Validation of the Child-version of the Perseverative Thinking Questionnaire of repetitive negative thinking in young people with diagnosed depressive and anxiety disorders

This paper sought to provide the first validation of a transdiagnostic measure of repetitive negative thinking – the Perseverative Thinking Questionnaire-Child version (PTQ-C) – in young people diagnosed with anxiety and depressive disorders. Participants (N = 114) were 11- to 17-year-olds with complex and comorbid presentations seeking treatment through Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services. Confirmatory factor analyses best supported a three-factor model for the PTQ-C; however, hypotheses of both perfect and close fit were rejected, and a subsequent bifactor model suggested minimal unique variance for each subscale. Results demonstrated good internal consistency, convergent validity and divergent validity for the total score and three PTQ-S subscales: core characteristics, perceived unproductiveness, and consumed mental capacity of negative repetitive thinking. PTQ-C scores did not account for additional variance in anxiety symptoms once worry was considered, indicating that retention of a content-specific measure may be warranted in clinical samples. Findings emphasize the importance of validating clinically relevant measures which were developed with subclinical populations in samples with diagnosed mental health disorders.