Adult separation anxiety: psychometric properties of a new structured clinical interview

Separation anxiety has traditionally been characterized and assessed as a disorder that is unique to childhood. Yet the core symptoms of separation anxiety, i.e. excessive and often disabling distress when faced with actual or perceived separation from major attachment figures, may persist or even a...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of psychiatric research 2002-03, Vol.36 (2), p.77-86
Main Authors: Cyranowski, Jill M, Shear, M.Katherine, Rucci, Paola, Fagiolini, Andrea, Frank, Ellen, Grochocinski, Victoria J, Kupfer, David J, Banti, Susanna, Armani, Antonella, Cassano, Giovanni
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
Anxiety disorders
Anxiety, Separation - diagnosis
Anxiety, Separation - psychology
Biological and medical sciences
Child
Female
Humans
Interview, Psychological
Male
Medical sciences
Panic Disorder - diagnosis
Panic Disorder - psychology
Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry
Psychometrics
Psychometrics. Diagnostic aid systems
Psychopathology. Psychiatry
Self-Assessment
Separation anxiety
Separation distress
Techniques and methods
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Summary:Separation anxiety has traditionally been characterized and assessed as a disorder that is unique to childhood. Yet the core symptoms of separation anxiety, i.e. excessive and often disabling distress when faced with actual or perceived separation from major attachment figures, may persist or even arise during adulthood. We report on the psychometric properties of a new structured clinical interview designed to assess symptoms of separation anxiety as experienced both during childhood and adulthood. This instrument, called the Structured Clinical Interview for Separation Anxiety Symptoms (or SCI-SAS), was administered as part of an assessment battery to 91 adult psychiatric outpatients and 20 non-psychiatric controls. Results indicate that this instrument displays excellent psychometric properties, including good internal consistency, a clear factor structure, and exceptional levels of convergent and discriminate validity. These results highlight the feasibility and potential clinical utility of assessing age-appropriate symptoms of separation anxiety experienced during adulthood.
ISSN:0022-3956
1879-1379
DOI:10.1016/S0022-3956(01)00051-6