LEARNING APPROACH- Saavedra & Silverman (BUTTON PHOBIA) Flashcards
what was the background of the study
-Saavedra and Silverman wanted to investigate whether classical conditioning be used to treat a boy with button phobia by targeting disgust and fear responses.
-as previously no attempt had been made to investigate this
he also explained how his phobia came to be
state the psychology being investigated (terms)
-Evaluative learning
-classical conditioning
-phobias
-Expectancy learning
what is classical conditioning
-this is learning through associations whereby a previously neutral stimuli is linked to a conditioned response
what is evaluative learning
This is a form of classical conditioning that involves the individual forming an association between a previously neural stimulus and a negative emotion however it does not cause any danger or threat. This links to feelings of disgust rather than fear.
What is expectancy learning
- a type of classical conditioning that involves associating a previously neutral stimuli with a strong negative emotion because it may cause some harm or threat.
what is a phobia
A persistent, irrational or intrusive fear over an object, item or situation. the individual realises that it may be exaggerated
How was the phobia diagnosed
- He met the criteria from the DSM-5 for a phobia and NOT OCD
- The interview managed to investigate how he got the phobia
Describe the imagery exposure therapy
- Imagery exposure therapy was based on classical conditioning using the Vivo method.
-The boy was told to imagine buttons falling on him and was asked how do they:
>smell
>felt
>looked
-Exposures progressed from images of larger to smaller buttons, in line with the boy’s fear hierarchy.
-there were 7 sessions
what were the 2 aims of the study
-To examine the role of classical conditioning in relation to fear and avoidance of a particular stimulus
-investigate to see if using a type of exposure therapy could reduce the disgust and distress associated with buttons
what were the 3 instruments used
*The anxiety disorder interview schedule
*DSM-IV
*The feelings thermometer
Give 5 features of the sample
-male
-9 years old ( 5 years old when he got the phobia)
-Hispanic American
-met the criteria for a specific phobia in DSM
-took support from the child anxiety and phobia program at Florida Miami
which type of research method was this and design
Case study
Longitudinal design
what was the qualitative and quantitative data collection method
through interviews with the mother
as well as the feelings thermometer
the number of buttons he handled
describe the feelings thermometer
A 9-point scale of distress with the highest score being an 8
what were the 2 interventions used
-Positive reinforcement therapy
-Imagery Exposure
Describe how the phobia came to be
The boy was 5 years old and it was during an art class. He had ran out of buttons and went to retrieve more but as he reached for the bowl of buttons on his teachers desk, they fell on him.
How did his phobia affect his daily life
-could not dress himself
-difficulties in concentration in class to avoid touching his uniform
- avoided people who had buttons on their shirt
why did the researchers create a hierarchy of feared of stimuli
To understand the Boys specific feelings towards different buttons prior to treatment
which stimuli had the highest and lowest scores on the hierarchy of fear
Large denime jean buttons- 2/8
Small plastic coloured/ clear buttons- 8/8
in the interviews, what did the boy reveal about how the buttons made him feel
-They smelt unpleasant
- if they touched his body, it felt unpleasant
How come the boy did not meet the criteria for OCD
His symptoms did not include persistent and recurrent thoughts, images or impulses that may be intrusive
Describe the positive reinforcement therapy
-a behavioural therapy based on operant conditioning. Using positive reinforcement principles, contingency management was applied
-Here the boy was gradually exposed to buttons
-the boy was rewarded for handling the buttons by his mother (praise)
-the session lasted 30 mins with the boy and 20 mins with the boy and mother
-had 4 sessions
describe the results of the positive reinforcement therapy
-Session 1 was successful of all the exposure tasks listed in the hierarchy of fear
-as the sessions went to session 4, the ratings of distress increased and worsened
Describe what happened during Imagery Exposure Therapy (Vitro exposure)
- the therapist used cognitive restructuring
- it involved 2 sessions
- this used imaginary buttons and progressed from larger to smaller buttons
- one session for example had the boy imagine 100 buttons falling over him
- another sessions involved hugging his mother who wore a shirt with buttons
- the boy had to describe how they felt, smelt and looked
