Synonyms
Definition
Anxiety is an unpleasant and persistent state of negative affect associated with the anticipation of a perceived threat or possible danger. This mood state often includes elevated physiological symptoms of tension along with heightened vigilance to diffuse the threat (American Psychiatric Association 2013; Barlow et al. 2015; Rachman 2013).
Description
Anxiety and anxiety disorders are among the most prevalent mental health concerns, with 29% of the population suffering from at least one anxiety disorder (Kessler et al. 2005). While some anxiety is healthy and considered essential for survival, disproportionate levels of anxiety can become debilitating (Steimer 2002). Many anxiety disorders develop in adolescence, whereas others...
References
American Psychiatric Association. (2013). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (5th ed.). American Psychiatric Association.
Bandelow, B., Michaelis, S., & Wedekind, D. (2017). Treatment of anxiety disorders. Dialogues in Clinical Neuroscience, 19(2), 93–107.
Barlow, D. H., Gorman, J. M., Shear, M. K., & Woods, S. W. (2000). Cognitive-behavioral therapy, imipramine, or their combination for panic disorder: A randomized controlled trial. Journal of the American Medical Association, 283(19), 2529–2536. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.283.19.2529.
Barlow, D. H., Conklin, L. R., & Bentley, K. H. (2015). Psychological treatments for panic disorder, phobia, and social and generalized anxiety disorder. In P. E. Nathan & J. M. Gorman (Eds.), Treatments that work (4th ed., pp. 409–462). Oxford University Press.
Baterra, T. L., & Norton, P. J. (2009). Quality of life impairment in generalized anxiety disorder, social phobia, and panic disorder. Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 23(8), 1086–1090. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.janxdis.2009.07.011.
Baxter, A., Vos, T., Scott, K., Ferrari, A., & Whiteford, H. (2014). The global burden of anxiety disorders in 2010. Psychological Medicine, 44(11), 2363–2374. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0033291713003243.
Beck, A. T. (1967). Depression: Causes and treatment. University of Pennsylvania Press.
Beutel, M., Glaesmer, H., Decker, O., Fischbeck, S., & Brähler, E. (2009). Life satisfaction, distress, and resiliency across the life span of women. Menopause, 16(6), 1132–1138. https://doi.org/10.1097/gme.0b013e3181a857f8.
Binder, E. B., & Nemeroff, C. B. (2010). The CRF system, stress, depression and anxiety insights from human genetic studies. Molecular Psychiatry, 15(6), 574–588. https://doi.org/10.1038/mp.2009.141.
Bitsika, V., Sharpley, C. F., & Peters, K. (2010). How is resilience associated with anxiety and depression? Analysis of factor score interactions within a homogeneous sample. German Journal of Psychiatry, 13(1), 9–16.
Blanco, C., Rubio, J., Wall, M., Wang, S., Jiu, C. J., & Kendler, K. S. (2014). Risk factors for anxiety disorders: Common and specific effects in a national sample. Depression and Anxiety, 31(9), 756–764. https://doi.org/10.1002/da.22247.
Bowers, W. A. (1990). Treatment of depressed in-patients: Cognitive therapy plus medication, relaxation plus medication, and medication alone. British Journal of Psychiatry, 156(1), 73–78. https://doi.org/10.1192/bjp.156.1.73.
Brown, G., Harris, T., & Eales, M. (1996). Social factors and comorbidity of depressive and anxiety disorders. British Journal of Psychiatry, 168(S30), 50–57. https://doi.org/10.1192/S0007125000298413.
Burns, D. D. (1981). Feeling good: The new mood therapy. Penguin Books.
Chakhssi, F., Kraiss, J. T., Sommers-Spijkerman, M., & Bohlmeijer, E. T. (2018). The effect of positive psychology interventions on well-being and distress in clinical samples with psychiatric or somatic disorders: A systematic review and meta-analysis. BMC Psychiatry, 18(1), 211. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12888-018-1739-2.
Clauss, K., Bardeen, J., Benfer, N., & Fergus, T. (2019). The interactive effect of happiness emotion goals and emotion regulation self-efficacy on anxiety and depression. Journal of Cognitive Psychotherapy, 33(2), 97–105. https://doi.org/10.1891/0889-8391.33.2.97.
DuPont, R. L., Rice, D. P., Miller, L. S., Shiraki, S. S., Rowland, C. R., & Harwood, H. J. (1996). Economic costs of anxiety disorders. Anxiety, 2(4), 167–172.
Erhardt, A., Ising, M., Unschuld, P., Kern, N., Lucae, S., Pütz, B., Uhr, M., Binder, E. B., Holsboer, F., & Keck, M. E. (2006). Regulation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical system in patients with panic disorder. Neuropsychopharmacology, 31(11), 2515–2522. https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.npp.1301168.
Farach, F. J., Pruitt, L. D., Jun, J. J., Jerud, A. B., Zoellner, L. A., & Roy-Byrne, P. P. (2012). Pharmacological treatment of anxiety disorders: Current treatments and future directions. Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 26(8), 833–843. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.janxdis.2012.07.009.
