GAD and ambiguity

Information Processing and Cognitive
Biases for Emotional Information
According to cognitive theory, anxious
individuals anticipate and interpret
ambiguous events in a negative
way. Compared to their peers, anxious
children interpret events more
negatively, tend to engage in selfblame
more readily, and focus on the
negative rather than positive aspects
of events (Silverman & Ginsburg,
1995).


*Although anxious children and children
with ODD share tendencies to
interpret ambiguous information in a
negative and threatening way, children
with ODD respond with aggression,
while children with Anxiety Disorders
respond with avoidance tactics
(Barrett, Rappee, Dadds, & Ryan,
1996).