Screening Tool for Anxiety Disorders: Development and Validation of the Korean Anxiety Screening Assessment

Overview

Journal Psychiatry Investig

Specialty Psychiatry

Date 2018 Nov 29

PMID 30481992

Citations 7

Authors

Yeseul Kim

Yeonsoo Park

Gyeongcheol Cho

Kiho Park

Shin-Hyang Kim

Seung Yeon Baik

Cho Long Kim

Sooyun Jung

Won-Hye Lee

Younyoung Choi

Seung-Hwan Lee

Kee-Hong Choi

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Objective: This study evaluated the psychometric properties of the Korean Anxiety Screening Assessment (K-ANX) developed for screening anxiety disorders.

Methods: Data from 613 participants were analyzed. The K-ANX was evaluated for reliability using Cronbach's alpha, item-total correlation, and test information curve, and for validity using focus group interviews, factor analysis, correlational analysis, and item characteristics based on item response theory (IRT). The diagnostic sensitivity and specificity of the K-ANX were compared with those of the Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI) and Generalized Anxiety Disorder 7-item scale (GAD-7).

Results: The K-ANX showed excellent internal consistency (α=0.97) and item-total coefficients (0.92-0.97), and a one-factor structure was suggested. All items were highly correlated with the total scores of the BAI, GAD-7, and Penn State Worry Questionnaire. IRT analysis indicated the K-ANX was most informative as a screening tool for anxiety disorders at the range between 0.8 and 1.6 (i.e., top 21.2 to 5.5 percentiles). Higher sensitivity (0.795) and specificity (0.937) for identifying anxiety disorders were observed in the K-ANX compared to the BAI and GAD-7.

Conclusion: The K-ANX is a reliable and valid measure to screen anxiety disorders in a Korean sample, with greater sensitivity and specificity than current measures of anxiety symptoms.

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