Do beliefs about the utility of worry facilitate worry?

Various theoretical models have pointed out the role of positive beliefs in the worry process (Dugas, Gagnon, Ladouceur, & Freeston, 1998; Wells, 1995). Two studies were conducted to search for experimental support for this possibility. After trait worry was controlled, a persuasion procedure was used to induce diverse beliefs about worry (positive, negative, or neutral). It was hypothesized that participants persuaded of the usefulness of worry would be more worried and more anxious after listening to a worrisome message. In the first study, 90 participants (62 females and 28 males) were exposed to a novel worrisome message, and in the second study, 60 participants (34 females and 26 males) were exposed to a more personally relevant worry. Results indicate that persuasion about the utility of worry does not trigger worry, and when prior positive beliefs about worry were controlled, they do not correlate with the change in anxiety after worrisome induction.