International Journal of Clinical and Health Psychology ISSN: 1697-2600
[email protected] Asociación Española de Psicología Conductual España Watson, David; Clark, Lee Anna; Stasik, Sara M. Emotions and the emotional disorders: A quantitative hierarchical perspective International Journal of Clinical and Health Psychology, vol. 11, núm. 3, 2011, pp. 429-442 Asociación Española de Psicología Conductual Granada, España Available in: http://www.redalyc.org/articulo.oa?id=33719289001 How to cite Complete issue Scientific Information System More information about this article Network of Scientific Journals from Latin America, the Caribbean, Spain and Portugal Journal's homepage in redalyc.org Non-profit academic project, developed under the open access initiative © International Journal of Clinical and Health Psychology ISSN 1697-2600 print ISSN 2174-0852 online 2011, Vol. 11, Nº 3, pp. 429-442 Emotions and the emotional disorders: A quantitative hierarchical perspective David Watson1, Lee Anna Clark, and Sara M. Stasik (University of Notre Dame, USA) ABSTRACT. Previous evidence has established that general negative affect represents a non-specific factor common to both anxiety and depression, whereas low positive affect is more specifically related to the latter. Little is known, however, about how specific, lower order affects relate to these constructs. We investigated how six emotional disorders—major depression, generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), panic disorder, social phobia, and obsessive compulsive disorder — are linked to both general and specific types of affect in two samples (Ns = 331 and 253), using the Expanded Form of the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS- X). Replicating previous results, the General Negative Affect scale was nonspecifically related to the emotional disorders, whereas General Positive Affect had a specific (inverse) association with major depression.