Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Family Factors in the Development and Management of Anxiety Disorders

  • Published:
Clinical Child and Family Psychology Review Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Family variables are thought to play a key role in a wide variety of psychopathology according to many theories. Yet, specific models of the development of anxiety disorders place little emphasis on general family factors despite clear evidence that anxiety runs in families. The current review examines evidence for the involvement of a number of family-related variables in the development of anxiety disorders as well as the importance of families in their management. Evidence across most areas is shown to be weak and inconsistent, with the one exception being an extensive literature on the role of parenting in the development of anxiety. There is also currently little evidence that family factors have a strong role to play in the treatment of anxiety, aside from research demonstrating the value of parents and partners as non-critical supports in therapy. The promises and hints in the literature, combined with the currently inconsistent methods, suggest that considerably more research is needed to determine whether specific family factors may yet be shown to play a key role in the development and management of anxiety disorders.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Amir, N., Freshman, M., & Foa, E. B. (2000). Family distress and involvement in relatives of obsessive-compulsive disorder patients. Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 14, 209–217.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Barrett, P., Farrell, L., Dadds, M., & Boulter, N. (2005). Cognitive-behavioral family treatment of childhood obsessive-compulsive disorder: Long-term follow-up and predictors of outcome. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 44(10), 1005–1014.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Beesdo, K., Pine, D. S., Lieb, R., & Wittchen, H.-U. (2010). Incidence and risk patterns of anxiety and depressive disorders and categorization of generalized anxiety disorder. Archives of General Psychiatry, 67(1).

  • Beidel, D. C., Silverman, W. K., & Hammond-Laurence, K. (1996). Overanxious disorder: Subsyndromal state or specific disorder? a comparison of clinic and community samples. Journal of Clinical Child Psychology, 25(1), 25–32.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Berman, S. L., Weems, C. F., Silverman, W. K., & Kurtines, W. M. (2000). Predictors of outcome in exposure-based cognitive and behavioral treatments for phobic and anxiety disorders in children. Behavior Therapy, 31(4), 713–731.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bodden, D. H., Bögels, S. M., Nauta, M. H., De Haan, E., Riingrose, J., Appelboom, C., et al. (2008). Child versus family cognitive-behavioral therapy in clinically anxious youth: An efficacy and partial effectiveness study. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 47(12), 1384–1394.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Buehler, C., Anthony, C., Krishnakumar, A., & Stone, G. (1997). Interparental conflict and youth problem behaviors: A meta-analysis. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 6(2), 223–247.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Canino, G., Shrout, P. E., Rubio-Stipec, M., Bird, H. R., Bravo, M., Ramirez, R., et al. (2004). The DSM-IV rates of child and adolescent disorders in Puerto Rico. Archives of General Psychiatry, 61(1), 85–93.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Carter, A., Pollock, R. A., Suvak, M. K., & Pauls, D. L. (2004). Anxiety and Major Depression Comorbidity in a Family Study of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder. Depression and Anxiety, 20(4).

  • Chambless, D. L., & Steketee, G. (1999). Expressed emotion and behavior therapy outcome: A prospective study with obsessive-compulsive and agoraphobic outpatients. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 67(5), 658–665.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Chorpita, B. F., & Barlow, D. H. (1998). The development of anxiety: The role of control in the early environment. Psychological Bulletin, 124, 3–21.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Cobham, V. E., Dadds, M. R., & Spence, S. H. (1998). The role of parental anxiety in the treatment of childhood anxiety. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 66(6), 893–905.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Coelho, H. F., Cooper, P. J., & Murray, L. (2007). A family study of co-morbidity between generalized social phobia and generalized anxiety disorder in a non-clinic sample. Journal of Affective Disorders, 100(1–3).

