title: Meta-worry in adolescents: examination of the psychometric properties of the meta-worry questionnaire in an adolescent sample.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Meta-worry is considered a central component of the Metacognitive Model of Generalized Anxiety Disorder. Although initial research provides support for the applicability of this model to adolescent samples, the construct of meta-worry has yet to be examined in adolescents.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The purpose of this study was to examine the psychometric properties of the Meta-Worry Questionnaire (MWQ), a measure designed to assess negative beliefs about worry, in an adolescent sample, and to examine the degree to which meta-worry is associated with pathological worry in adolescents.
  
  
  METHODS
  A non-referred sample of 175 adolescents completed a modified version of the MWQ along with the Meta-Cognitions Questionnaire-Children (MCQ-C) and the Penn State Worry Questionnaire for Children (PSWQ-C).
  
  
  RESULTS
  The MWQ was found to exhibit strong psychometric properties. Most noteworthy, the MWQ was found to be a particularly robust predictor of scores on the PSWQ-C, and incremental validity was also demonstrated.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Overall, the current findings provide support for the reliability and validity of the MWQ in adolescents and support for meta-worry as a predictor of worry symptoms in adolescents.
authors.affiliation: University of North Florida,Jacksonville,USA.
authors.forename: Brian
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Fisak
authors.affiliation: University of North Florida,Jacksonville,USA.
authors.forename: Marco
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Mentuccia
authors.affiliation: Case Western Reserve University,Cleveland,USA.
authors.forename: Amy
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Przeworski
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D001007:Anxiety / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology*; D001143:Arousal; D001288:Attention; D005239:Fear; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010153:Paired-Associate Learning; D010698:Phobic Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology; D011594:Psychometrics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011930:Reaction Time; D012016:Reference Values; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012928:Social Desirability; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires