Cognitive Aspects of Generalised Anxiety Disorder in Adolescents: Exploring Intolerance of Uncertainty, Cognitive Avoidance, and Positive Beliefs About Worry.

Lottie Shipp, Eleanor Leigh, Amy Laverton, Ray Percy, Polly Waite

Abstract read

In one paragraph

Article in Child psychiatry and human development, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it

0cells of the map it votes in

1citing papers in PubMed

–field-weighted citation impact

1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

A Network Analysis of the Interrelationships Between Depression, Anxiety, Insomnia and Non-Suicidal Self-Injury in Middle School Students.Psychology research and behavior management · 2026
Article

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors.

Lottie ShippDepartment of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Woodstock Road, Oxford, OX2 6GG, UK.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-1497-2789

Eleanor LeighDepartment of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Woodstock Road, Oxford, OX2 6GG, UK. eleanor.leigh@psy.ox.ac.uk.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-2756-3770

Amy LavertonSchool of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences, Harry Pitt Building, University of Reading, Earley Gate, Reading, RG6 6ES, UK.ORCID http://orcid.org/0009-0009-4357-4817

Ray PercySchool of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences, Harry Pitt Building, University of Reading, Earley Gate, Reading, RG6 6ES, UK.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-3908-7284

Polly WaiteDepartment of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Woodstock Road, Oxford, OX2 6GG, UK.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-1967-8028

Funding

Medical Research Council MR/W02389X/1MRC MR/W02389X/1National Institute for Health and Care Research PDF-2016-09-092

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Intolerance of uncertainty, cognitive avoidance, and positive beliefs about worry have been well researched in adults with Generalised Anxiety Disorder (GAD), but few studies have explored these aspects in adolescent clinical samples. To address this gap, we compared the three cognitive variables amongst 12-18 year-olds with diagnoses of GAD (n = 46), those with other anxiety disorders (n = 18), and a group with low self-reported anxiety (n = 38). Adolescents with GAD reported significantly higher intolerance of uncertainty and positive beliefs about worry relative to their peers with other anxiety diagnoses, whilst levels of cognitive avoidance did not differ significantly. Intolerance of uncertainty and cognitive avoidance, but not positive beliefs about worry, were significantly higher amongst young people with GAD compared to the non-anxious community group. This novel study provides preliminary evidence for the relevance and specificity of intolerance of uncertainty to the maintenance of GAD in adolescence.

Indexed as

AnxietyAnxiety DisordersAvoidance LearningCognitionGeneralized Anxiety DisorderMetacognitionAdolescentChildFemaleHumansMaleUncertaintyAdolescenceGeneralized anxiety disorderIntolerance of uncertaintyMental healthMetacognitive beliefs

Identifiers

PMID40000532

DOI10.1007/s10578-025-01809-3

PMCPMC7618352

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata

LicenceCC BY

Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.