Anxiety as a Predictor of Emotional and Cognitive Reactivity both Within and Between People

Background Although theoretical models have implicated emotional reactivity (ER) and cognitive reactivity (CR) to the development of anxiety, few studies have examined this relation. The present study examines both the within-person and between-person relations of anxiety to ER and CR. Methods In the current study, within-person ER and CR refer to the relation of daily stress to emotion and cognition across time . Between-person ER and CR refer to the same across individuals . Participants were 223 undergraduate students who completed a 14-day daily diary procedure. Results Multilevel modeling showed that anxiety positively predicted within-person ER but did not predict between-person ER. Anxiety marginally positively predicted within-person CR and negatively predicted between-person CR. For self-focused cognitions, anxiety did not predict within-person CR but did marginally negatively predict between-person CR. For world-focused cognitions, anxiety positively predicted within-person CR but did not predict between-person CR. For future-focused cognitions, anxiety negatively predicted between-person CR. Conclusion These findings demonstrated that anxiety is significantly associated with ER and CR and that the specific associations differ based on between- and within-person levels as well as the type of the dysfunctional cognitions.