Recent advances in the understanding of worry have led to the development of treatments for generalized anxiety disorder (GAD). The present study tested a GAD treatment that targeted intolerance of uncertainty, erroneous beliefs about worry, poor problem orientation, and cognitive avoidance. Twenty-six primary GAD patients were randomly allocated to a treatment condition (n = 14) or a delayed treatment control condition (n = 12). Self-report, clinician, and significant other ratings assessed GAD and associated symptoms. The results show that the treatment led to statistically and clinically significant change at posttest and that gains were maintained at 6- and 12-month follow-ups. Furthermore, 20 of 26 participants (77%) no longer met GAD diagnostic criteria following treatment. With regard to the treatment's underlying model, the results show that intolerance of uncertainty significantly decreased over treatment and that gains were maintained at both follow-ups. Although nonspecific factors were not significant predictors of treatment outcome, their role in the treatment of GAD requires further investigation.

A recently developed cognitive-behavioral treatment for generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) targets intolerance of uncertainty by the reevaluation of positive beliefs about worry, problem-solving training, and cognitive exposure. As previous studies have established the treatment's efficacy when delivered individually, the present study tests the treatment in a group format as a way to enhance its cost-benefit ratio. A total of 52 GAD patients received 14 sessions of cognitive-behavioral therapy in small groups of 4 to 6 participants. A wait-list control design was used, and standardized clinician ratings and self-report questionnaires assessed GAD symptoms, intolerance of uncertainty, anxiety, depression, and social adjustment. Results show that the treatment group, relative to the wait-list group, had greater posttest improvement on all dependent variables and that treated participants made further gains over the 2-year follow-up phase of the study.

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Background: Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) is one of the most prevalent anxiety disorders among the elderly. Estimates of prevalence vary from around 3% to 12%, depending on the minimum age considered and the assessment instruments. The present study tests a GAD-specific treatment recently validated among adults (Ladouceur et al., 2000) and adapted for older adults.Method: Eight older adults (aged from 60 to 71) were included in a single-case experimental multiple-baseline design across subjects. Assessments were conducted at pre-test, post-test and at 6- and 12-months follow-ups. The treatment consisted of awareness training, worry interventions and relapse prevention. The worry interventions targeted intolerance of uncertainty, beliefs about worry, problem-solving and cognitive avoidance.Results: According to daily self-monitoring of worry, ADIS-IV ratings and self-reported questionnaire scores, seven out of eight participants showed clinically significant improvement at post-test. These therapeutic gains were maintained at 6- and 12-month follow-ups.Conclusions: This study shows that a cognitive-behavioral treatment that targets intolerance of uncertainty, erroneous beliefs about worry, poor problem orientation and cognitive avoidance is effective for treating GAD among elderly people.

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