(PS9-C56) Is Better Problem-solving a Protective Factor Against Anxiety in Stressful Social Interactions?

Introduction: Evidence of impaired problem-solving skills among clinically anxious youth has been mixed, in part, due to overreliance on self-reports of trait (vs. state) anxiety and problem-solving skills. Indeed, little is known about anxious youths’ in vivo problem-solving behaviors, and their association with indices of state anxiety. The present investigation addressed this gap in the literature by examining observer-rated problem-solving behaviors and anxious behaviors in a sample of children with anxiety disorders during a laboratory task.

Method: Participants were 105 children with an anxiety disorder (M = 10.09 years, SD = 1.22; 57.1% female; 61.9% racial minority) and their mothers with clinical levels of anxiety. Mothers and children completed a battery of questionnaires, including a child self-report and mother-report questionnaire of children’s trait anxiety symptom severity. Mothers and children also participated in a 5-min dyadic interaction task in which they were asked to prepare for a speech that the child would deliver following the interaction. Children’s anxious behaviors and problem-solving behaviors during this interaction were coded by independent raters using a validated coding scheme (κs > .80). A hierarchical regression analysis was conducted to examine the variance in children’s anxious behaviors explained by their problem-solving behaviors, above and beyond the effects of sociodemographic variables (age, gender) and both child- and parent-reported child trait anxiety symptom severity. Results: The overall model was statistically significant, and the predictor variables together explained 11% of the overall variance in anxious behaviors (F [5, 99] = 2.37, p = .045). Step 1 of the model, in which age and gender were added, was not statistically significant. Step 2 of the model, in which child- and mother-reported child anxiety symptom severity were added, was also not statistically significant. Step 3 of the model, in which problem-solving behaviors were added, was statistically significant and accounted for an additional 6.7% of the unique variance in anxious behaviors (change statistics: F [1, 99] = 7.44, p = .008). Specifically, greater problem-solving behaviors were associated with fewer anxious behaviors (B = -0.25, SE = 0.09, p = .008, 95% CI [-0.43, -0.07]).

Discussion: In a sample of preadolescent children with anxiety disorders, evidence of better problem-solving skills during a parent-child interaction task was associated with fewer anxious behaviors, even after controlling for the effects of gender, age, and child- and parent-reported child trait anxiety symptom severity. The findings underscore the clinical utility of enhancing clinically anxious children’s problem-solving skills to better cope with anxiety-provoking situations. Future research should examine the association between problem-solving and anxious behaviors in response to different stressors and test whether improving problem-solving skills prospectively improves state anxiety.