Scrupulosity in patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder: relationship to clinical and cognitive phenomena

J Anxiety Disord. 2006;20(8):1071-86. doi: 10.1016/j.janxdis.2006.02.001. Epub 2006 Mar 9.

Abstract

Scrupulosity is often encountered among individuals with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), yet relatively few studies have examined this particular symptom presentation. Using a large sample of OCD patients, the present investigation examined (a) the relationship between religiosity and scrupulosity, (b) the association between scrupulosity and the severity of OCD, anxiety, and depressive symptoms, and (c) the connection between scrupulosity and cognitive domains related to OCD. Scrupulosity was correlated with obsessional symptoms and several cognitive domains of OCD, including beliefs about the importance of, and need to control intrusive thoughts, an inflated sense of responsibility, and moral thought-action fusion. These results are examined in terms of cognitive behavioral conceptualizations of OCD and the treatment implications of these findings are discussed.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Anxiety Disorders / diagnosis
  • Anxiety Disorders / epidemiology*
  • Anxiety Disorders / psychology*
  • Attitude*
  • Cognition Disorders / diagnosis
  • Cognition Disorders / epidemiology*
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder / diagnosis
  • Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder / epidemiology*
  • Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder / psychology*
  • Religion and Psychology*
  • Severity of Illness Index
  • Surveys and Questionnaires