4.2.3 - Development of Specific Phobia

Question 1

Biological factors

Answer 1

internal, genetic, and/or physiologically based factors, these factors can be innate such as genetic predispositions passed down from one’s parents or can come about later in life, such as through taking certain medications

Question 1

Biopsychical approach

Answer 1

a holistic, interdisciplinary framework for understanding the human experience in terms of the influence of biological, psychological and social factors

Question 2

Psychological factors

Answer 2

internal factors relating to an individual’s mental processes, including their cognition, affect, thoughts, beliefs and attitudes, in essence they are everything from an individual experiences within their mind

Question 3

Social factors

Answer 3

external factors relating to an individual’s interactions with others and their external environment, including their relationships and community involvement, including personal relationships as well as an individual’s experience within a greater society

Question 4

Biological Factors That Contribute to Specific Phobia

Answer 4

that contribute to the onset and development of specific phobia;
* Include dysfunctional GABA system and long-term potentiation (LTP)

Question 5

BF: Gaba dysfunction

Answer 5

insufficient neural transmission or reception of GABA in the body
* Due to a low level or production of GABA, insufficient reception or transmission of GABA across the synapse

Question 6

BF: GABA dysfunction may contribute to development of phobia because

Answer 6

• May cause someone’s fight-flight-freeze or anxiety response to be activated more easily than someone with adequate GABA levels
• Recurrent stress responses to specific stimuli can lead to the development of a phobia

Question 7

BF: LTP

Answer 7

the long-lasting and experience-dependent strengthening of synaptic connections that are regularly coactivated

Question 8

BF: LTP may contribute to development of phobia because

Answer 8

• Strengthening the association between neural signals involved in perceiving a stimulus and neural signals involved in activating the fear response
• Through repeated coactivation, the signals involved in perceiving a phobic stimulus more readily trigger the activation of the neural signals responsible for the fear response

Question 9

Psychological Factors That Contribute to Specific Phobia

Answer 9

contribute to the onset and development of specific phobia include
* Behavioural models: precipitations by classical conditioning, perpetuation by operant conditioning
* Role of cognitive biases: memory bias, catastrophic thinking

Question 10

PF: Classical conditioning

Answer 10

can contribute to the development (precipitation) of phobias by increasing susceptibility to and contributing to their occurrence

Question 11

PF: Operant conditioning

Answer 11

perpetuates phobias by preventing an individual from overcoming them

Question 12

PF: Cognitive bias

Answer 12

a predisposition to think about and process information in a certain way, may cause errors in people’s judgement and thoughts
* Memory bias and catastrophic thinking

Question 13

PF: Cognitive bias (Memory bias)

Answer 13

a type of cognitive bias caused by inaccurate or exaggerated memory, as phobias are often caused by traumatic events, people may even remember the trauma as extremely significant or harmful, rather than any neutral or positive information

Question 14

PF: Cognitive bias (Catastrophic thinking)

Answer 14

a type of cognitive bias in which a stimulus or event is predicted to be far worse than it actually is, a person will often imagine the worst-case scenario possible when imagining an interaction with their phobic stimulus

Question 15

Social factors

Answer 15

contribute to the onset and development of specific phobia
* Specific environmental triggers
* Stigma around seeking treatment

Question 16

SF: Specific environmental triggers

Answer 16

refers to stimuli or experiences in a person’s environment that evoke an extreme stress response, leading to the development of a phobia

Question 17

Different types of environment triggers;

Answer 17

• Direct: confrontation with a traumatic stimulus or event (e.g bitten by a snake)
• Observing: another person having a direct confrontation with a traumatic stimulus or event (e.g watching someone be threatened with a weapon)
• Learning: about a potentially dangerous or traumatic stimulus or event indirectly (e.g watching a movie about threatening motorcycle gangs)

Question 18

SF: Stigma around seeking treatment

Answer 18

refers to the feeling of shame or disgrace experienced by an individual for a characteristic that differentiates them from others
* Sense of shame a person might feel about seeking professional help