Fearful temperaments have been identified as a major risk factor for anxiety disorders. However, descriptions of fearful temperament and several forms of anxiety disorder show strong similarities. This raises the question whether these terms may simply refer to different aspects of the same underlying construct. The current review examines…

Although tremendous strides have recently been made in the development of assessment and treatment methods for pediatric obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), more accurate methods for diagnosis, more effective treatments, and more refined instruments for monitoring progress during therapy are still needed. The present commentary highlights the…

Background: Parenting factors have been implicated in the aetiology and maintenance of child anxiety. Most research has been correlational with little experimental or longitudinal work. Cross-cultural comparison could be illuminating. A comparison of Italian and British children and their mothers was conducted. Methods: A sample of 8- to 10-year…

Traits associated with autism and social anxiety were assessed in a UK student population (n = 1325) using the Autism-spectrum Quotient and the Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale. Clinically relevant levels of autistic traits were observed in 3.3% of the cohort; 10.1% of the cohort reported clinically relevant levels of social anxiety; 1.8% of the…

Objective: Identifying mediators of therapeutic change is important to the development of interventions and augmentation strategies. Threat reappraisal is considered a key mediator underlying the effects of cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) for anxiety disorders. The present study systematically reviewed the evidence for the threat reappraisal…

Objective: To examine whether changes in cognitive reappraisal self-efficacy (CR-SE) mediate the effects of individually administered cognitive-behavioral therapy (I-CBT) for social anxiety disorder (SAD) on severity of social anxiety symptoms. Method: A randomized controlled trial in which 75 adult patients (21-55 years of age; 53% male; 57%…

Coping strategies employed by adolescents in response to negative peer experiences are related to their adjustment. This study examines the potential of forgiveness as a coping response for negative peer experiences in early adolescence. Participants were 616 6th through 8th grade students at a middle school (46% girls) who completed self-report…

Recognizing facial affect is essential for effective social functioning. This study examines emotion recognition abilities in children aged 7-13 years with High Functioning Autism (HFA = 19), Social Phobia (SP = 17), or typical development (TD = 21). Findings indicate that all children identified certain emotions more quickly (e.g., happy [less…

Social Anxiety Disorder (SAD) and Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) are fairly common psychiatric conditions that impair the functioning of otherwise healthy young adults. Given that the two conditions frequently co-occur, measurement of the characteristics unique to each condition is critical. This study evaluated the structure and construct…

Traditional cognitive-behavioral interventions for trichotillomania have had modest acute treatment outcomes and poor maintenance of gains over time. Techniques adopted from dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) can potentially enhance treatment outcomes by specifically addressing issues of impulsivity, emotion regulation, and distress tolerance. In…

Objective: Youth at familial risk for bipolar disorder (BD) show deficits in face emotion processing, but the neural correlates of these deficits have not been examined. This preliminary study tests the hypothesis that, relative to healthy comparison (HC) subjects, both BD subjects and youth at risk for BD (i.e., those with a first-degree BD…

Objectives: This study evaluated the efficacy of a novel psychosocial intervention (Collaborative Life Skills, CLS) for primary-school students with ADHD symptoms. CLS is a 12-week program consisting of integrated school, parent, and student treatments delivered by school-based mental health providers. Using a cluster randomized design, CLS was…

In this study, we looked at whether social anxiety is socialized, or influenced by peers' social anxiety, more in some peer crowds than others. Adolescents in crowds with eye-catching appearances such as Goths and Punks (here termed "Radical"), were compared with three comparison groups. Using data from 796 adolescents (353 girls and 443 boys; M…

There is considerable evidence that children and adolescents with autistic spectrum disorders (ASD) are at increased risk of anxiety and anxiety disorders. However, it is less clear which of the specific DSM-IV anxiety disorders occur most in this population. The present study used meta-analytic techniques to help clarify this issue. A systematic…

Social workers provide services to a variety of clients and are challenged with finding interventions that meet the multifaceted needs of diverse populations. Acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) is becoming an increasingly popular therapy that offers flexibility and effectiveness in treating challenging cases. The purpose of this review is to…