Preliminary investigation of intolerance of uncertainty treatment for anxiety disorders

摘要

Intolerance of uncertainty (IU) is the tendency to react negatively to uncertain situations or events, and it has been found to be an important maintaining factor in a number of different anxiety disorders. It is often included as a part of cognitive behavioural interventions for anxiety disorders but its specific contribution to treatment outcome has not been examined. The aim of the present study was to examine the effectiveness of a brief treatment specifically targeting IU in a 25-year-old man with comorbid diagnoses of social phobia, panic disorder, generalised anxiety disorder, major depressive disorder and dysthymia. A single case design series was utilised. Six sessions of individual therapy were provided with symptom measures administered weekly throughout the 3-week baseline, treatment and 1-month post-treatment phase. Clinically significant improvement occurred on measures of IU and social anxiety but not on a general measure of anxiety. The clinical implications of this finding and directions for future research are discussed.