Illness Intrusiveness in Individuals with Panic Disorder, Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, or Social Phobia

To measure the extent to which anxiety disorders interfere with various domains of functioning, the Illness Intrusiveness Ratings Scale (IIRS) was completed by individuals with a DSM-IV principal diagnosis of panic disorder (PD; N = 35), obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD; N = 51), or social phobia (SP; N = 49). Although the three groups did not differ on total IIRS scores, group differences did emerge for particular domains of functioning. Patients with OCD reported significantly more interference with respect to passive recreation (e.g., reading) than did SP patients and with respect to religious expression compared with both PD and SP patients. Patients with SP reported more impairment with respect to social relationships and self-expression/self-improvement compared with the other two groups. When compared with populations with a variety of other chronic illnesses, patients in the present study reported much higher levels of illness intrusiveness. The implications of these findings and future directions for research are discussed.