  • Colonnesi, C., Draijer, E. M., Jan, J., Van der Bruggen, C. O., Bogels, S. M., & Noom, M. J. (2011). The relation between insecure attachment and child anxiety: A meta-analytic review. Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology, 40(4), 630–645.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cook, M., & Mineka, S. (1989). Observational conditioning of fear to fear-relevant versus fear-irrelevant stimuli in Rhesus monkeys. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 98, 448–459.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Cooper, P. J., Gallop, C., Willetts, L., & Creswell, C. (2008). Treatment response in child anxiety is differentially related to the form of maternal anxiety disorder. Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapy, 36(1), 41–48.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Creswell, C., & Cartwright-Hatton, S. (2007). Family treatment of child anxiety: outcomes, limitations and future directions. Clinical Child and Family Psychology Review, 10, 232–252.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Creswell, C., Schniering, C. A., & Rapee, R. M. (2005). Threat interpretation in anxious children and their mothers: Comparison with nonclinical children and the effects of treatment. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 43, 1375–1381.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Cronk, N. J., Slutske, W. S., Madden, P. A. F., Bucholz, K. K., & Heath, A. C. (2004). Risk for separation anxiety disorder among girls: Paternal absence, socioeconomic disadvantage, and genetic vulnerability. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 113(2), 237–247.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Dadds, M. R., Atkinson, E., Turner, C., Blums, G., & Lendich, B. (1999). Family conflict and child adjustment: Evidence for a cognitive-contextual model of intergenerational transmission. Journal of Family Psychology, 13(2), 194–208.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • de Rosnay, M., Cooper, P. J., Tsigaras, N., & Murray, L. (2006). Transmission of social anxiety from mother to infant: An experimental study using a social referencing paradigm. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 44(8), 1165–1175.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • de Wilde, A., & Rapee, R. M. (2008). Do controlling maternal behaviours increase state anxiety in children’s responses to a social threat? A pilot study. Journal of Behavior Therapy and Experimental Psychiatry, 39, 526–537.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Du Rocher Schudlich, T. D., & Cummings, E. M. (2003). Parental dysphoria and children’s internalizing symptoms: Marital conflict styles as mediators of risk. Child Development, 74(6), 1663–1681.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Dubi, K., Rapee, R. M., Emerton, J. L., & Schniering, C. A. (2008). Maternal modeling and the acquisition of fear and avoidance in toddlers: Influence of stimulus preparedness and temperament. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 36, 499–512.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Edwards, S. L., Rapee, R. M., & Kennedy, S. (2010). Prediction of anxiety symptoms in preschool-aged children: Examination of maternal and paternal perspectives. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 51(3), 313–321.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Eley, T. C., & Lau, J. Y. F. (2005). Genetics and the family environment. In J. L. Hudson & R. M. Rapee (Eds.), Psychopathology and the family (pp. 3–19). Oxford, UK: Elsevier.

    Google Scholar 

  • Eley, T. C., Bolton, D., O’Connor, T. G., Perrin, S., Smith, P., & Plomin, R. (2003). A twin study of anxiety-related behaviours in pre-school children. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 44(7), 945–960.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Emmelkamp, P. M., & Gerlsma, C. (1994). Marital functioning and the anxiety disorders. Behavior Therapy, 25(3), 407–429.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Feigon, S. A., Waldman, I. D., Levy, F., & Hay, D. A. (2001). Genetic and environmental influences on separation anxiety disorder symptoms and their moderation by age and sex. Behavior Genetics, 31(5), 403–411.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Fergusson, D. M., & Horwood, L. J. (1998). Exposure to interparental violence in childhood and psychosocial adjustment in young adulthood. Child Abuse and Neglect, 22(5), 339–357.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Fergusson, D. M., Boden, J. M., & Horwood, L. (2008). Exposure to childhood sexual and physical abuse and adjustment in early adulthood. Child Abuse & Neglect, 32(6).

  • Field, A. P. (2006). Is conditioning a useful framework for understanding the development and treatment of phobias? Clinical Psychology Review, 26(7), 857–875.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Ford, T., Goodman, R., & Meltzer, H. (2004). The relative importance of child, family, school and neighbourhood correlates of childhood psychiatric disorder. Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology, 39(6), 487–496.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Fyer, A. J., Mannuzza, S., Chapman, T. F., Martin, L. Y., & Klein, D. F. (1995). Specificity in familial aggregation of phobic disorders. Archives of General Psychiatry, 52, 564–573.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Fyer, A. J., Lipsitz, J. D., Mannuzza, S., Aronowitz, B., & Chapman, T. F. (2005). A direct interview family study of obsessive-compulsive disorder: I. Psychological Medicine: A Journal of Research in Psychiatry and the Allied Sciences, 35(11).

