Development and validation of two measures of emotional contrast avoidance: The contrast avoidance questionnaires

Llera, Sandra J.; Newman, Michelle G.

doi:10.1016/j.janxdis.2017.04.008

Cited by 49 publications

(71 citation statements)

References 60 publications

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“…Correspondingly, a treatment study documented considerable challenges to boosting and sustaining positive affect in GAD (Bosley, Fisher, & Taylor, 2018). Entrenched distorted cognitions such as “I enjoyed success the most when I worried about failure” (Llera & Newman, 2017) may maintain pathological worry.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…At the same time, those with GAD preferred worry to relaxation to cope with a negative emotional contrast, but controls preferred relaxation to worry (Llera & Newman, 2014). In fact, on two measures of contrast avoidance, the probability of a person with GAD scoring higher than somebody without GAD was 96% to 98%, and contrast avoidance predicted GAD diagnosis with a sensitivity of 89.7 and a specificity of 87.5 to 89.3 (Llera & Newman, 2017). Furthermore, those with GAD were more likely than controls to endorse worrying to avoid the possibility of a negative emotional contrast, discomfort with negative emotional contrasts, and intentionally creating and sustaining negative emotion to avoid a negative contrast (Llera & Newman, 2017).…”

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confidence: 99%

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The Effects of Worry in Daily Life: An Ecological Momentary Assessment Study Supporting the Tenets of the Contrast Avoidance Model

Newman

Jacobson

Zainal

et al. 2019

Clinical Psychological Science

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The contrast avoidance model (CAM) suggests that worry increases and sustains negative emotion to prevent a negative emotional contrast (sharp upward shift in negative emotion) and increase the probability of a positive contrast (shift toward positive emotion). In Study 1, we experimentally validated momentary assessment items (N = 25). In Study 2, participants with generalized anxiety disorder (N = 31) and controls (N = 37) were prompted once per hour regarding their worry, thought valence, and arousal 10 times a day for 8 days. Higher worry duration, negative thought valence, and uncontrollable train of thoughts predicted feeling more keyed up concurrently and sustained anxious activation 1 hr later. More worry, feeling keyed up, and uncontrollable train of thoughts predicted lower likelihood of a negative emotional contrast in thought valence and higher likelihood of a positive emotional contrast in thought valence 1 hr later. Findings support the prospective ecological validity of CAM. Our findings suggest that naturalistic worry reduces the likelihood of a sharp increase in negative affect and does so by increasing and sustaining anxious activation.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

The Effects of Worry in Daily Life: An Ecological Momentary Assessment Study Supporting the Tenets of the Contrast Avoidance Model

Newman

Jacobson

Zainal

et al. 2019

Clinical Psychological Science

Self Cite

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“…In other words, these individuals, in addition to actively use of worry for reducing the possibility of experiencing a negative emotional shift, will continue to worry to maintain a prolonged and stable emotional state in order to prevent experiencing a negative emotional contrast in the future. Llera and Newman (2017) introduced three basic principles of the CAM. Preliminary evidence suggests that the CAM could be applicable as a transdiagnostic model (Newman et al, 2018;Kim & Newman, 2016).…”

Section: Contrast Avoidance Modelmentioning

confidence: 99%

Contrast avoidance model of worry and generalized anxiety disorder: A theoretical perspective

2020

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“…Worry’s capacity to lessen spikes in negative emotion by increasing distress has been supported experimentally (Llera & Newman, 2010) and in diary studies (Crouch, Lewis, Erickson, & Newman, 2017; Newman et al, in press). In addition, those with GAD (versus those without GAD) have reported a preference for using worry to cope with shifts in upsetting feelings by creating distress (Llera & Newman, 2014, 2017). Following from this theory, higher worry-created distress actually promotes worry, because it increases worry’s power to lessen emotional contrasts.…”

Section: The Impact Of Uncontrollability Beliefs and Thought-related mentioning

confidence: 99%

The impact of uncontrollability beliefs and thought-related distress on ecological momentary interventions for generalized anxiety disorder: A moderated mediation model

LaFreniere

Newman

2019

Journal of Anxiety Disorders

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This study was a secondary analysis of LaFreniere and Newman (2016), a randomized controlled trial comparing two ecological momentary interventions (EMIs) for generalized anxiety disorder (GAD): The worry outcome journal (WOJ) and thought log (TL). We predicted that higher thought-related distress would be a mediator by which higher uncontrollability beliefs (UB) would hinder the efficacy of the WOJ, but not the TL. Fifty-one undergraduates who met GAD criteria underwent one of the EMIs for 10 days. WOJ users tracked worries, associated distress, interference, expected outcome probabilities, and whether their worries came true four times/day. TL users tracked general thoughts, associated distress, and interference four times/day. Bootstrapping path analysis was used to analyze moderated mediation models. Higher UB predicted higher thought-related distress for both EMIs. Higher UB also predicted reduced efficacy of the WOJ at post-trial and of both EMIs at 30-day follow-up. However, for WOJ users, when higher initial UB levels predicted higher thought-related distress early in treatment, participants reported greater levels of worry at post-trial and follow-up. In contrast, UB’s effect on the TL group at post-trial and follow-up was not mediated by early distress. Thought-related distress appears to be a mechanism by which UB impedes the WOJ intervention.

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Development and validation of two measures of emotional contrast avoidance: The contrast avoidance questionnaires

Cited by 49 publications

References 60 publications

The Effects of Worry in Daily Life: An Ecological Momentary Assessment Study Supporting the Tenets of the Contrast Avoidance Model

The Effects of Worry in Daily Life: An Ecological Momentary Assessment Study Supporting the Tenets of the Contrast Avoidance Model

Contrast avoidance model of worry and generalized anxiety disorder: A theoretical perspective

The impact of uncontrollability beliefs and thought-related distress on ecological momentary interventions for generalized anxiety disorder: A moderated mediation model

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