Fisher, K., Seidler, Z. E., King, K., Oliffe, J. L., & Rice, S. M. (2021). Men’s anxiety: A systematic review. Journal of Affective Disorders, 295, 688–702. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2021.08.136.
Foa, E. B., & Kozak, M. J. (1986). Emotional processing of fear: Exposure to corrective information. Psychological Bulletin, 99(1), 20–35. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.99.1.20.
Foa, E. B., Franklin, M. E., & Moser, J. (2002). Context in the clinic: How well do cognitive-behavioral therapies and medications work in combination? Biological Psychiatry, 52(10), 987–997. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0006-3223(02)01552-4.
Gallagher, M. W., Bently, K. H., & Barlow, D. H. (2014). Perceived control and vulnerability to anxiety disorders: A meta-analytic review. Cognitive Therapy and Research, 38(6), 571–584. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10608-014-9624-x.
Greenberg, P., Sisitsky, T., Kessler, R., Finkelstein, S., Berndt, E., Davidson, J., Ballenger, J., & Fyer, A. (1999). The economic burden of anxiety disorders in the 1990s. The Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, 60(7), 427–435. https://doi.org/10.4088/jcp.v60n0702.
Hale, M. W., Shekhar, A., & Lowry, C. A. (2012). Stress-related serotonergic systems: Implications for symptomatology of anxiety and affective disorders. Cellular and Molecular Neurobiology, 32(5), 695–708. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10571-012-9827-1.
Hewitt, P. L., Caelian, C. F., Flett, G. L., Sherry, S. B., Collins, L., & Flynn, C. A. (2002). Perfectionism in children: Associations with depression, anxiety, and anger. Personality and Individual Differences, 32(6), 1049–1061. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0191-8869(01)00109-X.
Hoffman, D. L., Dukes, E. M., & Wittchen, H. (2008). Human and economic burden of generalized anxiety disorder. Depression & Anxiety, 25(1), 72–90. https://doi.org/10.1002/da.20257.
Itoi, K., & Sugimoto, N. (2010). The brainstem noradrenergic systems in stress, anxiety and depression. Journal of Neuroendocrinology, 22(5), 355–361. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2826.2010.01988.x.
Katzman, M. A., Bleau, P., Blier, P., Chokka, P., Kjernisted, K., Van Ameringen, M., Antony, M. M., Bouchard, S., Brunet, A., Flament, M., Grigoriadis, S., Mendlowitz, S., O’Connor, K., Rabheru, K., Richter, P. M., Robichaud, M., & Walker, J. R. (2014). Canadian clinical practice guidelines for the management of anxiety, posttraumatic stress, and obsessive-compulsive disorders. BMC Psychiatry, 14(1), 1–83. https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-244X-14-S1-S1.
Kessler, R. C., Berglund, P., Demler, O., Jin, R., Merikangas, K. R., & Walters, E. E. (2005). Lifetime prevalence and age-of-onset distributions of DSM-IV Disorders in the National Comorbidity Survey replication. Archives of General Psychiatry, 62(6), 593–602. https://doi.org/10.1001/archpsyc.62.6.593.
Keyes, C. M. (2002). The mental health continuum: From languishing to flourishing in life. Journal of Health and Social Research, 43(2). https://doi.org/10.2307/3090197.
Lewinsohn, P. M., Gotlib, I. H., Lewinsohn. M., Seeley, J. R., & Allen, N. B. (1998). Gender differences in anxiety disorders and anxiety symptoms on adolescents. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 107(1), 109–117. https://doi.org/10.1037//0021-843x.107.1.109.
Li, S. H., & Graham, B. M. (2017). Why are women so vulnerable to anxiety, trauma-related and stress-related disorders? The potential role of sex hormones. The Lancet Psychiatry, 4(1), 73–82. https://doi.org/10.1016/s2215-0366(16)30358-3.
Lijster, J. M., Dierckx, B., Utens, E. M., Verhulst, F. C., Zieldorff, C., Dieleman, G. C., & Legerstee, J. S. (2017). The age of onset of anxiety disorders. Canadian Journal of Psychiatry, 62(4), 237–246. https://doi.org/10.1177/0706743716640757.
Longo, L. P., & Johnson, B. (2000). Addiction: Part I. Benzodiazepines-side effects, abuse risk and alternatives. American Family Physician, 61(7), 2121–2128.
Marciniak, M., Lage, M. J., Landbloom, R. P., Dunayevich, E., & Bowman, L. (2004). Medical and productivity costs of anxiety disorders: Case control study. Depression and Anxiety, 19(2), 112–120. https://doi.org/10.1002/da.10131.
Martin, E. I., Ressler, K. J., Binder, E., & Nemeroff, C. B. (2009). The neurobiology of anxiety disorders: Brain imaging, genetics, and psychoneuroendocrinology. Psychiatry Clinics of North America, 32(3), 549–575.
