Intrinsic links between obsessive-compulsive symptoms and other psychopathological symptoms: A network analysis of clinical and community populations
AI Summary
Depression and anxiety emerged as common core symptoms in both OCD patients and community populations.
Psychoticism was identified as a specific core symptom in OCD patients.
Obsessive symptoms and obsession-related distress acted as bridge symptoms linking OCD with other psychopathology, indicating targets for clinical assessment.
J Psychiatr Res. 2026 Jun 19;201:231-239. doi: 10.1016/j.jpsychires.2026.06.024. Online ahead of print.
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: The interconnectedness of core mental health features is associated with more severe illness impairment and less effective treatment outcomes. This study aimed to evaluate the network of relationships between obsessive-compulsive symptoms and other psychopathological symptoms in both obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) patients and community populations, identifying symptom interconnections.
METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted from January 1, 2020, to June 30, 2024. The Chinese versions of the Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale (Y-BOCS) and the Symptom Checklist-90 (SCL-90) were used to measure obsessive-compulsive symptoms and other psychopathological symptoms, respectively. Measurement invariance testing was performed using Mplus software (version 8.11). Network structure, centrality, stability, and network comparisons were analyzed using R software (version 4.4.1).
RESULTS: The study included 4223 OCD patients and 5253 community participants. In the symptom networks of both groups, SCL3 (“Depression”) and SCL4 (“Anxiety”) were common core symptoms. SCL10 (“Psychoticism”) was a specific core symptom for OCD patients, while SCL2 (“Interpersonal sensitivity”) was specific to the community group. Additionally, SCL8 (“Obsessive symptoms”) and YBOCS3 (“Distress caused by obsessions”) served as bridge symptoms in both groups.
LIMITATIONS: The cross-sectional design limited causal inferences; self-report measures were subject to recall bias and other confounding factors; sample representativeness and the range of variables included in the analysis were limited.
CONCLUSION: Depressive and anxiety symptoms emerged as common core symptoms in both OCD patients and community populations. Psychoticism was specifically identified as a core symptom in OCD patients, while obsessive symptoms and obsession-related distress served as bridging symptoms linking OCD with other psychopathological symptoms, highlighting important targets for clinical assessment.
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