Hostname: page-component-848d4c4894-xm8r8 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-06-15T07:09:21.113Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Nonclinical Panic Attacks in Adolescents: Prevalence, Symptomatology, and Associated Features

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  06 October 2014

Neville J. King ,
Thomas H. Ollendick ,
Sara G. Mattis ,
Bin Yang  and
Bruce Tonge
Neville J. King*
Affiliation:
Monash University
Thomas H. Ollendick
Affiliation:
Virginia Polytechnic Institute andState University
Sara G. Mattis
Affiliation:
Virginia Polytechnic Institute andState University
Bin Yang
Affiliation:
Virginia Polytechnic Institute andState University
Bruce Tonge
Affiliation:
Monash University
*
Faculty of Education, Monash University, Clayton VIC 3168, Australia
Get access

Abstract

In this study, we examined the prevalence and nature of nonclinical panic attacks in 649 Australian youth and explored the relations between such attacks and measures of social support, stress, anxiety, depression, and fear. Full-blown attacks (attacks involving four or more symptoms with rapid onset) were reported by 104 of the youth (16%). Attacks were reported more frequently by girls than boys; however, age was unrelated to panic-attack status. Heightened levels of anxiety and fear, as well as stress in the family and lack of family support, were related to attack status. Path-analytic procedures supported a working model consisting of stress, social support, and emotional distress as related to panic status. Limitations of the self-report data on panic attacks and the other measures used in this study are acknowledged.

Type
Research Article
Information
Behaviour Change , Volume 13 , Issue 3: Special Issue — Part I: Internalising Disorders of Children and Adolescents , September 1996 , pp. 171 - 183
Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s) 1996

