Panic Attack Research Questionnaire Results
Andjelka Stones and David Perry
University of Westminster
United Kingdom
Although Panic Attacks are similar in their ultimate manifestation, the initial source may influence the type of treatment necessary as well as the personal coping strategies of sufferers. The statistics below show major trigger sources of reported panic attacks (but not necessarily first onset causes or relationships with past life events) and are not mutually exclusive (i.e. some people may get panic attacks from more than one source).
Major Triggers of Panic Attacks
- The majority of people reported getting panic attacks unrelated to phobias, known as "out of the blue" (80.7%).
- A fairly small number (5.5%) reported getting panics as a result of a medical condition.
- 45.9% of participants reported panic attacks as a result of various phobias.
- Females seem to experience "out of the blue" type of panic attacks more frequently than males (83.5% compared to 76.4% in males).
In general 45.3% (not presented in this bar-chart) of the participants reported getting Panic Attacks entirely unrelated to any phobia or any medical condition. Their Panic Attacks were of the "out of the blue" type only. Significantly, a higher percentage of females reported this type (55.5%) as opposed to males (37.5%).
ŠA. Stones & D. Perry 1997.
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