Evaluating the Beck Anxiety Inventory
The Beck Anxiety Inventory is a 21-item scale that measures the severity of self-reported anxiety in adults and adolescents. The inventory was created by Aaron T. Beck and his colleague, Robert A. Steer, at the Center for Cognitive Therapy, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry. The most recent edition was published in 1993 by The Psychological Corporation, Harcourt Brace & Company in San Antonio, TX. The first edition was published in 1988. The 1993 edition recommends different scoring guidelines than previous editions. There is only one form and one manual as part of the Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI). To purchase the BAI in 2010, the manual and 25 scoring sheets would cost $110.00. This information is from the Pearson Assessments website.
The design of the manual is very user friendly. It is divided into subjects with headings. The editorial quality of the content is professional and academic. The manual would be a quick read for someone knowledgeable about testing as it is 23 pages long. The manual in the Ward E. Barnes Library was in good condition, but appeared to be old as the newest version was printed in 1993. The face validity of the manual and scoring sheet is pleasant. They appear professional and not too academic. Reporting anxiety was the only purpose for the inventory listed in the manual.
The BAI consists of 21 descriptive statements of anxiety symptoms. The test taker indicates how often the symptoms have occurred within the last week. The scoring sheet has four columns which are rated on a 4-point scale with the following correspondence: Not at all = 0, Mildly = 1, Moderately = 2, Severely = 3. The test taker marks the appropriate colum...
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...h the inventory is very easy to use and is self explanatory, it’s seems important to evaluate when and why the test is being used with the client and how the results are going to benefit the client. Because the assessment is a self-report assessment, it’s so crucial to help the client understand how important an honest evaluation of their symptoms is to an accurate score.
Overall though, I thought the BAI was well laid out and professional. When used in the right setting with the appropriate client, this inventory could be very useful to someone suffering from anxiety. It could be a great way to help create hope in a client. They could take the inventory once a month during treatment to see how they are progressing. I enjoyed evaluating this inventory because it painted a clear picture of how validity and reliability are so crucial when creating an assessment.
The Revised Children’s Manifest Anxiety Scale (RCMAS-2) is a revision of the Children’s Manifest Anxiety Scale (CMAS) created by Cecil Reynolds and Bert Richmond in 1985 (Reynolds & Richmond, 2008). The RCMAS-2 includes an updated standardization sample, improved psychometrics, and broadened content (Reynolds & Richmond, 2008). Although these revisions occurred, the brevity, elementary reading level, and content-based item clusters were retained, offering an updated and effective tool for understanding and treating anxiety in school-aged children (Reynolds & Richmond, 2008).
What would be the criteria used to distinguish between clinically significant fear and anxiety, and everyday fear and anxiety?
The first part of the essay explained the pathophysiology of MI; importantly, the next part will investigate the psychological impact of MI and the psychosocial effects of CR. The link between post-MI patients and psychological changes, depression and anxiety for example, is now well established. Research has also found a positive relationship between depression and long-term prognosis post-MI. As a result, it is essential to determine the psychological status of the patient to decide an accurate prognosis. In Scotland, the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) is advocated to determine psychological status post-MI. The HADS comprises of 14 questions, 7 for depression and 7 for anxiety, and the patient answers 0 (strongly disagree) – 3 (strongly agree). Each selection is added up and a score for both depression and anxiety is noted. Both scores are compared against normative data and psychological status is calculated; finally, the psychological status of the patient is rated: normal, borderline abnormal and abnormal.
Beck, A. T., Steer, R. A., & Brown, G. (1996). Beck Depression Inventory-II. Retrieved August 18, 2011from EBSCOhost.
...s: the nature and treatment of anxiety and panic (2. ed.). New York, NY [u.a.: Guilford Press.
The Beck Depression Inventory measures depression criteria as evidenced in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders Fourth Edition (Flanagan & Henington, 2005). The Beck Anxiety Inventory assesses childhood fears related to health and school (Flanagan & Henington, 2005). The Beck Anger Inventory appraises the individual’s opinion of mistreatment, negative thoughts, and physiological arousal (Flanagan & Henington, 2005). The Beck Disruptive Behavior Inventory measures behaviors and attitudes related to oppositional and defiant behavior (Flanagan & Henington, 2005). This is consistently seen in youth diagnosed with Oppositional Defiant Disorder and Conduct Disorder. Lastly, the Beck Self-Concept Inventory assesses feelings of self-worth and competence (Flanagan & Henington, 2005).
... anxiety and it is not a negatively-adapted trait, but rather an instinct that can sometimes seem primitive in such an advanced culture. Reading this article did not provide me with any new approaches to dealing with my anxiety, but the statistic about the disorder’s prevalence on page 56 helped me to feel less alone. Before reading Park’s article, I had never really considered the possibility that anxiety could have positive results or an evolutionary basis intended to improve the chances of survival. For those with anxiety looking for alternative methods of alleviating those feelings or a deeper understanding of the sources of their anxiety, this article may prove a valuable read. People who do not have anxiety themselves could also benefit from reading this article, as it provides an accurate snapshot of the struggles a person suffering from anxiety experiences.