  • Gerull, F. C., & Rapee, R. M. (2002). Mother knows best: Effects of maternal modelling on the acquisition of fear and avoidance behaviour in toddlers. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 40, 279–287.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Gifford, S., Reynolds, S., Bell, S., & Wilson, C. (2008). Threat interpretation bias in anxious children and their mothers. Cognition & Emotion, 22(3), 497–508.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gregory, A. M., & Eley, T. C. (2007). Genetic influences on anxiety in children: What we’ve learned and where we’re heading. Clinical Child and Family Psychology Review, 10(3), 199–212.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Grover, R. L., Ginsburg, G. S., & Ialongo, N. (2005). Childhood predictors of anxiety symptoms: A longitudinal study. Child Psychiatry and Human Development, 36(2), 133–153.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Grych, J. H., Fincham, F. D., Jouriles, E. N., & McDonald, R. (2000). Interparental conflict and child adjustment: Testing the mediational role of appraisals in the cognitive-contextual framework. Child Development, 71(6), 1648–1661.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Hettema, J. M., Neale, M. C., & Kendler, K. S. (2001). A review and meta-analysis of the genetic epidemiology of anxiety disorders. American Journal of Psychiatry, 158(10), 1568–1578.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Hornik Parritz, R., Mangelsdorf, S., & Gunnar, M. R. (1992). Control, social referencing, and the infant’s appraisal of threat. In S. Feinman (Ed.), Social referencing and the social construction of reality in infancy (pp. 209–228). New York: Plenum Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hudson, J. L. (2005). Interparental conflict, violence, and psychopathology. In J. L. Hudson & R. M. Rapee (Eds.), Psychopathology and the family (pp. 53–72). Oxford: Elsevier.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hudson, J. L., & Rapee, R. M. (2004). From anxious temperament to disorder: An etiological model of generalized anxiety disorder. In R. G. Heimberg, C. L. Turk, & D. S. Mennin (Eds.), Generalized anxiety disorder: Advances in research and practice (pp. 51–76). New York: Guilford Publications Inc.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hudson, J. L., & Rapee, R. M. (Eds.). (2005). Psychopathology and the family. Oxford, UK: Elsevier.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hudson, J. L., Rapee, R. M., Schniering, C. A., Lyneham, H. J., Wuthrich, V., Edwards, S. L., et al. (2009). Treating parent anxiety to enhance the efficacy of cognitive behavioural treatment for children with anxiety disorders. Paper presented at the Cognitive Behaviour Therapy with Children and Adolescents conference, London.

  • Hunt, C., Issakidis, C., & Andrews, G. (2002). DSM-IV generalized anxiety disorder in the Australian national survey of mental health and well-being. Psychological Medicine, 32(4), 649–659.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • In-Albon, T., & Schneider, S. (2006). Psychotherapy of childhood anxiety disorders: A meta-analysis. Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, 76(1), 15–24.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • James, A., Soler, A., & Weatherall, R. (2006). Cognitive behavioural therapy for anxiety disorders in children and adolescents. The Cochrane Library, 1, 1–25.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jardine, R., Martin, N. G., & Henderson, A. S. (1984). Genetic covariation between neuroticism and the symptoms of anxiety and depression. Genetics Epidemiology, 1, 89–107.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jekielek, S. M. (1998). Parental conflict, marital disruption and children’s emotional well-being. Social Forces, 76(3), 905–936.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jouriles, E. N., Spiller, L. C., Stephens, N., McDonald, R., & Swank, P. (2000). Variability in adjustment of children of battered women: The role of child appraisals of interparent conflict. Cognitive Therapy and Research, 24(2), 233–249.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kendall, P. C., Hudson, J. L., Gosch, E., Flannery-Schroeder, E., & Suveg, C. (2008). Cognitive-behavioral therapy for anxiety disordered youth: A randomized clinical trial evaluating child and family modalities. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 76(2), 282–297.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Kendler, K. S., Bulik, C. M., Silberg, J., Hettema, J. M., Myers, J., & Prescott, C. A. (2000). Childhood sexual abuse and adult psychiatric and substance use disorders in women: An epidemiological and cotwin control analysis. Archives of General Psychiatry, 57, 953–959.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Knappe, S., Lieb, R., Beesdo, K., Fehm, L., Low, N. C. P., Gloster, A. T., et al. (2009). The role of parental psychopathology and family environment for social phobia in the first three decades of life. Depression and Anxiety, 26(4).

