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Background: Cultural factors influence both the expression of social anxiety and the interpretation and functioning of social anxiety measures. This study aimed to test the measurement equivalence of two commonly used social anxiety measures across two sociocultural contexts using individuals with social anxiety disorder (SAD) from Australia and Japan., Methods: Scores on the straightforwardly-worded Social Interaction Anxiety Scale (S-SIAS) and the Social Phobia Scale (SPS) from two archival datasets of individual with SAD, one from Australia (n = 201) and one from Japan (n = 295), were analysed for measurement equivalence using a multigroup confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) framework., Results: The best-fitting factor models for the S-SIAS and SPS were not found to be measurement equivalent across the Australian and Japanese samples. Instead, only a subset of items was invariant. When this subset of invariant items was used to compare social anxiety symptoms across the Australian and Japanese samples, Japanese participants reported lower levels of fear of attracting attention, and similar levels of fear of overt evaluation, and social interaction anxiety, relative to Australian participants., Limitations: We only analysed the measurement equivalence of two social anxiety measures using a specific operationalisation of culture. Future studies will need to examine the measurement equivalence of other measures of social anxiety across other operationalisations of culture., Conclusions: When comparing social anxiety symptoms across Australian and Japanese cultures, only scores from measurement equivalent items of social anxiety measures should be used. Our study highlights the importance of culturally-informed assessment in SAD., (Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier B.V.)

This study examined the long-term durability of cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) for older adults with comorbid anxiety and depression 10 years after treatment, in comparison to an active control group. Participants from a randomised controlled trial for older adults with comorbid anxiety and depression (Wuthrich et al., 2016) were re-contacted. Participants had received either group CBT or an active control treatment (Discussion Group). The final sample (N = 54; Aged 70–84, M age = 76.07, SD = 3.83; 59 % of the eligible original sample) completed a diagnostic interview, cognitive assessment and self-report measures of symptoms and quality of life. CBT was associated with significantly improved long-term (10-year) efficacy for reducing anxiety and depression in older adults compared to the Discussion group. Effects included higher rates of remission (58 % remission of all diagnoses vs 27 %, 88 % of all depressive diagnoses vs 54 %, 63 % of all anxiety diagnoses vs 35 %, 67 % of primary diagnosis vs 42 %), lower rates of relapse (25–31 % vs 50–78 %) and lower rates of chronic treatment-resistance (8 % primary disorder vs 39 %, 21 % any disorder vs 58 %). Participants who showed an acute treatment response at post-treatment were 7–9 times more likely to be in remission after 10 years than those with residual symptoms. Results may not generalise to those who do not complete CBT, and the time trajectory of symptom change is unclear. Long-term improvements in symptoms are specific to CBT. Results provide compelling evidence for CBT as an effective and durable treatment for late-life anxiety and depression. • Assessed the durability of CBT among older adults 10 years after treatment • Compared effects to an active control group • CBT was associated with higher remission, lower relapse and chronic non-response. • CBT has long-lasting benefits for anxiety and depression in older adults. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Loneliness and social isolation are known to be associated with depression, general anxiety, and social anxiety. However, knowledge on the overlapping and unique features of these relationships, while differentiating between social loneliness (perceived absence of an acceptable social network) and emotional loneliness (perceived absence of close connections), is lacking. We constructed a network analysis to examine the relationships between self-reported social loneliness, emotional loneliness, social isolation, depression, general anxiety and social anxiety in a large sample of university students (N = 7314, 67.4 % female, range 16.3–75.8 years, M age = 23.9, SD age = 5.7). Hierarchical regression analyses were used to examine whether depression, general anxiety and social anxiety moderated the relationship between social isolation and loneliness types. As comorbidity between anxiety and depression is high, the role of anxiety as a moderator in the relationship between depression and loneliness types was also examined. The network analysis showed that social loneliness was most strongly explained by social isolation, whereas emotional loneliness was most strongly explained by social anxiety and depression. General anxiety was solely related to loneliness through depression. The regression analyses showed that general and social anxiety and depression did not moderate the relationship between social isolation and loneliness types. Differences found between loneliness types may be influenced by a methodological artifact of the DJGLS. These findings highlight the importance of social anxiety over general anxiety in relation to loneliness. Also, it showed unique relationships for social- and emotional loneliness with psycho-social variables, which has important implications for research- and clinical settings. • Emotional and social loneliness are strongly related. • The network shows the impact of social anxiety over general anxiety on loneliness. • Mental health does not moderate relation between social isolation and loneliness. • Unique relationships for loneliness types may be relevant for clinical practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Adolescents experiencing both anxiety and mood disorders show greater life impairment than those with either disorder alone. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of an online cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) program for these comorbid youth.Methods: Ninety-one adolescents aged 12 to 17 years (M = 14.29, S.D. = 1.62; 66% female) participated if they met DSM-5 criteria for both an anxiety and depressive disorder. Diagnoses were assessed by structured interview and participants also completed measures of symptoms, negative thoughts, and life interference. Participants were randomly allocated to either active treatment (n = 45) or wait (n = 46). Treatment comprised access to an 8-module, online program and was supported by 8, 30-minute telephone sessions with a therapist and the youth, of which the caregiver participated in four.Results: Treated participants showed significantly greater reduction than waiting participants on the primary outcome: total number of disorders and were more likely to remit from all anxiety and mood disorders (43.8% vs 20.9%). Secondary outcomes covering symptoms of anxiety and depression showed similar group by time differences, but there was no significant group by time interaction on life interference.Conclusions: This brief, easily accessible, online intervention that requires relatively low levels of therapist time showed promising impact for a very impaired population.Registration: This trial was registered on the ANZ clinical trials registry-ACTRN12616000139471. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Despite considerable evidence on parenting risk and protective factors for child anxiety and depressive disorders, the development of interventions based on this evidence is still lagging behind. To address this gap, the web-based Parenting Resilient Kids (PaRK) program was developed to target these risk and protective factors. This study evaluated the effects of the program at 12-month follow-up.Methods: A randomized controlled trial was conducted with a community sample of 355 parents and 342 children (Mchild age = 9.79). Parents randomized into the web-based PaRK intervention condition received a personalized feedback report about their parenting and were recommended a tailored course of up to 12 interactive modules. Parents in the control condition received a standard set of web-based educational factsheets.Results: Parents in the intervention group demonstrated significantly greater improvement in self-reported parenting compared to control group parents from baseline to 12-month follow-up, d = 0.24, 95% CI [0.03, 0.45]. Both groups showed reductions in child anxiety and depressive symptoms, parental psychological control and unhealthy family functioning; and improvements in parental acceptance, child- and parent- health-related quality of life.Limitations: The PaRK intervention was tailored based on the parents' own report of their parenting behaviors. There was an over-representation of highly-educated mothers and only one parent-child dyad was included per family.Conclusions: PaRK improved parenting for up to 12 months, but had no superior effect on children's mental health outcomes compared with an educational-factsheet intervention. Further follow-up is needed to assess longer-term effects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]