Basic Psychological Need Frustration and GAD Symptoms: A Study into its Universality

Abstract

From the perspective of the self-determination theory (SDT), the three basic psychological needs - autonomy, relatedness and competence - are universal and do not depend on cultural orientations. This study investigates the relationship between satisfaction and frustration of the basic psychological needs and symptoms of generalized anxiety disorder (GAD). Investigating the universality of these relationships, we checked whether the effect of basic needs would interact with cultural orientations in the prediction of symptoms of GAD. Results based on a sample of 357 Turkish participants (13% male, 87% female, mean age 30 years) showed that (1) both higher basic need satisfaction and lower need frustration predicted lower GAD symptoms, and (2) these relationships hold independent of cultural orientations. Clinical and theoretical implications are discussed, as well as possible avenues for further research.