Sarah A. Feigon1, Irwin D. Waldman1
Anxiety disorders in children have received increasing attention in recent years, as their etiology and classification are not well understood. Behavior genetic studies can contribute to an informed and useful classification of these disorders. Although a number of behavior genetic studies have been conducted on anxiety disorders in adults, there are few extant twin or adoption studies of anxiety disorders in children. Several recent studies have suggested that both additive genetic and shared environmental influences contribute moderately to anxiety disorder symptoms in children, and that the magnitude of these influences varies by both age and sex. In the present study, we will estimate genetic and environmental influences on parent-rated symptoms of DSM-IV separation anxiety disorder (SAD), generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), and social phobia (SP). Both age and sex will be examined as moderators of genetic and environmental influences on symptoms. Participants are approximately 850 twin pairs, ages 6-18, recruited from the Georgia Twin Registry, a volunteer registry of twin families identified through state birth records.
Address: Address for correspondence: Sarah Feigon, Department of Psychology, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322., Telephone: (404)727-7430, Fax: (404)727-1284, E-mail: sfeigon@emory.edu
1Department of Psychology, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322