  • Lampe, L., Slade, T., Issakidis, C., & Andrews, G. (2003). Social phobia in the Australian national survey of mental health and well-being (NSMHWB). Psychological Medicine, 33, 637–646.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Lansford, J. E., Malone, P. S., Castellino, D. R., Dodge, K. A., Pettit, G. S., & Bates, J. E. (2006). Trajectories of internalizing, externalizing, and grades for children who have and have not experienced their parents’ divorce or separation. Journal of Family Psychology, 20(2), 292–301.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Last, C. G., Hersen, M., Kazdin, A. E., Orvaschel, H., & Perrin, S. (1991). Anxiety disorders in children and their families. Archives of General Psychiatry, 48, 928–934.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Lester, K. J., Seal, K., Nightingale, Z. C., & Field, A. P. (2010). Are children’s own interpretations of ambiguous situations based on how they perceive their mothers have interpreted ambiguous situations for them in the past? Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 24(1), 102–108.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Levitan, R. D., Rector, N. A., Sheldon, T., & Goering, P. (2003). Childhood adversities associated with major depression and/or anxiety disorders in a community sample of Ontario: Issues of comorbidity and specificity. Depression and Anxiety, 17, 34–42.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Lewinsohn, P. M., Hops, H., Roberts, R. E., Seeley, J. R., & Andrews, J. A. (1993). Adolescent psychopathology: I. Prevalence and incidence of depression and other DSM-III–R disorders in high school students. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 102(1), 133–144.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Li, X., Sundquist, J., & Sundquist, K. (2008). Age-specific familial risks of anxiety: A nation-wide epidemiological study from Sweden. European Archives of Psychiatry and Clinical Neuroscience, 258(7).

