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Epidemiology of specific phobia subtypes: Findings from the Dresden Mental Health Study

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  16 April 2020

Eni S. Becker ,
Mike Rinck ,
Veneta Türke ,
Petra Kause ,
Renee Goodwin ,
Simon Neumer  and
Jürgen Margraf
Eni S. Becker*
Affiliation:
Radboud University Nijmegen, Clinical Psychology, Behavioural Science Institute, PO Box 9104, 6500 HE, Nijmegen, Netherlands
Mike Rinck
Affiliation:
Radboud University Nijmegen, Clinical Psychology, Behavioural Science Institute, PO Box 9104, 6500 HE, Nijmegen, Netherlands
Veneta Türke
Affiliation:
University of Technology Dresden, Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, Dresden, Germany
Petra Kause
Affiliation:
University of Technology Dresden, Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, Dresden, Germany
Renee Goodwin
Affiliation:
Columbia University, Department of Epidemiology, New York, NY, USA
Simon Neumer
Affiliation:
Regionscenter for barne og ungdomspsykiatrie, Oslo, Norway
Jürgen Margraf
Affiliation:
University of Basel, Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, Basel, Switzerland
*
*Corresponding author. Tel.: +31 (0) 24 361 2668; fax: +31 (0) 24 361 5594. E-mail address: e.becker@psych.ru.nl (E.S. Becker).
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Abstract

This study determined the prevalence, age of onset, comorbidity, and impairment associated with specific phobia subtypes in the community. Data were drawn from the Dresden Mental Health Study (N = 2064), a representative community-based sample of young women in Dresden, Germany. The lifetime prevalence of any specific phobia was 12.8%, with subtypes ranging in prevalence between 0.2% (vomiting, infections) and 5.0% (animals). There were significant differences in the mean age of onset of specific phobias. Significant differences in comorbidity patterns also emerged between subtypes. No significant differences were found in level of impairment associated with the subtypes. The findings suggest that specific phobias are common among young women and that they differ in prevalence, associated comorbidity, and mean age of onset. These data suggest significant differences in the phenomenology and clinical significance of specific phobia subtypes.

Keywords

Specific phobiasSubtypes of phobiasOnsetComorbidity
Type
Original article
Information
European Psychiatry , Volume 22 , Issue 2 , March 2007 , pp. 69 - 74
Copyright
Copyright © Elsevier Masson SAS 2006

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