Motivational Enhancement Therapy Reduces Anxiety Sensitivity

Anxiety sensitivity (AS), the fear of the consequences of anxiety, is known to be a risk factor in the development and maintenance of anxiety psychopathology. In recent years, AS has been shown to be responsive to a variety of interventions aimed at reducing this malleable risk factor. Motivational interviewing (MI) and motivation enhancement treatment (MET) have been shown to be effective in enhancing the treatment of anxiety disorders. Thus, it was hypothesized that motivational interventions may also be effective in those with elevated AS. The aim of the present study was to examine whether the use of MI/MET would be effective in reducing AS. Participants (N = 80) with elevated AS were randomized into an MET or health-focused psychoeducation control group. Results revealed that the MET condition showed a significant reduction in AS in comparison to the control group. These findings are comparable to reductions in AS observed in other AS interventions. Further, changes in motivation mediated the association between experimental group and post-intervention AS. This study is the first to demonstrate the efficacy of MI/MET strategies in the reduction of AS. Implications of the findings and directions for future research are discussed.