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Positive Beliefs about Post-Event Processing in Social Anxiety Disorder

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 December 2021

Ariella P. Lenton-Brym ,
Olivia Provost-Walker ,
Virginia Tsekova ,
Randi E. McCabe  and
Karen Rowa
Ariella P. Lenton-Brym*
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, Ryerson University, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Olivia Provost-Walker
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, Ryerson University, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Virginia Tsekova
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, Ryerson University, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Randi E. McCabe
Affiliation:
Anxiety Treatment and Research Centre, St. Joseph's Healthcare, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada Department of Psychiatry and Behavioural Neurosciences, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
Karen Rowa
Affiliation:
Anxiety Treatment and Research Centre, St. Joseph's Healthcare, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada Department of Psychiatry and Behavioural Neurosciences, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
*
*Corresponding author: Ariella P. Lenton-Brym, Department of Psychology, Ryerson University, 350 Victoria Street, Toronto, ON, Canada M5B 2K3. Email: alentonb@ryerson.ca
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Abstract

Background: Post-event processing (PEP) is an important maintenance factor of social anxiety disorder (SAD). This study examined psychometric properties of the Positive Beliefs about Post-Event Processing Questionnaire (PB-PEPQ; Fisak & Hammond, 2013), which measures metacognitive beliefs about PEP. Method: Participants receiving treatment for SAD (n = 71) and other anxiety and related disorders (n = 266) completed self-report questionnaires at several timepoints. Results: Confirmatory factor analysis did not support the PB-PEPQ's proposed unidimensional model. Subsequent exploratory factor analysis yielded a three-factor structure consisting of engaging in PEP to (1) review negative events (Negative scale), (2) review positive events (Positive scale), and (3) better understand one's social anxiety (Understand scale). Within the SAD subsample, PB-PEPQ scales demonstrated good internal consistency (α = 0.83–0.85) and test–retest reliability (r = 0.65–0.78). Convergent and criterion validity of the PB-PEPQ Negative scale were supported. PB-PEPQ scale scores were significantly higher within the SAD group, as compared with the other groups (generalised anxiety disorder, panic disorder and agoraphobia, posttraumatic stress disorder, and obsessive-compulsive disorder), supporting the scales’ discriminative validity. Conclusion: Findings support the reliability and validity of the PB-PEPQ in a clinical sample and reveal the measure's multifactorial structure.

Keywords

post-event processingmetacognitionsocial anxietyscale validationfactor structure
Type
Standard Paper
Information
Behaviour Change , Volume 39 , Issue 4 , December 2022 , pp. 247 - 262
Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s), 2021. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of the Australian Association for Cognitive and Behaviour Therapy

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