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Worry
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Worry refers to the thoughts, images, and emotions of a negative nature in a repetitive,
uncontrollable manner that results from a proactive cognitive risk analysis made to avoid or solve
anticipated potential threats and their potential consequences.[1] Worry is described as a response to
a moderate challenge for when the subject has inadequate skills.[2] Worry turns to be problematic if
one has been excessively apprehensive more days than not for at least six months.

Contents
1 Introduction
2 Theories
2.1 Avoidance Model of Worry
2.2 Cognitive Model of Worry
3 Philosophical perspectives
4 Management
5 See also
6 References
7 External links

Introduction
Psychologically, worry is part of Perseverative Cognition (a collective term for continuous thinking
about negative events in the past or in the future).[3] As an emotion "worry" is experienced from
anxiety or concern about a real or imagined issue, often personal issues such as health or finances,
or external broader issues such as environmental pollution, social structure or technological change.
Its a natural response to anticipated future problems. Excessive worry is a primary diagnostic
feature of generalized anxiety disorder. Most people experience short-lived periods of worry in
their lives without incident; indeed, a mild amount of worrying have positive effects, if it prompts
people to take precautions (e.g., fastening their seat belt or buying insurance) or avoid risky
behaviors (e.g., angering dangerous animals, or binge drinking), but with excessive worrisome
people they overestimate future dangers in their assessments and in its extremities tend to magnify
the situation as a dead end which results stress. Overestimation happens because analysis resources
are a combination of external locus of control, personal experience and belief fallacies. Chronically
worried individuals are also more likely to lack confidence in their problem solving ability,
perceive problems as threats, become easily frustrated when dealing with a problem, and are
pessimistic about the outcome of problem-solving efforts.[4]

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Seriously anxious people find it difficult to control their worry

and typically experience these symptoms: Restlessness, Fatigue,
Difficulty concentrating, Irritability, Muscle tension and Sleep
disturbance.

Theories
Avoidance Model of Worry

The Avoidance Model of Worry (AMW) theorizes that worry is

a verbal linguistic, thought based activity, which arises as an
attempt to inhibit vivid mental imagery and associated somatic
and emotional activation.[5] This inhibition precludes the
emotional processing of fear that is theoretically necessary for Rama became very much worried
about Sita. His brother
successful habituation and extinction of feared stimuli.[6] Worry
is reinforced as a coping technique due to the fact that most Lakshmana consoled him
worries never actually occur, leaving the worrier
with a feeling of having successfully controlled the
feared situation, without the unpleasant sensations
associated with exposure.[7]

Cognitive Model of Worry

This model explains pathological worry to be an

interaction between involuntary (bottom-up)
processes, such as habitual biases in attention and
interpretation favoring threat content, and voluntary
(top-down) processes, such as attentional control.
Emotional processing biases influence the
probability of threat representations into the
awareness as intruding negative or positive thoughts.
At a pre-conscious level, these processes influence Mental state in terms of challenge level and
the competition among mental representations in skill level, according to Csikszentmihalyi's
which some correspond to the assertive power of flow model.[2] (Click on a fragment of the
worry with impaired cognitive process and others to image to go to the appropriate article)
the preventive power of worry with attentional
control or exhaustive vigilance. The biases
determine threatening degree and nature of worry content the worrier attempts to resolve the
perceived threat and the redirection of anticipations, responses and coping in such situations.[8]

There are some who respond to mental representations in an uncertain or ambiguous state in regard
to the stressful or upsetting event.[9] In this state the worrier is held in a perpetual state of worry.
This is because availability of an overwhelming number(maybe 2 or 3, depending upon the

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worry-prone individual) of possibilities of outcomes which can be generated, it puts the worrier in a
threatening crisis and they focus their attentional control voluntarily on the potential negative
outcomes, whereas others engage in a constructive problem solving manner and in a benign
approach rather than to engage with heightened anticipation on the possible negative outcome.[10]

Philosophical perspectives
Biblical word used in Hebrew describes worry (Hebrew:
daag) as a combined form of fear and sorrow that affects
nephesh, the totality of our being. Bible takes a fortitude
strengthening approach regarding worrying. Mathew 6:27,34
encourages: "And can any of you by worrying add a single hour
to your span of life?... So do not worry about tomorrow, for
tomorrow will bring worries of its own. Todays trouble is
enough for today." and pastoral epistles 2 Timothy 1:7
emboldens: " for God did not give us a spirit of cowardice, but
rather a spirit of power and of love and of self-discipline."
Similarly James 1:2-4 motivates to face trials of any kind with
joy, because they produce endurance (strength and courage).
Further Saint Peter reveals his understanding for a healthy
living through Second Peter 1:3,5-7.[11] Guido Reni's 17th-century
painting of John the Baptist
Meher Baba stated that worry is caused by desires and can be depicts anguish and worry.
overcome through detachment: "Worry is the product of
feverish imagination working under the stimulus of desires
....(It) is a necessary resultant of attachment to the past or to the anticipated future, and it always
persists in some form or other until the mind is completely detached from everything."[12]

