Development of Specific Phobia Flashcards
The biopsychosocial approach
explaining how biological, psychological and social factors combine and interact to influence a person’s mental health and wellbeing”
three domains make up the biopsychosocial approach
Biological factors – internal, genetic and physiologically based factors
Psychological factors – internal factors relating to an individual’s mental processes
Social factors: external factors relating to an individual’s interactions with others and their external environment.
biological contributing factors
GABA neurotransmitter dysfunction
Long-term potentiation
GABA
primary inhibitory neurotransmitter of our Central Nervous System.
calming effect, acting like a brake.
link between low levels of GABA and Specific Phobia.
release of GABA may be inhibited or its binding at the postsynaptic receptor sites.
can impair one’s ability to regulate their flight-or-fight-or-freeze response.
long term potentiation describes
long-lasting enhancement of synaptic transmission due to repeated strong stimulation
In terms of Specific Phobia, long-term potentiation can perpetuate one’s phobia
the more the connection between one’s phobic stimulus and their fear is activated, the stronger the connection becomes.
Psychological contributing factors
Classical conditioning (precipitation)
Operant conditioning (perpetuation)
Cognitive biases – memory bias; catastrophic thinking
Precipitation by classical conditioning
- Classical conditioning can precipitate the onset of Specific Phobia.
hough classical conditioning involves repeated pairings of the NS and UCS, one may acquire a Specific Phobia through one pairing alone.
For example, developing a Specific Phobia of dogs after being attacked by a dog.
Perpetuation by operant conditioning
Operant conditioning can proglong one’s Specific Phobia.
One symptom of specific phobia is avoidance of the phobic stimulus.
avoiding their phobic stimulus – removal of unpleasant stimuli – one is more likely to avoid it again – the behaviour strengthening.
cognitive bias is
automatic tendency for processing or interpreting info a particular way
Which “produces systematic errors in thinking when making judgments or decisions
two types of cognitive biases linked to specific phobia: i.
memory bias; ii. catastrophic thinking
memory bias
a tendency to remember info of one kind at the expense of another kind
For example, a person who has developed a phobia of dogs due to one bad experience will tend to recall this memory more readily than positive experiences with dogs.
Catastrophic thinking
stimulus or event is predicted to be far worse than it actually is
Social contributing factors
Specific environmental triggers
Stigma around seeking treatment
