Anxiety is a major health problem for older adults. The cornerstone for fur
ther work in this area is research that establishes the psychometric utilit
y of standardized measurement strategies to characterize anxiety in older a
dults. The goals of the current study were to replicate and extend prior re
search addressing the psychometric properties of five self-report measures
of anxiety in a sample of 57 older adults with generalized anxiety disorder
(GAD). Data addressed the descriptive characteristics, internal consistenc
y, test-retest reliability, interrelation of subscales, and convergent and
divergent validity of the Penn state worry questionnaire (PSWQ), worry scal
e (WS), Spielberger state-trait anxiety inventory - Form Y (STAI), and two
versions of the fear questionnaire (FQ). Descriptive data generally replica
ted prior findings, with some increased state and trait anxiety in the curr
ent sample. Measures were internally consistent, with evidence that a revis
ed version of the FQ that focuses on severity of fear irrespective of assoc
iated avoidance demonstrated greater internal consistency than the original
version. Measures of content-specific fears and worries (WS, FQ) were stab
le over time and demonstrated convergent validity. Evidence of convergent v
alidity also was evident for measures of worry and general anxiety (WS, PSW
Q, STAI-Trait), but two of these measures (PSWQ, STAI) were not reliable ov
er time. Only the PSWQ showed evidence of divergent validity with respect t
o self-report measures of depression. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science Ltd. All ri
ghts reserved.