The authors investigated the psychometric properties of the Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI) in a sample of 75 older generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) patients and a comparison group of 32 older adults without significant psychopathology. Internal consistency was above .80, and the BAI showed evidence of convergent validity in both groups. Evidence for discriminant validity with respect to measures of depression was weaker. Two items, fearing the worst and nervousness, correctly distinguished 86.5% of patients with GAD and 93.8% of the normal controls. Medical comorbidity was associated with somatic but not cognitive anxiety symptoms in the normal older sample. Overall, results indicate the limitations of the BAI in assessing anxiety symptoms in older adults and suggest the need for use of an instrument focusing on cognitive aspects of anxiety.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
American Psychiatric Association. (1994). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (4th edn.). Washington, DC: Author.
Ballenger, J. C., Davidson, J. R., Lecrubier, Y., Nutt, D. J., Borkovec, T. D., Rickels, K., Stein, D. J., & Wittchen, H. U. (2001). Consensus statement on generalized anxiety disorder from the International Consensus Group on Depression and Anxiety. Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, 62(Suppl. 11), 53–58.
Beck, A. T., Epstein, N., Brown, G., & Steer, R. A. (1988). An inventory for measuring clinical anxiety: Psychometric properties. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 56, 893–897.
Beck, A. T., Rush, A. J., Shaw, B. F., & Emery, G. (1979). Cognitive therapy of depression. New York: Guilford Press.
Beck, J. G., & Stanley, M. A. (2001). Assessment of anxiety disorder in older adults: Current concerns, future prospects. In M. A. Antony, S. M. Orsillo, & L. Roemer (Eds.), Practitioner’s guide to empirically based measures of anxiety. AABT clinical assessment series (pp. 43–48). Dordrecht, The Netherlands: Kluwer Academic.
Beck, J. G., Stanley, M. A., & Zebb, B. J. (1995). Psychometric properties of the Penn State Worry Questionnaire in older adults. Journal of Clinical Geropsychology, 1, 33–42.
Beck, J. G., Stanley, M. A., & Zebb, B. J. (1999). Effectiveness of the Hamilton Anxiety Scale with older generalized anxiety disorder patients. Journal of Clinical Geropsychology, 5, 281–290.
Beekman, A. T. F., Bremmer, M. A., Deeg, D. J. H., van Balkom, A. J. L. M., Snut, J. H., de Beurs, E., et al. (1998). Anxiety disorders in later life: A report from the Longitudinal Aging Study Amsterdam. International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 13, 717–726.
Bruss, G. S., Gruenberg, A. M., Goldstein, R. D., & Barber, J. P. (1994). Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale interview guide: Joint interview and test–retest methods for interrater reliability. Psychiatry Research, 53, 191–202.
Cox, B. J., Cohen, E., Direnfeld, D. M., & Swinson, R. P. (1996). Does the Beck Anxiety Inventory measure anything beyond panic attack symptoms? Behaviour Research and Therapy, 34, 949–954.
Diefenbach, G. J., Stanley, M. A., Beck, J. G., Novy, D. M., & Averill, P. M. (2001). Examination of the Hamilton Scales in assessment of anxious older adults: A replication and extension. Journal of Psychopathology and Behavioral Assessment, 23, 117–124.
Di Nardo, P. A., Brown, T. A., & Barlow, D. H. (1994). Anxiety Disorders Interview Schedule for DSM-IV. Boston: Center for Stress and Anxiety Related Disorders, Boston University.
First, M. B., Spitzer, R. L., Gibbon, M., & Williams, J. B. W. (1995). Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV Axis I Disorder–Patient Edition (SCID-I/P). New York: Biometrics Research Department, New York State Psychiatric Institute.
Folstein, M. F., Folstein, S. E., & McHugh, P. R. (1975). ‘Mini-mental state’: A practical method for grading the cognitive state of patients for the clinician. Journal of Psychiatry Research, 12, 189–198.
Gallagher, D. (1986). The Beck Depression Inventory and older adults: Review of its development and utility. Clinical Gerontologist, 5, 149–163.
