References: Coping with uncertainty & worry

The key studies and reviews behind these pages – organised by topic, so you can see exactly what each claim on the site is based on.

Catastrophising

  • Vasey, M.W. & Borkovec, T.D. (1992). “A catastrophizing assessment of worrisome thoughts.” Cognitive Therapy and Research, 16, 505-520. The founding experimental study of catastrophising as a thought pattern – shows chronic worriers generate more imagined catastrophes than non-worriers, and rate them as more likely to happen.
  • Sullivan, M.J.L., Bishop, S.R. & Pivik, J. (1995). “The Pain Catastrophizing Scale: Development and validation.” Psychological Assessment, 7(4), 524-532. The most widely used measure of catastrophising, identifying rumination, magnification and helplessness as its three components.
  • Dugas, M.J., Gagnon, F., Ladouceur, R. & Freeston, M.H. (1998). “Generalized anxiety disorder: A preliminary test of a conceptual model.” Behaviour Research and Therapy, 36(2), 215-226. The source behind the “intolerance of uncertainty” model referenced on this page – why an unpredictable world keeps the mind on guard even when nothing is currently wrong.
  • Gilbert, P., McEwan, K., Gibbons, L., Chotai, S., Duarte, J. & Matos, M. (2012). “Fears of compassion and happiness in relation to alexithymia, mindfulness, and self-criticism.” Psychology and Psychotherapy: Theory, Research and Practice, 85(4), 374-390. The main source behind this page’s “hypervigilance to good news” framing – evidence that positive states themselves can trigger anxiety in some people, not just negative ones.

Decision paralysis

  • Iyengar, S.S. & Lepper, M.R. (2000). “When Choice Is Demotivating: Can One Desire Too Much of a Good Thing?” Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 79(6), 995–1006. The famous “jam study” – found people were more likely to actually choose from a smaller set of options than a larger one – the source behind this page’s point that more choice doesn’t reliably mean a better decision.
  • Simon, H.A. (1956). “Rational Choice and the Structure of the Environment.” Psychological Review, 63(2), 129–138. The paper that introduced “satisficing” – choosing the first option that clears a reasonable bar, rather than searching for the theoretical best – the source behind this page’s point about the gap between “good enough” and “the best.”
  • Janis, I.L. & Mann, L. (1977). Decision Making: A Psychological Analysis of Conflict, Choice, and Commitment. Free Press. A foundational account of how people respond to decisional conflict, including avoidance and procrastination as a way of coping with a difficult choice – the source behind this page’s framing of paralysis as a response to conflict, not a character flaw.
  • Zeelenberg, M. & Pieters, R. (2007). “A Theory of Regret Regulation 1.0.” Journal of Consumer Psychology, 17(1), 3–18. Sets out how anticipated regret shapes decisions before they’re even made, often driving avoidance of the decision altogether – the source behind this page’s point that a decision delayed is usually a decision made by default, not avoided.

Sleepless nights

  • Harvey, A.G. (2002). “A Cognitive Model of Insomnia.” Behaviour Research and Therapy, 40(8), 869–893. Proposes that excessive worry about sleep, and about the daytime consequences of not sleeping, is what actively maintains insomnia – the source behind this page’s central framing of worry as the driver, not just a side effect.
  • Qaseem, A., Kansagara, D., Forciea, M.A., Cooke, M., Denberg, T.D. & Clinical Guidelines Committee of the American College of Physicians (2016). “Management of Chronic Insomnia Disorder in Adults: A Clinical Practice Guideline From the American College of Physicians.” Annals of Internal Medicine, 165(2), 125–133. Recommends cognitive behavioural therapy for insomnia as the first-line treatment, ahead of medication – the source behind this page’s point that CBT-based approaches carry the strongest evidence.
  • Espie, C.A., Emsley, R., Kyle, S.D., Gordon, C., Drake, C.L., Siriwardena, A.N., Cape, J., Ong, J.C., Sheaves, B., Foster, R., Freeman, D., Costa-Font, J., Marsden, A. & Luik, A.I. (2019). “Effect of Digital Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia on Health, Psychological Well-being, and Sleep-Related Quality of Life: A Randomized Clinical Trial.” JAMA Psychiatry, 76(1), 21–30. A British-led randomised trial of digital CBT-I, showing genuine clinical benefit – the source behind this page’s distinction between properly evidenced sleep apps and more modest ones.