Separation anxiety is a state in which a person experiences anxiety in the event of separation or expectation of separation from the mother or attachment figure. It has been conceptualized as a childhood problem. Separation anxiety disorder (SAD) is diagnosed when separation anxiety is prolonged, severe, developmentally inappropriate or impairs functionality (American Psychiatric Association 1994).
Can the symptoms of childhood separation anxiety disorder carry over into adulthood? Can separation anxiety symptoms also start in adulthood? Investigating these questions, Manicavasagar et al. (1997, 2000) found that childhood separation anxiety disorder extends into adulthood.
The Adult Separation Anxiety Questionnaire (SAQ) is a 27-item self-report scale of adult separation anxiety developed by Manicavasagar, Silove, Wagner and Drobny in 2003. This scale inquires about the symptoms of separation anxiety, whether it starts in childhood and continues in adulthood or appears for the first time in adulthood, and can determine its severity. The scale is measured by evaluating the responses given as "very often, often, rarely, never". The validity and reliability study of the Turkish version of the scale was conducted by Diriöz et al. in 2010.
Reference: Diriöz M. et al; "Validity and Reliability of the Turkish Version of Separation Anxiety Symptom Inventory and Adult Separation Anxiety Questionnaire" ; Turkish Journal of Psychiatry 2011;22: 108-16