Anxiety disorders

characteristics of anxiety disorders

Cognitive effects: thoughts that can vary from mild feelings of worry to severe. Behavioural: avoidance of certain situations in order to prevent feelings of anxiety occuring in the first place. Somatic:shallow breathing, muscle tense, dry mouth

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What is a panic attack

rapid increase of intense anxiety- apprehension and fear. feeling of some intense fear with pounding heart ect. Fear of losing control of everything and feelings of doom or dying.

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Definition of phobia

A persistant and unreasonable fear of a particular object, activity or situation.

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Typical symptoms of a phobia

intensr and irrational feelings of fear/anxiety- severe panic attack. avoidance behaviour, may have a gradual onset or sudden from an experience.

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What is agoraphobia

Fear of open spaces. E.g. Shopping malls, lifts, cars, trains, queues.

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What is a social phobia?

fear of interacting and performing in front of people. 3 catagories: perfromance, interaction and generalised.

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What is a specific phobia?

Fear of specific objects, animals or places. e.g. blood= hematophobia.

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Ost (1992) research on specific phobias:

300 patients with a range and found that animals tend to start around the age of 7. Fear of closed spaces much later around alte teens (many of these disapear or exist mildly as child eneters adolesence)

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Biological explanations of phobias:

'idea of prepardness'- a genetic disposition to develop certain fears/ phobias (survivial instinct). ideas statres that humans are physiologically and genetically prepared to require a certain phobia.

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Ohman et al (1975) experiments on biological explanations for phobias:

Studied prepardness of phobia acquisiation. by showingparticapants pictures. both groups were gicen electric shocks wither for house/face or an animal. Overall more likely to develop fear of snakes and spiders.biologically prepared- threaten surivia

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Biological explanation of phobias (reference to ans)

Some people born with a Autonomic nervous system that reacts more strongly to stimuli in the environement: responsible for the bodys reaction to threat (fight or flight) may result in developing phobias stronger.

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Evaluation of biological explanation for phobias:

- not convincing, limited evidence which is also weak and indirect. Explanatations only cover a very limited number of phobias. (reductionist, determinisic)

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Behavioral explanations for phobias:

Classical conditioning and observational learning.

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Classical conditioning explanation of phobias

pairing of a natural stimulus that causes fear with a neutral stimulus: causes neutral stimulus to be feared (LITTLE ALBERT)

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Bagby (1922) study of classical conditioning for phobias:

reported case study: of a young women who developed fear of running water afeter her fot became trapped in a rock near a waterfall. sound of water was paired with the panic. (TRAUMATIC EVENT)

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Observational learning explanation of phobias

result of observation.

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Explanation of behavioural explanations of phobias

Research has proved phobias can be acquired this way however not only/or common way) case studies cannot be genreatlised. not all phobias can be traced back to an event or incendent. Lab experiement: do not always elict a fear from conditioned stimul

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Cognitive explanations of phobias

focuses on the conscious thourght. think disorted and have catastrophic thoughts. (being out of control, being trapped unable to escape, sufforcaqting (shallow breathing when panicking. clark decribed them as having a congitive vulnerability.

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Evaluation of cognitive explanations

proven valuble, find out what thoughts phobics have. Led to treatmenet: Study support is elhers and breuer: found that people who suffer panic attacts are more aware of theire somatic functions.

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Physcodynamic explanations of phobias

Unconscious wishes and conflicts. Ego treatened by unconscious conflict and fear anxiert w=caused by conflicts with verwhelm. result in ego not finctioning. Ego uses displacement (DEFENCE MECHANISMS) onto somethimg external.

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LITTLE HANS

explained the boys phobia of horses resulting from the oedipus complex and ego displacement of fear of castration onto the fear of horses.Displaced his fear that his father would harm him for having sexual thoughts BOUT HIS MOTHER.

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evaluation of psychodynamic explanations of phobias.

Uncoscios levls cannot be scientifically investigated: Also little evidence can support agoraphobis in adults due to seperation anxiety ion childhod:

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Anxiety disorders

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