Not Just Right Experiences, Disgust Proneness and Their Associations to Obsessive–Compulsive Symptoms: A Stringent Test with Structural Equation Modeling Analysis

Although “not just right experiences” (NJREs) and disgust proneness (DP) have been increasingly implicated in the development and maintenance of obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD), no studies to date have examined their conjoint effect. In the present study, structural equation modeling was used to examine the extent to which NJREs and DP were associated to OC symptoms in a sample composed of college students in a model which also included OC-related beliefs and negative affect. The results showed that NJREs and OC-beliefs, but not DP, were related to overall OC symptoms severity. Moreover, NJREs were associated to all the main OC symptoms dimensions (washing, checking, ordering, obsessing, and mental neutralization) whereas DP was associated with obsessing symptoms and, negatively, with mental neutralization. These findings underscore the importance of the continued examination of vulnerability factors such as NJREs and DP in enhancing our understanding of OCD.