A Longitudinal Twin Study of Fears From Middle Childhood to Early Adulthood

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Abstract
When considering the role of individual differences in the etiology of excessive fears and phobias, emphasis is typically given to traits that are conceptualized as being temporally stable, such as behavioral inhibition, autonomic lability, neuroticism, cognitive bias (for threatening stimuli), and disgust sensitivity.1-4 However, fears demonstrate a dynamic progression through development3—what Marks5 has termed an ontogenetic parade. Furthermore, epidemiological investigations show consistent differences in the ages at onset of individual phobia subtypes.6,7 Realistic etiologic models for excessive fears and phobias will require an understanding of the developmentally dynamic processes that underlie risk.