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Differences and similarities between intrusive thoughts typical of obsessive–compulsive disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, and hypochondriasis are relevant for their differential diagnosis, formulation, and psychological treatment. Previous research in non-clinical samples pointed out the relevance of some process variables, such as responsibility, guilt, or neutralization strategies. This research is aimed to investigate the differences and similarities between clinical obsessions, worries, and illness intrusions in some of these process variables. A second aim is to identify models based on these variables that could reliably differentiate between them. Three groups of patients with obsessive–compulsive disorder (n = 35; 60% women, mean age 38.57), generalized anxiety disorder (n = 36; 61.1% women, mean age 41.50), and hypochondriasis (n = 34; 70.6% women, mean age 31.59) were evaluated using the Cognitive Intrusions Questionnaire—Transdiagnostic Version (Romero-Sanchiz, Nogueira-Arjona, Godoy-Avila, Gavino-Lazaro, & Freeston, 2017). The results showed that some appraisals (e.g., responsibility or egodystonicity), emotions (e.g., guilt or insecurity), neutralization strategies, and other variables (e.g., verbal content or trigger from body sensation) are relevant for the discrimination between obsessions, worries, and illness intrusions. The results also showed 3 stable models based on these variables for the discrimination between these thoughts. The implication of these results in the diagnosis, formulation, and psychological treatment of obsessive–compulsive disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, and hypochondriasis is discussed. Key Pratictioner Message The current study provides evidence about the discrimination between clinical obsessions, worries, and illness intrusions from a transdiagnostic perspective. The differentiation between them is crucial for the diagnosis, formulation, and psychological treatment of obsessive–compulsive disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, and hypochondriasis. Appraisals such as responsibility or egodystonicity, emotions such as guilt or insecurity, and other variables such as frequency, neutralization strategies or verbal form were found relevant for the discrimination between these types of thoughts. Three stable binary logistic models including these variables were developed for the discrimination between these thoughts.

Many explanatory models of obsessive-compulsive disorders (OCD) support the idea that compulsive behaviours are an attempt to avoid an aversive situation. There are few experimental studies carried out on the onset of repetitive behaviours. This study tries to create a repetitive checking behaviour as an analogue explaining similar OCD behaviours.An inter-group design with 3 levels of aversion (minimal, progressive and maximum) in a visuo-spatial reasoning task was used. 48 university students without OCD problems (mean= 23 years old) were the participants, randomly distributed in 16 per group. Checking frequency (semi-hidden chronometer) for each task was measured and the questionnaires TONI-2, STAI, MOCI and YBOCS-SR were applied.Participants with a minimal or maximum level difficulty showed a significantly higher level of checking behaviour than those in the progressive difficulty. The differences occurred between the minimal and the progressive group, and between the minimal and maximum difficulty. There were no differences in any other variable.In this analogue, the continuous checking of a chronometer was reinforced by the elimination of boring tasks. The momentary escape from an aversive situation explains the checking behaviour. This study could be an experimental analogue of checking behaviour, showing its avoidance function.

In this study, the factorial structure and psychometric properties of the Vancouver Obsessional Compulsive Inventory (VOCI) were examined in two non-clinical Spanish samples. An exploratory factor analysis replicated the original six-factor structure. Moreover, results showed that the Spanish VOCI is a reliable measure. Also, this version had good convergent validity with other obsessive-compulsive symptom measures and with an instrument that assess beliefs that are relevant to the obsessive-compulsive disorder. Lastly, this version showed good divergent validity with measures of depression, anxiety and worries.