Catastrophic worries in mothers of adolescents with internalizing disorders

Objectives. This study investigates worrying in mothers of adolescents with internalizing disorders, and tests the hypothesis that these mothers will produce a greater number of worries with higher catastrophic content compared to control groups. Design. Differences in worry steps and in catastrophic content of worries were investigated in a cross-sectional, between groups design, employing a clinical internalizing group, a clinical control, and a non-referred control group. Methods. Twenty-five mothers of adolescents with internalizing disorders, 24 mothers of adolescents with externalizing disorders, and 28 mothers with non-referred adolescents participated in two interviews about their ‘real’ pre-existing worries and their worries in response to a hypothetical situation. Results. The internalizing group produced both a greater number of worry steps and a higher catastrophic content when they talked about their ‘real’ worries, compared to both control groups. They also produced a greater number of worry steps in response to a hypothetical situation compared to the other two groups. The number of worry steps and the level of catastrophic content of ‘real’ worries were associated with adolescent depression and anxiety. Additionally, the number of worry steps and the level of catastrophic content of worries in response to a hypothetical situation were related to adolescent depression. The number of worry steps in ‘real’ worries and the level of catastrophic content in hypothetical worries were also associated with maternal depressive symptoms. Conclusions. Mothers of adolescents with internalizing disorders may worry more catastrophically about their children than other mothers