Mediated and Direct Effects of General Control Beliefs on Obsessive Compulsive Symptoms Richard Moulding University of Melbourne and Swinburne University of Technology Michael Kyrios Swinburne University of Technology Guy Doron Interdisciplinary Center (IDC) Herzilya Maja Nedeljkovic Swinburne University of Technology Although control-related cognitions have often been implicated in discussions of obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), empirical investigations of the relationship between control constructs and OCD symptoms have been relatively limited. This article investigated the hypothesis that OCD symptoms may be linked with a higher desire for control (DC), but a lower sense of control (SC) over the self and environment, leading to motivation for compulsive symptoms. It also investigated whether this effect was direct, or mediated through other OCD-related cognitions. This hypothesis was investigated in a nonclinical population, using path analyses controlling for depression. It was found that higher levels of DC and lower levels of SC were associated with higher levels of OCD-related beliefs, and with symptoms via higher OCD-related beliefs. SC was also directly linked with higher OCD symptoms. Control beliefs regarding both the internal (emotions) and external (threat) environment were related to OCD symptoms. Implications for therapy and research are discussed. Keywords: cognitive theory, obsessive compulsive disorder, cognition, psychological needs Obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) is characterised by the occurrence of repetitive and distressing intrusive thoughts (obses- sions), and compulsive actions and rituals performed to relieve distress or prevent harm related to the obsessions (American Psychiatric Association, 2000). It has a lifetime prevalence of 1.6% (Kessler, Berglund, Demler, Jin, & Walters, 2005) and is rated as a leading cause of disability by the World Health Organi- sation (Murray & Lopez, 1996). Although a number of aetiological theories of OCD have been suggested, cognitive– behavioural models have generated a large body of research support and are associated with effective treatments (Frost & Steketee, 2002). Cognitive models propose that individuals with OCD cata- strophically misinterpret common intrusive thoughts, leading to active but dysfunctional attempts to neutralise the threat implied by the intrusion. These neutralisation strategies (e.g., compulsions, thought-control strategies) serve to maintain the occurrence of intrusive thoughts through increasing their salience and frequency (e.g., Salkovskis, 1985). The likelihood of such misinterpretation of thoughts is increased by elevated levels of dysfunctional beliefs (e.g., Obsessive Compulsive Cognitions Working Group [OCCWG], 2005). The OCCWG, an international collaborative research group featuring most of the prominent researchers into cognition in OCD, identified six classes of such dysfunctional beliefs (OCCWG, 1997). These were defined as follows: (a) inflated responsibility: the belief that one has power to bring about or prevent subjectively crucial negative outcomes; (b) the overimportance of thoughts: the belief that the mere presence of a thought indicates that it is important; (c) the importance of controlling one’s thoughts: the overvaluation of the importance of exerting complete control over one’s thoughts, and the belief that it is both possible and desirable; (d) overestimation of threat: an exaggeration of the probability and severity of harm; (e) intolerance of uncertainty: belief that it is a necessity to be certain, belief that one has a poor capacity to cope with unpredictability, and belief that it is difficult for the individual to cope in ambiguous situations; and (f) perfectionism: the ten- dency to believe there is a perfect solution to every problem, that performing an act without mistakes is both possible and necessary, and the belief that even minor mistakes will have serious conse- quences. These beliefs have consistently been found to relate to OCD symptoms (Frost & Steketee, 2002). It has recently been suggested that broader beliefs about control may be an important additional class of beliefs within OCD (Moulding & Kyrios, 2006). Several authors have characterised OCD through notions of control, noting that individuals presenting with OCD strive to control their thoughts, attempt to control the world through rituals, and describe concern regarding the potential loss of control over their own thoughts and actions (e.g., Carr, Richard Moulding, Department of Psychology, University of Melbourne and Swin-PsyCHE Research Centre, Swinburne University of Technology, Melbourne, Australia; Guy Doron, Department of Psychology, Interdisci- plinary Center (IDC) Herzilya, Israel; Michael Kyrios, Brain Science Institute and Swin-PsyCHE Research Centre, Melbourne, Australia; Maja Nedeljkovic, Swin-PsyCHE Research Centre, Melbourne, Australia. Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Richard Moulding, Swin-PsyCHE Research Centre, Faculty of Life and Social Sciences, Swinburne University of Technology, Melbourne, Australia. E-mail: rmoulding@swin.edu.au Canadian Journal of Behavioural Science © 2009 Canadian Psychological Association 2009, Vol. 41, No. 2, 84 –92 0008-400X/09/$12.00 DOI: 10.1037/a0014840 84