed.

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