Phobias
- Created by: aryan26
- Created on: 12-02-19 10:29
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- Phobias
- Persistent, irrational fear of an object or situation
- 3 catagories: specific- of an object. Social- of a situation agoraphobia- being outside
- Emotional characteristics
- Feelings of fear, anxiety and panic
- Triggered by encountering the feared object or situation
- Or simply by imagining or anticipating it
- Level of fear is irrational because it is out of proportion to the threat
- Feelings of fear, anxiety and panic
- Cognitive characteristics
- Based on the process of information processing
- Aware that the fear is irrational but they cant change it
- Irrational beliefs about the stimulus or about the inability to cope which increase anxiety
- Focus of attention can become narrow of the stimulus is present
- Behavioural characteristics
- Behave in a certain way- high levels of anxiety- wanting to escape
- May panic- crying and screaming
- Main behaviour is avoidance
- Can interfere with everyday functioning- if have to go to great lengths to avoid it
- Endurance- remains in the presence of stimulus but experiences high levels of anxiety
- behaviorist explanation
- phobias are learned- Mowrer: two-process model
- caused initially by classical conditioning- maintained by operant conditioning
- learning through association: pairing a response naturally caused by one stimulus with another
- maintenance through operant conditioning- responses learned via classical conditioning tend to fade via extinction
- avoidance of the phobic stimulus is negatively reinforced
- unpleasant consequence is successfully avoided
- strengthens and maintains avoidance behaviour
- unpleasant consequence is successfully avoided
- avoidance of the phobic stimulus is negatively reinforced
- supporting evidence- Watson&Rayner- little Albert
- Dinardo et al- 60% of dog phobics could recall a frightening experience
- however, in a control group same % reported a frightening
- some people develop phobias without a frightening experience
- individual differences pose a problem
- unable to explain why some phobias are more common
- Seligman- incorrect in its focus. believed evolutionary factors
- genetically primed to quickly learn to fear
- more to explaining than classical conditioning
- Seligman- incorrect in its focus. believed evolutionary factors
- fails to account for cognitive factors
- but has resulted in effective treatments: if learned via conditioning they can be unlearned
- treatment:
- systematic desensitisation:
- 3- exposed to phobic stimulus- using the relaxation techniques at each stage of the hierarchy
- 2- deep muscle relaxation- taught breathing exercises and maybe meditation
- 1-hierarchy of fear- working up from least frightening
- aims to unlearn a response
- 4- only progress to the next stage when the patient feels relaxed enough to do so- gradually exposed to the whole hierarchy
- 5- the client will eventually be able to remain calm when confronted by the phobic stmulus
- highly effective- McGrath: 75% of patients respond
- Capafons: when used with aerophobics who had undergone SD reported lower levels of fear and lower psychological signs
- both perception of fear and bodily fear were reduced
- Capafons: when used with aerophobics who had undergone SD reported lower levels of fear and lower psychological signs
- Gilroy: long lasting- arachnophobicsless fearful than a control who had only experienced relaxation training 33 months later
- doesn't work for all phobias nor is it 100% effective
- generally suitable- requires less effort from the patient: can be used with children and those with learning difficulties
- no ethical objections- hierarchy only occurs when they feel confident enough
- flooding
- worst possible stimulus is identified- taught relaxation techniques then exposed without the possibility of escape
- eventually fear subsides- partly due to relaxation but adrenaline naturally decreases over time(2-3 hrs)
- through classical conditioning, a relaxation response is learned which extinguishes fear
- can be carried in vivo or via virtual reality or imagination alone
- Wolpe- adolescent girl with agoraphobia: put into the back of a car and drove around for 4hrs
- at first she was hysterical but was calm by the end
- highly effective and rapid treatment
- no data on long term effectiveness
- other studies show continued improvement for as long as 9 yrs
- at first she was hysterical but was calm by the end
- ethical concerns: but Shipley&Boudewyns found only 0.2% of patients experienced side effects
- mixed evidence compared with SD- Choy flooding to be superior Craske: no difference
- individuals have to be highly motivated and drop out rates are high- reduces appropriateness
- systematic desensitisation:
- phobias are learned- Mowrer: two-process model
- systematic desensitisation:
- 3- exposed to phobic stimulus- using the relaxation techniques at each stage of the hierarchy
- 2- deep muscle relaxation- taught breathing exercises and maybe meditation
- 1-hierarchy of fear- working up from least frightening
- aims to unlearn a response
- 4- only progress to the next stage when the patient feels relaxed enough to do so- gradually exposed to the whole hierarchy
- 5- the client will eventually be able to remain calm when confronted by the phobic stmulus
- highly effective- McGrath: 75% of patients respond
- Capafons: when used with aerophobics who had undergone SD reported lower levels of fear and lower psychological signs
- both perception of fear and bodily fear were reduced
- Capafons: when used with aerophobics who had undergone SD reported lower levels of fear and lower psychological signs
- Gilroy: long lasting- arachnophobicsless fearful than a control who had only experienced relaxation training 33 months later
- doesn't work for all phobias nor is it 100% effective
- generally suitable- requires less effort from the patient: can be used with children and those with learning difficulties
- no ethical objections- hierarchy only occurs when they feel confident enough
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