  • Lieb, R., Wittchen, H.-U., Hofler, M., Fuetsch, M., Stein, M. B., & Merikangas, K. R. (2000). Parental psychopathology, parenting styles, and the risk of social phobia in offspring: A prospective-longitudinal community study. Archives of General Psychiatry, 57(9), 859–866.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Litrownik, A. J., Newton, R., Hunter, W. M., English, D., & Everson, M. D. (2003). Exposure to family violence in young at-risk children: A longitudinal look at the effects of victimization and witnessed physical and psychological aggression. Journal of Family Violence, 18(1), 59–73.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Long, N., Slater, E., Forehand, R., & Fauber, R. (1988). Continued high or reduced interparental conflict following divorce: Relation to young adolescent adjustment. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 56(3), 467–469.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Low, N. C., Cui, L., & Merikangas, K. R. (2008). Specificity of familial transmission of anxiety and comorbid disorders. Journal of Psychiatric Research, 42(7), 596–604.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Magee, W. J., Eaton, W. W., Wittchen, H.-U., McGonagle, K. A., & Kessler, R. C. (1996). Agoraphobia, simple phobia, and social phobia in the national comorbidity survey. Archives of General Psychiatry, 53, 159–168.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Manassis, K., & Bradley, S. J. (1994). The development of childhood anxiety disorders: Toward an integrated model. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 15, 345–366.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McHale, J. P., & Rasmussen, J. L. (1998). Coparental and family group-level dynamics during infancy: Early family precursors of child and family functioning during preschool. Development and Psychopathology, 10(1), 39–59.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • McLeod, B. D., Wood, J. J., & Weisz, J. R. (2007). Examining the association between parenting and childhood anxiety: A meta-analysis. Clinical Psychology Review, 27, 155–172.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Mechanic, D., & Hansell, S. (1989). Divorce, family conflict, and adolescents’ well-being. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 30(1), 105–116.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Medina-Mora, M. E., Borges, G., Lara, C., Benjet, C., Blanco, J., Flieiz, C., et al. (2005). Prevalence, service use, and demographic correlates of 12-month DSM-IV psychiatric disorders in Mexico: Results from the Mexican National Comorbidity Survey. Psychological Medicine, 35, 1773–1783.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Mendlewicz, J., Papadimitriou, G., & Wilmotte, J. (1993). Family study of panic disorder: comparison with generalized anxiety disorder, major depression and normal subjects. Psychiatric Genetics, 3(2), 73–78.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Merckelbach, H., de Jong, P., Muris, P., & van den Hout, M. A. (1996). The etiology of specific phobias: A review. Clinical Psychology Review, 16(4), 337–361.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Merlo, L. J., Lehmkuhl, H. D., Geffken, G. R., & Storch, E. A. (2009). Decreased family accommodation associated with improved therapy outcome in pediatric obsessive-compulsive disorder. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 77(2), 355–360.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Mineka, S., & Zinbarg, R. (2006). A contemporary learning theory perspective on the etiology of anxiety disorders: It’s not what you thought it was. American Psychologist, 61(1), 10–26.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Moffitt, T. E., Harrington, H., Caspi, A., Kim-Cohen, J., Goldberg, D., Gregory, A. M., et al. (2007). Depression and generalized anxiety disorder: Cumulative and sequential comorbidity in a birth cohort followed prospectivity to age 32 years. Archives of General Psychiatry, 64(6), 651–660.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Mumme, D. L., & Fernald, A. (1996). Infants’ responses to facial and vocal emotional signals in a social referencing paradigm. Child Development, 67, 3219–3237.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Muris, P., & Field, A. P. (2010). The role of verbal threat information in the development of childhood fear. “Beware the Jabberwock!”. Clinical Child and Family Psychology Review, 13(2), 129–150.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Muris, P., Steerneman, P., Merckelbach, H., & Meesters, C. (1996). The role of parental fearfulness and modelling in children’s fear. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 34(3), 265–268.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Murray, L., Cooper, P., Creswell, C., Schofield, E., & Sack, C. (2007). The effects of maternal social phobia on mother-infant interactions and infant social responsiveness. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 48(1), 45–52.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Murray, L., de Rosnay, M., Pearson, J., Sack, C., Schofield, E., Royal-Lawson, M., et al. (2008). Intergenerational transmission of social anxiety: The role of social referencing processes in infancy. Child Development, 79(4), 1049–1064.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Nelson, E. C., Heath, A. C., Madden, P. A., Cooper, L., Dinwiddie, S. H., Bucholz, K. K., et al. (2002). Association between self-reported childhood sexual abuse and adverse psychosocial outcomes: Results from a twin study. Archives of General Psychiatry, 59(2), 139–145.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Nomura, Y., Wickramaratne, P. J., Warner, V., Mufson, L., & Weissman, M. M. (2002). Family discord, parental depression and psychopathology in offspring: Ten-year follow-up. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 41(4), 402–409.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Noyes, R. J., Crowe, R. R., Harris, E. L., Hamra, B. J., McChesney, C. M., & Chaudhry, D. R. (1986). Relationship between panic disorder and agoraphobia: A family study. Archives of General Psychiatry, 43, 227–232.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Peleg-Popko, O., & Dar, R. (2001). Marital quality, family patterns, and children’s fears and social anxiety. Contemporary Family Therapy: An International Journal, 23(4), 465–487.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pilowsky, D. J., Wickramaratne, P., Nomura, Y., & Weissman, M. M. (2006). Family discord, parental depression, and psychopathology in offspring: 20-year follow-up. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 45(4), 452–460.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Rapee, R. M. (1997). Potential role of childrearing practices in the development of anxiety and depression. Clinical Psychology Review, 17, 47–67.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Rapee, R. M. (2000). Group treatment of children with anxiety disorders: Outcome and predictors of treatment response. Australian Journal of Psychology, 52(3), 125–129.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rapee, R. M. (2009). Early adolescents’ perceptions of their mother’s anxious parenting as a predictor of anxiety symptoms 12 months later. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 37(8), 1103–1112.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Rapee, R. M., Lyneham, H. J., Schniering, C. A., Wuthrich, V., Abbott, M. J., Hudson, J. L., et al. (2006). The cool kids ® child and adolescent anxiety program therapist manual. Sydney: Centre for Emotional Health, Macquarie University.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rapee, R. M., Schniering, C. A., & Hudson, J. L. (2009). Anxiety disorders during childhood and adolescence: Origins and treatment. Annual Review of Clinical Psychology, 5, 311–341.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Renshaw, K. D., Chambless, D. L., & Steketee, G. (2003). Perceived criticism predicts severity of anxiety symptoms after behavioral treatment in patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder and panic disorder with agoraphobia. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 59(4), 411–421.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Renshaw, K. D., Steketee, G., & Chambless, D. L. (2005). Involving family members in the treatment of OCD. Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, 34(3), 164–175.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Renshaw, K. D., Chambless, D. L., & Steketee, G. (2006). The relationship of relatives’ attributions to their expressed emotion and to patients’ improvement in treatment for anxiety disorders. Behavior Therapy, 37(2), 159–169.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Rubin, K. H., Burgess, K. B., & Hastings, P. D. (2002). Stability and social-behavioral consequences of toddlers’ inhibited temperament and parenting behaviors. Child Development, 73(2), 483–495.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Rubin, K. H., Coplan, R. J., & Bowker, J. C. (2009). Social withdrawal in childhood. Annual Review of Psychology, 60, 11.11–11.31.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Silverman, A. B., Reinherz, H. Z., & Giaconia, R. M. (1996). The long-term sequelae of child and adolescent abuse: A longitudinal community study. Child Abuse and Neglect, 20(8), 709–723.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Stein, M. B., Chartier, M. J., Hazen, A. L., Kozak, M. V., Tancer, M. E., Lander, S., et al. (1998). A direct-interview family study of generalized social phobia. American Journal of Psychiatry, 155(1), 90–97.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Steinhausen, H.-C., Foldager, L., Perto, G., & Munk-Jorgensen, P. (2009). Family aggregation of mental disorders in the nationwide Danish three generation study. European Archives of Psychiatry and Clinical Neuroscience, 259(5).

