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Approach and Avoidance Profiles Distinguish Dimensions of Anxiety and Depression

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Abstract

Although a substantial body of research has examined the relationship between motivational systems and mood and anxiety disorders, there is disagreement among theorists regarding the nature of these relationships. Discrepancies in the literature may be explained by several factors. Studies of motivational models rarely examine both mood and anxiety disorders simultaneously, making comparisons among them difficult. Furthermore, dimensions of anxiety often are not distinguished, obscuring potential relationships. Finally, although research in this area is beginning to conceptualize individual differences in motivational systems as longstanding temperament phenomena, this notion has not been widely incorporated into motivational models. The present study examined relationships between temperamental differences in approach and avoidance motivational systems and dimensions of anxiety and depression. Results revealed distinct relationships between motivational temperaments and each psychopathology dimension. Present findings implicate individual differences in temperamental motivation as a potential factor in the development and/or maintenance of mood and anxiety disorders.

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Notes

  1. Some researchers have suggested additional dimensions important for emotional and motivational processes, such as constraint/impulsivity (Carver 2005).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 603 E. Daniel Street, Champaign, IL, 61820, USA

    Jeffrey M. Spielberg, Wendy Heller, Rebecca Levin Silton, Jennifer L. Stewart & Gregory A. Miller

  2. Beckman Institute Biomedical Imaging Center, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Champaign, IL, USA

    Wendy Heller & Gregory A. Miller

  3. Department of Psychology, Loyola University Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA

    Rebecca Levin Silton

  4. Department of Psychiatry, University of California San Diego, San Diego, CA, USA

    Jennifer L. Stewart

  5. Department of Psychiatry, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Champaign, IL, USA

    Gregory A. Miller

  6. Zukunfstkolleg, University of Konstanz, Constance, Germany

    Gregory A. Miller

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  1. Jeffrey M. Spielberg
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  2. Wendy Heller
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  3. Rebecca Levin Silton
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  4. Jennifer L. Stewart
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  5. Gregory A. Miller
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Correspondence to Jeffrey M. Spielberg.

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Spielberg, J.M., Heller, W., Silton, R.L. et al. Approach and Avoidance Profiles Distinguish Dimensions of Anxiety and Depression. Cogn Ther Res 35, 359–371 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10608-011-9364-0

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