Abstract

The proposed study is a randomized clinical trial of group-administered cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) for generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) in older adults. The design compares CBT to an attention placebo (discussion group) and a wait list control group at pre-, post-, and six- month follow-up assessment periods. Both treatment conditions will take place 90 minutes weekly for 12 weeks. The CBT condition will include relaxation training, cognitive restructuring, and worry exposure. Outcome measures will include subjective and interviewer-rated symptoms of anxiety and worry, depression, health-related quality of life and health service use, and physiological correlates of anxiety (frontailis electromyogram and salivary cortisol under baseline and stress conditions). CBT participants are expected to show greater reductions in anxiety and depression at post-treatment assessment; they are expected to show improvements in health outcomes and greater maintenance of treatment gains at the six-month follow-up period.

  Funding Agency

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)
Type
Predoctoral Individual National Research Service Award (F31)
Project #
1F31MH011972-01
Application #
2521886
Study Section
Mental Disorders of Aging Review Committee (MDA)
Project Start
1998-03-22
Project End
Budget Start
1997-09-22
Budget End
1998-09-21
Support Year
1
Fiscal Year
1997
Total Cost
Indirect Cost

  Institution

Name
University of Southern California
Department
Psychology
Type
Schools of Arts and Sciences
DUNS #
041544081
City
Los Angeles
State
CA
Country
United States
Zip Code
90089

  Publications

Le Roux, Hillary; Gatz, Margaret; Wetherell, Julie Loebach (2005) Age at onset of generalized anxiety disorder in older adults. Am J Geriatr Psychiatry 13:23-30
Wetherell, Julie Loebach; Thorp, Steven R; Patterson, Thomas L et al. (2004) Quality of life in geriatric generalized anxiety disorder: a preliminary investigation. J Psychiatr Res 38:305-12
Wetherell, Julie Loebach; Gatz, Margaret; Craske, Michelle G (2003) Treatment of generalized anxiety disorder in older adults. J Consult Clin Psychol 71:31-40
Wetherell, Julie Loebach; Le Roux, Hillary; Gatz, Margaret (2003) DSM-IV criteria for generalized anxiety disorder in older adults: distinguishing the worried from the well. Psychol Aging 18:622-7
Hopko, Derek R; Stanley, Melinda A; Reas, Deborah L et al. (2003) Assessing worry in older adults: confirmatory factor analysis of the Penn State Worry Questionnaire and psychometric properties of an abbreviated model. Psychol Assess 15:173-83
Wetherell, Julie Loebach; Reynolds, Chandra A; Gatz, Margaret et al. (2002) Anxiety, cognitive performance, and cognitive decline in normal aging. J Gerontol B Psychol Sci Soc Sci 57:P246-55
Wetherell, J L; Gatz, M; Pedersen, N L (2001) A longitudinal analysis of anxiety and depressive symptoms. Psychol Aging 16:187-95