The DOI matches its Crossref record; 95 of the 96 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
Health anxiety disorders: A cognitive construal
Abstract
The features of severe health anxiety, intense and persistent anxiety about one's present and future health, are described. In common with other anxiety disorders such as GAD, PTSD and OCD, the core of HAD is distressing, uncontrollable anxiety, and is classifiable as an Anxiety Disorder, Health Anxiety Disorder (HAD). The cognitive construal of HAD proposes that health anxiety is caused by catastrophic misinterpretations of the significance of sensations and/or changes in bodily functions and appearance (such as swellings, pain, loss of energy, dizzy spells). The nature, causes, triggers, persistence, assessment and treatment of HAD are reviewed, and the present status of the cognitive model is appraised. Suggestions are made for future research and clinical applications, and the need for incisive evaluations of the main premises of the model is emphasized.
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“It is proposed that these beliefs contribute to catastrophic misinterpretations of the significance of health-related stimuli, such as bodily sensations or changes in bodily functions or appearance, leading to intense anxiety [45].”
From Illness Anxiety Disorder: A Review of the Current Research and Future Directions (2024) · cites this paper as [45]
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Metadata
- Authors
- Rachman, S.
- Affiliations
- University of London (GB)
- Corresponding author
- Rachman, S.
- ORCID
- Rachman, S.
- Venue
- Behaviour Research and Therapy
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 2012-08
- Volume
- 50
- Issue
- 7-8
- Pages
- 502-512
- ISSN
- 0005-7967 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W1990760775
- Cited by
- 161
- References
- 96
- Citations by year
- 2026: 12 · 2025: 12 · 2024: 9 · 2023: 22 · 2022: 16 · 2021: 14 · 2020: 19 · 2019: 11 · 2018: 6 · 2017: 5 · 2016: 10 · 2015: 9 · 2014: 10 · 2013: 6
- FWCI
- 1.18
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Behaviour Research and Therapy (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Anxiety, Depression, Psychometrics, Treatment, Cognitive Processes
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Psychiatry and Mental health › Psychosomatic Disorders and Their Treatments
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › COVID-19 and Mental Health
- Keywords
- catastrophic misinterpretation, cognitive models, somatic symptoms, bodily sensations, anxiety disorders, health anxiety, cognitive construal
- MeSH terms
- Anxiety Disorders, Attitude to Health, Cognition Disorders, Humans, Hypochondriasis, Models, Psychological, Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, Personality Inventory, Safety, Health Behavior, Panic Disorder
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