Disgust vulnerability and symptoms of contamination-based OCD: descriptive tests of incremental specificity.

The present investigation examines the incremental association between disgust propensity and sensitivity and contamination-based obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) symptoms. Structural equation modeling in Study 1 indicated that general disgust was related to contamination fear even when controlling for negative affect in a nonclinical sample. Evidence was also found for a model in which the effect of negative affect on contamination fear is mediated by general disgust.

Factor structure and psychometric properties of the Injection Phobia Scale-Anxiety.

The present investigation examined the factor structure and psychometric properties of the Injection Phobia Scale-Anxiety (IPS-Anx). Principal components analysis of IPS-Anx items in Study 1 (n = 498) revealed a 2-factor structure consisting of Distal Fear and Contact Fear. However, CFA results in Study 2 (n = 567) suggest that a 1-factor structure may be more parsimonious.

Linking cognitive avoidance and GAD symptoms: The mediating role of fear of emotion.

Although cognitive avoidance has been linked to generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), the mechanism that may account for this association has not been fully elucidated. The current study uses structural equation models to evaluate the relationship between cognitive avoidance and symptoms of GAD in a large unselected sample (n = 1220), and to examine whether subjective fear of emotion partially mediate this relationship. Results support partial mediation, and follow-up analyses suggest that the pattern of relations among fear of emotion, cognitive avoidance, and GAD symptoms is invariant for men and women.

The role of perfectionism in obsessive-compulsive symptoms: "not just right" experiences and checking compulsions.

Perfectionism has long been considered an important cognitive variable in obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). However, little research has examined the components of perfectionism and their role in specific OCD symptoms. The current study is the first to examine the role of maladaptive perfectionism in predicting checking compulsions and "not just right" (NJR) obsessions.

Disgust sensitivity as a predictor of obsessive-compulsive contamination symptoms and associated cognitions.

Disgust sensitivity has been hypothesized to play a key role in the etiology and maintenance of several anxiety disorders. The association between disgust sensitivity, trait anxiety, and washing and contamination-related concerns was tested using two different measures of obsessive-compulsive contamination fears using linear structural modeling. Two different models were tested, one where trait anxiety mediated the relationship between disgust sensitivity and contamination fear, and a second model unmediated by trait anxiety.