Hamilton, M. (1959). The assessment of anxiety state by rating. British Journal of Medical Psychiatry, 32, 50–55.
Hamilton, M. (1960). A rating scale for depression. Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Psychiatry, 23, 56–62.
Hopko, D. R., Stanley, M. A., Reas, D. L., Wetherell, J. L., Beck, J. G., Novy, D. M., et al. (2003). Assessing worry in older adults: Confirmatory factor analysis of the Penn State Worry Questionnaire and psychometric properties of an abbreviated model. Psychological Assessment, 15, 173–183.
Kabacoff, R. I., Segal, D. L., Hersen, M., & Van Hasselt, V. B. (1997). Psychometric properties and diagnostic utility of the Beck Anxiety Inventory and the State–Trait Anxiety Inventory with older adult psychiatric outpatients. Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 11, 33–47.
Kogan, J. N., Edelstein, B. A., & McKee, D. R. (2000). Assessment of anxiety in older adults: Current status. Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 14, 109–132.
Krasucki, C., Howard, R., & Mann, A. (1998). The relationship between anxiety disorders and age. International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 13, 79–99.
Lau, A. W., Edelstein, B. A., & Larkin, K. T. (2001). Psychophysiological arousal in older adults: A critical review. Clinical Psychology Review, 21, 609–630.
Meyer, T. J., Miller, M. L., Metzger, R. L., & Borkovec, T. D. (1990). Development and validation of the Penn State Worry Questionnaire. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 28, 487–495.
Morin, C. M., Landreville, P., Colecchi, C., McDonald, K., Stone, J., & Ling, W. (1999). The Beck Anxiety Inventory: Psychometric properties with older adults. Journal of Clinical Geropsychology, 5, 19–29.
Roy-Byrne, P. P., & Katon, W. (1997). Generalized anxiety disorder in primary care: The precursor/modifier pathway to increased health care utilization. Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, 58(Suppl. 3), 34–38.
Spielberger, C. D., Gorsuch, R. L., Lushene, P. R., Vagg, P. R., & Jacobs, A. G. (1983). Manual for the State–Trait Anxiety Inventory (Form Y). Palo Alto, CA: Consulting Psychologists Press.
Stanley, M. A., Novy, D. M., Bourland, S. L., Beck, J. G., & Averill, P. M. (2001). Assessing older adults with generalized anxiety: A replication and extension. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 39, 221–235.
Steer, R. A., Willman, M., Kay, P. A., & Beck, A. T. (1994). Differentiating elderly medical and psychiatric outpatients with the Beck Anxiety Inventory. Assessment, 1, 345–351.
Wetherell, J. L., & Areán, P. A. (1997). Psychometric evaluation of the Beck Anxiety Inventory with older medical patients. Psychological Assessment, 9, 136–144.
Wetherell, J. L., & Gatz, M. (2001). Recruiting anxious older adults for a psychotherapy outcome study. Journal of Clinical Geropsychology, 7, 29–38.
Wetherell, J. L., Gatz, M., & Craske, M. G. (2003). Treatment of generalized anxiety disorder in older adults. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 71, 31–40.
Wetherell, J. L., Le Roux, H., & Gatz, M. (2003). DSM-IV criteria for generalized anxiety disorder in older adults: Distinguishing the worried from the well. Psychology and Aging, 18, 622–627.
Wetherell, J. L., Thorp, S. R., Patterson, T. L., Golshan, S., Jeste, D. V., & Gatz, M. (2004). Quality of life in geriatric generalized anxiety disorder: A preliminary investigation. Journal of Psychiatric Research, 38, 305–312.
Williams, J. B. W. (1988). A structured interview guide for the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale. Archives of General Psychiatry, 45, 742–747.
Wittchen, H.-U. (2002). Generalized anxiety disorder: Prevalence, burden, and cost to society. Depression and Anxiety, 16, 162–171.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Wetherell, J.L., Gatz, M. The Beck Anxiety Inventory in Older Adults With Generalized Anxiety Disorder. J Psychopathol Behav Assess 27, 17–24 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10862-005-3261-3
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10862-005-3261-3