Theories of incontinence anxiety

Despite the paucity of research, it is currently known that incontinence anxiety contains cognitive and behavioural processes such as fear of negative evaluation and avoidance behaviour.

At this time, a cognitive-behavioural theory of incontinence anxiety (which is based within a biopsychosocial model which purports that incontinence anxiety is due to biological, psychological, and social factors) is the most widely accepted.

According to this model incontinence anxiety is due to the interaction of unhelpful thinking patterns (e.g., thoughts about being negatively evaluated by others) and behaviour (avoidance of social activities where one may become incontinent). Further, supporting evidence for the theory that incontinence anxiety is due to cognitive-behavioural processes is the finding that incontinence anxiety shares similar psychosocial processes underpinning social anxiety disorder.