Disgust and Anxious Psychopathology

This research sought to:

explore the nature of the role of disgust in anxious psychopathology
develop a valid and reliable measure of disgust that measures both frequency of experience and sensitivity to the emotion
test differential predictions about the relationship between disgust and a range of anxious psychopathologies
undertake the controlled experimental investigation of the effect of disgust on measures of anxious psychopathology.

The proejct developed a reliable and valid, domains-independent measure of disgust (DPSS-R). It was found that measures of disgust correlate highly with measures of both disgust-relevant and disgust-irrelevant anxious psychopathologies, and that the relationship between measures of disgust and these psychopathologies cannot wholly be accounted for by levels of trait anxiety, trait negative mood or anxiety sensitivity. Levels of both disgust sensitivity and propensity predict subsequent changes in some psychopathology measures. Disgust potentiates the reporting of threatening interpretations which can maintain or facilitate experienced anxiety. Disgust will facilitate levels of self-reported anxiety to a range of stimuli regardless of whether they are disgust-relevant, fear-relevant or fear-irrelevant.