This assessment will help assure the client is getting all the help he or she needs (Roberts,
The Beck Depression Inventory is a self-report inventory that attempts to understand the severity of depression in adults and or adolescents. The original Beck Depression Inventory was created in 1961 by Aaron Beck and his associates and was revised in 1971. In 1971, the Beck Depression Inventory was introduced at the Center for Cognitive Therapy, CCT, at the University of Pennsylvania Medical School. Much of the research on the Beck Depression Inventory has been done at the University of Pennsylvania Medical School. In the current version, of the Beck Depression Inventory, the subject rates 21 symptoms and attitudes on a 4 point scale depending on severity. Test takers rate the items listed in the inventory according to a one week timeframe, which includes the day the test takers took the test. The items that that the inventory measures covers cognitive, somatic, affective and vegetative dimensions of depression and although it was developed atheoretically, the items correspond with depression symptoms as outlined in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (4th ed.) (DSM-IV, American Psychiatric Association, 1994). The Beck Depression Inventory is widely known and is well known by psychiatric populations and clinicians. The BDI can be administered in a group or individual format by oral or written form. The 1993 version targets more trait aspects of depression versus the previous and earlier versions measured state aspects of depression. The test is to be administered with no more than 15 minutes to take the test, regardless of the mode administered. The 21 symptoms that are rated on the 4 point scale are then totaled and the range can vary from 0 to 63. Patients that score...
Along with being the most widespread mental health disorder, women are more likely to be affected by most anxiety disorders than men. Anxiety disorders are often characterized by feelings of worry, uncertainty, anxiety, or fear, which can be so intense, it can interfere with a person’s daily activities. Therefore, it is likely for a person struggling with an anxiety disorder will find themselves unemployed, financially dependent on others and even have poor quality social relationships as well. As an anxiety disorder may affect other functional impairments, it is also important to be aware of its development considering an anxiety response affects various populations and individuals differently.
Validity and reliability: The assessment has an overall reliability coefficient of .93 based on test-retest reliability, making it an extremely reliable assessment (Fredricks, 2010). For it 's validity rate, the assessment has an overall validity of 93.9% (Fredricks, 2010). However, many argue that this reliability and validity be accepted with caution. The test-retest reliability is limited by the fact that it is only reported over a two-week period. In addition, the sample population with a high occurrence of substance abuse disorder, could attribute to it 's high validity rate (Fredricks, 2010).
The Beck Anxiety Inventory was designed by Aaron T. Beck and is self report scale that consists of 21 items. The items are short and straightforward, making it easy to read and comprehend. All items are related to anxiety and describe a symptom of anxiety that is rate on a four point likert scale according to severity. The answers range from 0-3 and the responses range from “not at all” to “severely; I could barely stand it” and all items are added for a total score. The instructions on the test ask for the respondent to “indicate how much you have been bothered by each symptom during the past week, including today, by placing an X in the corresponding space in the column next to each symptom” (Dowd, 2008). The assessment is intended for adolescents and adults and can be administered individually or in a group setting. An additional copy of the inventory test is also available in Spanish. It was originally created from a sample of 810 outpatients of that were predominately affected by mood and anxiety disorders and research on the original development is described as informative and thorough.
Anxiety disorders are the most common mental illnesses in America, affecting approximately 19 million adults (3). Although everyone experiences mild symptoms of anxiety at some point in their lives, those who suffer from an anxiety disorder have chronic and intense bouts of panic. They may fear or dread common social situations such as being out in public with a group of friends (4), or experience full-blown panic attacks (5) that make it impossible to go grocery shopping or to get to work in the morning. If untreated, anxiety disorders can severely impact the quality of one's life, and symptoms may grow even worse over time. There are several types of anxiety disorders, including Panic Disorder, Obsessive-Compulsive Disor...
National Institute of Mental Health. (2009). Studying anxiety disorders. NIH Medline plus, 5, 13-15. Retrieved from http://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/anxiety-disorders/complete-index.shtml
By creating these tables I was able to effectively complete my research processes with minimal difficulties. Most of the research processes were conducted as I had initially planned. I began my preliminary research process in order to effectively obtain basic information to build upon my knowledge of the topic, which was initially were limited. I had originally planned to obtain the preliminary information through online articles, however this was quite difficult due to my limited knowledge, therefore I chose to view online videos. This was much more effective than reading online articles. Then I began reading and annotating several online articles to extensively research the topic and expand my knowledge within the fields of mental illnesses. This research process also allowed me to determine whether the information present on the website is credible, reliable and useful. In addition to the online research processes, another research method was utilized to obtain information; this was done through conducting an interview with a psychologist. This process was very successful in allowing me to validate and clarify any questions that I had regarding anxiety. Therefore, by planning the research processes that I would conduct, I was able to successfully to complete all sections of the research project within a reasonable amount of time and with minimal difficulties. Also by planning the processes, I was also able to develop and change my guiding questions whilst developing my research. Hence, my research skills have improved substantially through research