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

REFERENCES

American Psychiatric Association. (1987). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (3rd ed., rev.). Washington, DC: Author.Google Scholar
American Psychiatric Association. (1994). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (4th ed.). Washington, DC: Author.Google Scholar
American Psychiatric Association. (1987). Diagnostic and Statistical manual of mental disorders (3rd ed., rev.). Washington, DC: Author.Google Scholar
Antony, M.M., Brown, T.A., & Barlow, D.H. (1992). Current perspectives on panic and panic disorder. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 1, 79–82.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Barlow, D.H. (1988). Anxiety and its disorders: The nature and treatment of anxiety and panic. New York: Guilford.Google Scholar
Beck, A.T., Emery, G., & Greenberg, R.L. (1985). Anxiety disorders and phobias. New York: Guildford Press.Google Scholar
Beck, A., Ward, C., Mendelson, M, Mock, J., & Erbaugh, J. (1961). An inventory for measuring depression. Archives of General Psychiatry, 4, 561–571.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Brown, T.A., & Cash, T.F. (1989). The phenomenon of panic in nonclinical populations: Further evidence and methodological considerations. Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 3, 139–148.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Brown, T.A., & Deagle, E. (1992). Structured interview assessment of nonclinical panic. Behavior Therapy, 23, 75–86.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Castaneda, A., McCandless, B., & Palermo, D. (1956). The children's form of the Manifest Anxiety Scale. Child Development, 27, 317–326.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Clark, D.M. (1986). A cognitive approach to panic. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 24, 461–470.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Clark, D.M., & Ehlers, A. (1993). An overview of the cognitive theory and treatment of panic disorder. Applied and Preventive Psychology, 2, 131–139.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hayward, C., Killen, J.D., & Taylor, C.B. (1989). Panic attacks in young adolescents. American Journal of Psychiatry, 146, 1061–1062.Google ScholarPubMed
Keith, T.Z. (1988). Path analysis: An introduction for school psychologists. School Psychology Review, 17, 343–362.Google Scholar
Keith, T.Z. (in press). Causal influences on school learning. In Walberg, H.J. (Ed.), Analytic methods for educational productivity. Greenwich, CT: JAI Press.Google Scholar
King, N.J., Gullone, E., Tonge, B., & Ollendick, T.H. (1993). Self-reports of panic attacks and manifest anxiety in adolescents. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 31, 111–116.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Kovacs, M. (1981). Rating scales to assess depression in school aged children. Acta Paedopsychiatrica, 46, 305–315.Google ScholarPubMed
Kovacs, M., & Beck, A.T. (1977). An empirical-clinical approach toward a definition of childhood depression. In Schulterbrandt, J. G. & Raskin, A. (Eds.), Depression in childhood: Diagnosis, treatment, and conceptual models (pp. 1–25). New York: Raven.Google Scholar
Macaulay, J.L., & Kleinknecht, R.A. (1989). Panic and panic attacks in adolescents. Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 3, 221–241.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mannuzza, S., Fyer, A.J., Klein, D.F., & Endicott, J. (1986). Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia – Lifetime version (modified for the study of anxiety disorders): Rationale and conceptual development. Journal of Psychiatric Research, 20, 319–325.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Margraf, J., & Ehlers, A. (1988). Panic attacks in non-clinical subjects. In Hand, I. & Wittchen, H.U. (Eds.), Panic and phobias. Berlin: Springer-Verlag.Google Scholar
Norton, G.R., Cairns, S.L., Wozney, K.A., & Malan, J. (1988). Panic attacks and psychopathology in non-clinical panickers. Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 2, 319–336.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Norton, G.R., Cox, B.J., & Malan, J. (1992). Nonclinical panickers: A critical review. Clinical Psychology Review, 12, 121–139.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Norton, G.R., Dorward, J., & Cox, B.J. (1986). Factors associated with panic attacks in nonclinical subjects. Behavior Therapy, 17, 239–252.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Norton, G.R., Harrison, B., Hauch, J., & Rhodes, L. (1985). Characteristics of people with infrequent panic attacks. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 94, 216–221.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ollendick, T.H. (1983). Reliability and validity of the Revised Fear Survey Schedule for Children (FSSC-R). Behaviour Research and Therapy, 21, 685–692.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ollendick, T.H. (1995). Cognitive-behavioral treatment of panic disorder with agoraphobia in adolescents: A multiple baseline design analysis. Behavior Therapy, 26, 517–531.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ollendick, T.H., King, N.J., & Frary, R.B. (1989). Fears in children and adolescents: Reliability and generalizability across gender, age, and nationality. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 27, 19–26.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ollendick, T.H., Mattis, S.M., & King, N.J. (1994). Panic in children and adolescents: A review. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 35, 113–134.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ollendick, T.H., & Yule, W. (1990). Depression in British and American children and its relation to anxiety and fear. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 58, 126–129.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Pedhazur, E.J. (1982). Multiple regression in behavioral research: Prediction and explanation (2nd ed.). New York: Holt, Rinehart, & Winston.Google Scholar
Rachman, S.J., & Maser, J.D. (Eds.). (1988). Panic: Psychological perspectives. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.Google Scholar
Reynolds, C.R., & Paget, K.D. (1983). National normative and reliability data for the Revised Children's Manifest Anxiety Scale. School Psychology Review, 12, 324–336.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Reynolds, C.R., & Richmond, B.O. (1978). What I think and feel: A revised measure of children's manifest anxiety. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 6, 271–280.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Reynolds, C.R., & Richmond, B.O. (1985). Revised Children's Manifest Anxiety Scale (RCMAS) Manual. Los Angeles, CA: Western Psychological Services.Google Scholar
Scherer, M.W., & Nakamura, C.Y. (1968). A Fear Survey Schedule for Children (FSS-FC): A factor-analytic comparison with manifest anxiety (CMAS). Behaviour Research and Therapy, 6, 173–182.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Smucker, M.R., Craighead, W.E., Craighead, L.W., & Green, B.J. (1986). Normative and reliability data for the Children's Depression Inventory. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 14, 25–39.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Spielberger, C. (1973). Manual for the State–Trait Anxiety Inventory for Children. Palo Alto, CA: Consulting Psychologists Press.Google Scholar
Telch, M.J., Lucas, J.A., & Nelson, P. (1989). Nonclinical panic in college students: An investigation of prevalence and symptomatology. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 98, 300–306.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Warren, R., & Zgourides, G. (1988). Panic attacks in high school students: Implications for prevention and intervention. Phobia Practice and Research Journal, 1, 97–113.Google Scholar
Wilson, K.G., Sandler, L.S., Asmundson, G.J.G., Ediger, J.M., Larsen, D.K., & Walker, J.R. (1991). Panic attacks in the nonclinical population: An empirical approach to case identification. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 101, 460–468.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wolfle, L.M., & Ethington, C.A. (1985). GEMINI: Program for analysis of structural equations with standard errors of indirect effects. Behavior Research Methods, Instruments, and Computers, 17, 58–584.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
World Health Organization. (1985). Mental disorders: Glossary and guide to their classification in accordance with the Ninth Revision of the International Classification of Diseases. Geneva: Author.Google Scholar
World Health Organization. (1991). Multi-axial version of the International Classification of Diseases – 10. Geneva: Author.Google Scholar