Fears

Question 1

Are there differences in fear between children?

Answer 1

Individual variation
Very complex, universal emotion
Typically, physiological symptoms (sweating)), cognitive (dread) and subjective (upset)

Question 2

What do we fear?

Answer 2

Things which are a threat to our safety eg. environmental factors

Question 3

Responses to fear

Answer 3

Flight
Fight
Freeze

Question 4

How are childhood fears assessed?

Answer 4

Interviews, questionnaires, parent/teacher reports

Question 5

What are normal fears?

Answer 5

Common
appear randomly
mild
predictable pattern
decrease with age

Question 6

Gullone

Answer 6

Reviewed interviews with 4-19 year olds, average number of fears = 2-5 per child, general themes = animals, death/injury, social concerns

Question 7

Bauer

Answer 7

3 different age groups
“what are you afraid of most”
All decrease with age, apart from physical danger and injury

Question 8

What is the fear survey schedule

Answer 8

80 item measure of children fear in response to a range of stimuli/situations

Question 9

Ollendick - fear survey schedule

Answer 9

Found 5 factors:
fear of danger and death
failure and criticism
the unknown
animals
stress and medical
But..
doesn't capture contemporary threats
limited to items on the scale
might not show actual fear, ppl may life

Question 10

Ollendick, king and fray 1989

Answer 10

1185 children, US and Australia, av of 14 fears reported, top = danger and physical harm
girls report more fear than boys
fears higher for death and danger
Follow up in 1999 - fears declined with age, death and danger highest. Stress and medical increased with age

Question 11

What are the moderators of childhood fears?

Answer 11

Gender
Culture
Socioeconomic effects

Question 12

Gender effects

Answer 12

Girls report more fears and have a higher prevalence of anxiety
Certain fears for certain genders
Girls = spiders, mice, dreams, rats, home alone
High femininity and low masculinity associated with greater avoidance and anxiety
Gender role orientation stronger predictor than sex

Question 13

Cultural effects

Answer 13

Consistency among Western cultures, fears decreasing with age, girls more fearful, same developmental patterns
Some cultural differences in collectivist places, due to cultural group membership
Ethnic minorities display higher

Question 14

Socioeconomic effects

Answer 14

Lower SES report more fears, and differences in the fears
Low SES = animals, strangers, death, violence, knives
Middle/upper = heights, ill, roller coasters, pets safety

Question 15

Why do gender effects occur?

Answer 15

Gender role stereotyping reinforces girls to show fear and emotions
In a study, 72 fear item schedule, 1 month late repeated this containing 14 original items, told shown a video of fish, mice, rats and rollercoaster while heart monitored. Told heart is important lie detector indicator so need to be accurate
Results: females fear response didn’t change between test and retest, males increased for mice, rollercoaster and bugs - more likely to preserve masculine image

Question 16

Why do cultural effects occur?

Answer 16

Socalisation practises - collectivist cultures emphasise self control, social inhibition and compliance with norms, could lead to anxiety and fears
Ollendick et al: differences in intensity and pattern of fears
Nigeria > china > america = australia
girls > boys apart from Nigeria
fears decreased with age only in US and Australia
Peak in anxiety at 10-14 in china, could be due to intense schooling
Common fears = death and danger but more social evaluative and safety in Nigeria and china
Idiosyncratic fears: ghosts in china, looking foolish in US, ocean in Nigeria and guns in Australia

Question 17

Why do socioeconomic effects occur?

Answer 17

Exposed to more threats and general feelings on fear and anxiety

Question 18

What are the developmental patterns

Answer 18

Infants - environmental stimuli
4-8 - ghosts, imaginary creates
10-12 - social fears
evidence this maps onto age of onset of phobias:
height/water begins in infancy
animal begins at 7/9
social fears in pre adolescence

Question 19

Evidence for developmental patterns

Answer 19

Beuer
Fears of monsters and ghosts decreases with age
Fear of bodily injury and physical danger increases with age

Muris et al
4-12 year old, fears decrease with age

Westernberg et al
Social fears increased (evaluation and achievement)
Physical fears decreased

Question 20

What explains the predictable pattern?

Answer 20

Evolution

Cognitive development

Question 21

Evolution

Answer 21

Fear system evolved to focus on threats at ages which they would’ve been the greatest risk for our ancestors
Infancy - fears to keep infants close to caregiver
Older mid children - can explore the environment so fear of the animals and the dark
Childhood- fear social position, need to pass genes on

Question 22

Cognitive development

Answer 22

Fear originates from conceptualisation of threat, depending on physical and cognitive abilities. As cognitive abilities mature, have increased awareness of worry

Question 23

Muris et al - cognitive development

Answer 23

Increased age and cognitive abilities leads to enhanced ability to elaborate and then worry. worry common as the point that children can elaborate
Increased age and cognitive ability = more elaboration = emergence of personal worry