Management
Worry System is activated from exposure of a potential triggering event, traumatic experience or
vulnerability, this brings worrisome thoughts and feelings which bring about physical stress
reactions and response to avoid worrisome behavior, to ensure allostasis. But under the crisis this
activity feeds back into the first worrisome thoughts and feelings which generates and strengthens
the vicious worry cycle. Relaxation, risk assessment, worry exposure and behavior prevention have
been proven effective in curbing the excessive worry, a chief feature of generalized anxiety
disorder.[13] Cognitive behavioral techniques hasn't branched out enough to address the problem
holistically but therapy can control or diminish worry.[14]

See also
Anxiety

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Attitude (psychology)
Fear
Interoceptive exposure
Mental toughness
Neuroticism
Panic attack
Rumination (psychology)
The Worry Trap

References
1. Borkovec TD. (2002). Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice 9, 7680.
(http://www.personal.kent.edu/~dfresco/mindfulness/CPSP_borkovec.pdf)
2. Csikszentmihalyi, M., Finding Flow, 1997.
3. Brosschot, J.F.; Pieper, S.; Thayer, J.F. (2005). "Expanding Stress Theory: Prolonged Activation And
Perseverative Cognition". Psychoneuroendocrinology. 30 (10): 10439.
doi:10.1016/j.psyneuen.2005.04.008. PMID 15939546.
4. Bredemeier, Keith; Berenbaum, Howard (2008-01-01). "Intolerance of uncertainty and perceived
threat". Behaviour Research and Therapy. 46 (1): 2838. doi:10.1016/j.brat.2007.09.006.
5. Borkovec, T. D.; Alcaine, O.M.; Behar, E. (2004). Generalized anxiety disorderL advances in research
and practic. Guilford Press. pp. 77108.
6. Gillihan, Seth J.; Foa, Edna B. Fear Extinction and Emotional Processing Theory. pp. 2743.
doi:10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199735969.003.0017.
7. Behar, Evelyn; DiMarco, Ilyse Dobrow; Hekler, Eric B.; Mohlman, Jan; Staples, Alison M. (Dec 2009).
"Current theoretical models of generalized anxiety disorder (GAD): Conceptual review and treatment
implications". Journal of Anxiety Disorders. 23 (8): 10111023. doi:10.1016/j.janxdis.2009.07.006.
PMID 19700258.
8. R.H, Colette; Mathews, Andrew (2012). "A cognitive model of pathological worry". Behaviour
Research and Therapy. 50 (10): 636646. doi:10.1016/j.brat.2012.06.007.
9. Koerner, Naomi; Dugas, Michel J. (2006-01-01). Davey, Graham C. L.; Wells, Adrian, eds. A Cognitive
Model of Generalized Anxiety Disorder: the Role of Intolerance of Uncertainty. John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
pp. 201216. doi:10.1002/9780470713143.ch12. ISBN 9780470713143.
10. Robichaud, Melisa (2013-01-01). Simos, Gregoris; Hofmann, Stefan G., eds. Generalized Anxiety
Disorder: Targeting Intolerance of Uncertainty. John Wiley & Sons Ltd. pp. 5785.
doi:10.1002/9781118330043.ch3. ISBN 9781118330043.
11. "New Revised Standard Version" (http://www.biblegateway.com/versions/New-Revised-Standard-
Version-NRSV-Bible/) Retrieved on 2015-01-17
12. Baba, Meher (1967). Discourses. 3. Sufism Reoriented. pp. 121-22. ISBN 978-1880619094.
13. O'Leary, T. A., Brown, T. A., & Barlow, D. H. (1992). The efficacy of worry control treatment in
generalized anxiety disorder: A multiple baseline analysis. Association for Advancement of Behavior
Therapy, Boston.
14. Zinbarg RE, Barlow DH, Brown TA, Hertz RM. Cognitive-behavioral approaches to the nature and
treatment of anxiety disorders. Annu Rev Psychol. 1992;43:235-67.

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External links
Current theoretical models of generalized anxiety disorder (GAD): Conceptual review and
treatment implications (http://www.designinghealth.org/uploads/1/3/8/4/13844497
/gad_paper.pdf)

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