  • Steketee, G., & Shapiro, L. J. (1995). Predicting behavioral treatment outcome for agoraphobia and obsessive compulsive disorder. Clinical Psychology Review, 15(4), 317–346.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Steketee, G., Lam, J. N., Chambless, D. L., Rodebaugh, T. L., & McCullouch, C. E. (2007). Effects of perceived criticism on anxiety and depression during behavioral treatment of anxiety disorders. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 45(1), 11–19.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Storch, E. A., Bjorgvinsson, T., Riemann, B., Lewin, A. B., Morales, M. J., & Murphy, T. K. (2010). Factors associated with poor response in cognitive-behavioral therapy for pediatric obsessive-compulsive disorder. Bulletin of the Menninger Clinic, 74(2), 167–185.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Suveg, C., Zeman, J., Flannery-Schroeder, E., & Cassano, M. (2005). Emotion socialization in families of children with an anxiety disorder. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology: An official publication of the International Society for Research in Child and Adolescent Psychopathology, 33(2), 145–155.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Thirlwall, K., & Creswell, C. (2010). The impact of maternal control on children’s anxious cognitions, behaviours and affect: An experimental study. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 48, 1041–1046.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Topolski, T. D., Hewitt, J. K., Eaves, L. J., Silberg, J. L., Meyer, J. M., Rutter, M., et al. (1997). Genetic and environmental influences on child reports of manifest anxiety and symptoms of separation anxiety and overanxious disorders: A community-based twin study. Behavior Genetics, 27(1), 15–28.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Warner, V., Mufson, L., & Weissman, M. M. (1995). Offspring at high and low risk for depression and anxiety: Mechanisms of psychiatric disorder. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 34, 786–797.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Wever, C., & Rey, J. M. (1997). Juvenile obsessive compulsive disorder. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry, 31, 105–113.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Xue, Y., Leventhal, T., Brooks-Gunn, J., & Earls, F. J. (2005). Neighborhood residence and mental health problems of 5- to 11-year-olds. Archives of General Psychiatry, 62(5), 554–563.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centre for Emotional Health, Macquarie University, Sydney, NSW, 2109, Australia

    Ronald M. Rapee

Authors
  1. Ronald M. Rapee
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Ronald M. Rapee.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Rapee, R.M. Family Factors in the Development and Management of Anxiety Disorders. Clin Child Fam Psychol Rev 15, 69–80 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10567-011-0106-3

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10567-011-0106-3

Keywords

Search

Navigation