Appearance Anxiety Inventory (AAI)

The Appearance Anxiety Inventory (AAI) is a 10 question self-report scale that measures the cognitive and behavioural aspects of body image anxiety in general, and body dysmorphic disorder (BDD) in particular. Appropriate for use with adults and adolescents as young as thirteen, the brief nature of the AAI can provide a quick snapshot of symptom severity to assist in the initial assessment and to monitor treatment progress over time. 

Developer:

Veale, D., Eshkevaria, E., Kanakama, N., Ellisona, N., Costa, A., and Werner, T. (2014). The Appearance Anxiety Inventory: Validation of a Process Measure in the Treatment of Body Dysmorphic Disorder. Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapy, 42, 605-616. https://doi.org/10.1017/s1352465813000556

References:

Gumpert, M., Rautio, D., Monzani, B., Jassi, A., Krebs, G., Fernández de la Cruz, L., Mataix-Cols, D., & Jansson-Fröjmark, M. (2024). Psychometric evaluation of the appearance anxiety inventory in adolescents with body dysmorphic disorder. Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, 1–13. https://doi.org/10.1080/16506073.2023.2299837

Hanley, S. M., Bhullar, N., & Wootton, B. M. (2020). Development and initial validation of the Body Dysmorphic Disorder Scale for Youth. The Clinical Psychologist, 24(3), 254–266. https://doi.org/10.1111/cp.12225

Jacobson, N. S., & Truax, P. (1991). Clinical significance : A statistical approach to defining meaningful change in psychotherapy research. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 59(1), 12–19. https://doi.org/10.1037/10109-042

Mastro, S., Zimmer-Gembeck, M. J., Webb, H. J., Farrell, L., & Waters, A. (2016). Young adolescents’ appearance anxiety and body dysmorphic symptoms: Social problems, self-perceptions and comorbidities. Journal of Obsessive-Compulsive and Related Disorders, 8, 50–55. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jocrd.2015.12.001

Roberts, C. L. (2019). Body Dysmorphic Disorder in Adolescents: A New Multidimensional Measure and Associations with Social Risk, Mindfulness, and Self-Compassion [PhD Thesis, Griffith University]. Griffith University Research Repository. https://doi.org/10.25904/1912/551