McLaughlin, K. A., Behar, E., & Borkovec, T. D. (2008). Family history of psychological problems in generalized anxiety disorder. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 64(7), 905–918. https://doi.org/10.1002/jclp.20497.
McLean, C. P., Asnaani, A., Litz, B. T., & Hofmann, S. G. (2011). Gender differences in anxiety disorders: Prevalence, course of illness, comorbidity and burden of illness. Journal of Psychiatric Research, 45(8), 1027–1035. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpsychires.2011.03.006.
Meichenbaum, D. (1977). Cognitive behaviour modification. Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, 6(4), 185–192. https://doi.org/10.1080/16506073.1977.9626708.
Möhler, H. (2012). The GABA system in anxiety and depression and its therapeutic potential. Neuropharmacology, 62(1), 42–53. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuropharm.2011.08.040.
Olatunji, B. O., Cisler, J. M., & Tolin, D. F. (2007). Quality of life in the anxiety disorders: A meta-analytic review. Clinical Psychology Review, 27(5), 572–581. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cpr.2007.01.015.
Quilty, L. C., Van Amerigen, M., Mancini, C., Oakman, J., & Farvolden, P. (2003). Quality of life and the anxiety disorders. Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 17(4), 405–426. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0887-6185(02)00225-6.
Rachman, S. (1977). The conditioning theory of fear-acquisition: A critical examination. Behavior Research and Therapy, 15(5). https://doi.org/10.1016/0005-7967(77)90041-9.
Rachman, S. (2013). Anxiety. Taylor & Francis.
Revicki, D. A., Travers, K., Wyrwich, K. W., Svedsäter, H., Locklear, J., Mattera, M. S., & Montgomery, S. (2012). Humanistic and economic burden of generalized anxiety disorder in North America and Europe. Journal of Affective Disorders, 140(2), 103–112. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2011.11.014.
Schneier, F. R., & Pantol, G. (2006). Quality of life in anxiety disorders. In H. Katschnig, H. Freeman, N. Sartorius, H. Katschnig, H. Freeman, & N. Sartorius (Eds.), Quality of life in mental disorders (2nd ed., pp. 141–151). Wiley.
Skrove, M., Rommundstad, P., & Indredavik, M. S. (2013). Resilience, lifestyle and symptoms of anxiety and depression in adolescence: The Young-HUNT study. Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology, 48(3), 407–416. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00127-012-0561-2.
Smith, S. M., & Vale, W. W. (2006). The role of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis in neuroendocrine responses to stress. Dialogues in Clinical Neuroscience, 8(4), 383–395.
Steimer, T. (2002). The biology of fear- and anxiety-related behaviors. Dialogues in Clinical Neuroscience, 4(3), 231–249.
Stein, M., & Heimberg, R. (2004). Well-being and life satisfaction in generalized anxiety disorder: Comparison to major depressive disorder in a community sample. Journal of Affective Disorders, 79(1–3), 161–166. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0165-0327(02)00457-3.
Steiner, M., Allgulander, C., Ravindran, A., Kosar, H., Burt, T., & Austin, C. (2005). Gender differences in clinical presentation and response to sertraline treatment of generalized anxiety disorder. Human Psychopharmacology, 20(1), 3–13. https://doi.org/10.1002/hup.648.
Susman, J., & Klee, B. (2005). The role of high-potency benzodiazepines in the treatment of panic disorder. Primary Care Companion to the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, 7(1), 5–11. https://doi.org/10.4088/pcc.v07n0101.
Thompson, A. E., Anisimowicz, Y., Miedema, B., Hogg, W., Wodchis, W. P., & Aubrey-Bassler, K. (2016). The influence of gender and other patient characteristics on health care-seeking behaviour: A QUALICOPC study. BMC Family Practice, 17(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12875-016-0440-0.
Wagner, S. L., & O’Neill, M. (2012). Job, life, and relationship satisfaction for paid-professional firefighters. Journal of Loss and Trauma, 17(5), 423–438. https://doi.org/10.1080/15325024.2011.650129.
Wittchen, H., Carter, R. M., Pfister, H. H., Montgomery, S. A., & Kessler, R. C. (2000). Disabilities and quality of life in pure and comorbid generalized anxiety disorder and major depression in a national survey. International Clinical Psychopharmacology, 15(6), 319–328. https://doi.org/10.1097/00004850-200015060-00002.
Young, C. C., & Dietrich, M. S. (2015). Stressful life events, worry, and rumination predict depressive and anxiety symptoms in young adolescents. Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Nursing, 28(1), 35–42. https://doi.org/10.1111/jcap.12102.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Section Editor information
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2022 Springer Nature Switzerland AG
About this entry
Cite this entry
O’Neill, M.L., Snaychuk, L.A., Sorochan, J. (2022). Anxiety. In: Maggino, F. (eds) Encyclopedia of Quality of Life and Well-Being Research. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-69909-7_98-2
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-69909-7_98-2
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-69909-7
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-69909-7
eBook Packages: Springer Reference Social SciencesReference Module Humanities and Social SciencesReference Module Business, Economics and Social Sciences