Generalized Anxiety Disorder

Co-Principal Investigators

Patricia M. Nielsen Research Chair, The Family Institute
Professor and Director of Clinical Training, Department of Psychology

Tamara Sher, PhD

Vice President for Research, The Family Institute

Jonathan K. Lee, PhD

Dr. John J.B. Morgan Postgraduate Fellow, The Family Institute

Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) is characterized by constant worry, leading to tension and irritability. Through this research we hope to learn more about the relationship between GAD and how couples function, with an ultimate goal of developing a more effective and longer lasting treatment for married adults with the disorder. The first phase of the project assessed functioning in couples in which one person has GAD. It then assessed the extent to which couple variables predict short and long term response to individual cognitive-behavior therapy, the current standard treatment for GAD. A principal goal was to identify interaction patterns in GAD couples that might become targets for a new intervention, which would be developed and tested in subsequent studies.

Dr. Zinbarg has completed pilot research demonstrating that GAD couples could be recruited in sufficient numbers to conduct the proposed research, and that these couples revealed interaction patterns in a laboratory setting that predicted short term response to individual cognitive-behavior therapy for GAD. He is currently completing a second pilot study examining the relationship between the long-term outcome of, and engagement with, individual cognitive-behavior therapy for the GAD patients and their interaction patterns with their non-GAD partners.

The results of these pilot projects will provide the basis for a grant submission to the National Institute of Mental Health in collaboration with Dr. Tamara Sher, and Dr. Patrick Corrigan of the Illinois Institute of Technology. The aim of the project is to increase engagement in cognitive behavioral treatment for GAD, by specifically addressing the interpersonal predictors of suboptimal response to individual cognitive-behavior therapy plus Worry Imagery Exposure (WIE). The pilot data for this study have already identified some significant interpersonal predictors of suboptimal response in patients with GAD in intimate committed relationships.

Publications

Zinbarg, R., Mashal, N., Black, D. & Fluckiger, C. (2010). The future and promise of cognitive behavior therapy: Acommentary. Psychiatric Clinics of North America, 33, 711 - 727.

Fluckiger, C., Wusten, G., Zinbarg, R. & Wampold, B. (2010). Resource activation: Using clients' own strengths in psychotherapy and counseling. Cambridge, MA: Hogrefe.

Black, D., Uliaszek, A., Lewis, A. & Zinbarg, R. (2009). Generalized anxiety disorder and interpersonal relationships: The case for a systemic intervention. In E. Cuyler & M. Ackhart (Eds.), Psychology of Relationships (pp. 65 - 85). Hauppauge, NY: Nova Science Publishers.
Zinbarg, R., Uliaszek, A. & Adler, J. (2008). The role of personality in psychotherapy for anxiety and depression. Journal of Personality, 76, 1649 - 1687.
Zinbarg, R., Lee, J.E. & Yoon, L. (2007). Dyadic Predictors of Outcome in a Cognitive-Behavioral Program for Patients with Generalized Anxiety Disorder in Committed Relationships: A ‘Spoonful of Sugar' and a Dose of Non-Hostile Criticism May Help. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 45, 699 - 713.
Yoon, L. & Zinbarg, R. (2007). Generalized anxiety disorder and entry into marriage or a marriage-like relationship. Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 21, 955 - 965.
Zinbarg, R., Craske, M. & Barlow, D.H. (2006). Therapist's Guide for the Mastery of Your Anxiety and Worry Program. (2nd Edition). New York, NY: Oxford University Press.
Mohlman, J. & Zinbarg, R. (2000). What kind of attention is necessary for fear reduction? An empirical test of the Emotional Processing Model. Behavior Therapy, 31, 113-133.
Street, L., Salman, E., Garfinkle, R., Silvestri, J., Carrasco, J., Cardenas, D., Zinbarg, R., Barlow, D. & Liebowitz, M. (1997). Discriminating between generalized anxiety disorder and anxiety disorder not otherwise specified in a hispanic population: Is it only a matter of worry? Depression and Anxiety, 5, 1 - 6.
Zinbarg, R. & Barlow, D.H. (1996). The structure of anxiety and the DSM-III-R anxiety disorders: A hierarchical model. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 105, 181-193.

Brown, T., Moras, K., Zinbarg, R. & Barlow, D. H. (1993). Differentiating generalized anxiety disorder and obsessive compulsive behavior. Behavior Therapy, 24, 227-240.

Zinbarg, R., Craske, M. & Barlow, D.H. (1994). Therapist's Guide for the Mastery of Your Anxiety and Worry Program. Albany, NY: Graywing Publishing Co.

Zinbarg, R. (1993). Information processing and classical conditioning: Implications for exposure therapy and the
integration of cognitive therapy and behavior therapy. Journal of Behavior Therapy and Experimental Psychiatry, 24, 129-139.

For more information about the Generalized Anxiety Disorder Project, contact Jonathan Lee, PhD, at 847-733-4300, ext. 802.
For participation opportunities in this research project, please call 847-733-4300 or e-mail This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

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