Behavioural Approach to EXPLAINING PHOBIAS

Question 1

Aim of the case of little Albert

Watson and Rayner (1920)

Answer 1

If there is a negative association to learn a phobia -emotional responses learnt through classical conditioning

Question 2

Procedure of

case of little Albert

Watson and Rayner (1920)

Answer 2

• White rat (Neutral stimulus) - Albert no response
• Loud noise (Unconditioned stimulus) - Albert - fear response
• Loud noise + white rat (UCS and NS) -Albert - Unconditioned Response
• White rat (conditioned stimulus) - Albert - conditioned response

Question 3

Conculsion

case of little Albert

Watson and Rayner (1920)

Answer 3

The conclusion is classified conditioning is making an association with stimulus having negative impact

This causes irrational thoughts of phobic stimulus

Question 4

Strength of

the case of little Albert

Watson and Rayner (1920)

Experiment

Answer 4

Controlled environment

Good control over extraneous variables

establish a cause and effect

increase validity

Question 5

Strength of

the case of little Albert

Watson and Rayner (1920)

Phobias

Answer 5

People with phobias often recall the incident when phobia appears

Everyone who has a phobia can’t recall - may be traumatic

Question 6

What is operant conditioning?

Answer 6

Term used by B.F Skinner -

People can learn to perform new behaviours through the consequences and if the behaviour is folloed by reinformcement , likelhood of that behaviour repeated increase in future (behaviour is strengthened)

Question 7

What is the positive reinforcement of classical conditioning?

Answer 7

Consequence which are pleasant and which bring about a repetition of behaviour

Question 8

What is negative reinforcement?

Answer 8

Behaviour that is repeated in order to escape an unpleasant consequence

Question 9

What is a punishment?

Answer 9

If behaviour is followed by a punishment then the likelihood of that behaviour is being repeated in future decreases (behaviour is weakened)

Question 10

Explain phobias

Phobia of school

Answer 10

Continue as a positive reinforcement by being pleasant of the repetition of not going to school

avoidance of school (fear)

Negative reinforcement of learning affect

Punishment is going

Question 11

Explain phobias

Phobia of heights

Answer 11

Positive of avoiding heights

Negative reinforcement -burden on social situations

Punishment is heights

Question 12

What does social learning theory state?

Answer 12

Abnormal behaviour can be learnt by watching others and copying (modelling their behaviour)

Therefore phobias can be learnt by repeated positive reinforcement - feared person get attention

Question 13

Structure of AO1 of behavioural approach to EXPLAIN PHOBIAS

Answer 13

• Behavioural approach
• Classical Conditioning
• Operant Conditioning
• e.g phobias
• Social Learning Theory

Question 14

What does the behavioural approach assume?

Answer 14

All behaviour , normal and abnormal is learned from the envirnoment

Question 15

What happens in classical conditioning?

Answer 15

Triggers and unconditioned stimulus (e.g loud noise_

triggers a natural reflex (natural fear)

but if another stimulus (seeing spider) occurs at the same time

elict the fear response

Question 16

A limitation of behavioural explain phobias

not all bad experience lead to phobias

Answer 16

Some phobias do appear following a bad experience and it is easy to see how they could result in conditioning

People having a bad experience do not develop a phobia (e.g getting bitten by a dog)

Suggests that conditioning alone cannot explain phobias. They may only develop a vulnerability exists

Question 17

Limitation

Alernative explanantion for avoidance behaviour

Answer 17

In more complex behaviour like agoraphobia, there is evidence that at least some avoidance behaviour is motivated more by positive feelings of safety

Explains why some agoraphobias are able to leave their home with a trusted friend with relativity little anxiety but not alone

Problem for the two-way process model - suggests avoidance is motivated by anxiety reduction

Question 18

A strength of the two-way process is it has good explanatory power

Answer 18

1. The two-way model went beyond Watson and Rayner’s simple classical conditioning explanining phobias
2. It has important implications for therapy. If a paitent is prevented frompractising their avoidance behaviour then phobic behaviour declines
3. The application to therapy is a strength of two-way process

Question 19

A limitation

The two-way process doesn’t properly consider the cognitive aspects of phobias

Answer 19

• We know behavioural explanations in genral are oriented towards explaining behaviour rathee than cognition (thinking)
• This is then two-way process model explains maintenance of phobias in terms of avoidance - but we also know that phobias have a cognitive element
• The two-way process does not adequately address the cognitive element of phobias