Lecture 3 - Introduction to anxiety disorders, specific phobia and social anxiety disorder Flashcards
Anxiety
A mood state characterized by strong negative emotions and physical symptoms of tension in anticipation of future danger or misfortune.
Anxiety Disorders
A group of mental illnesses where the primary symptom is excessive or unrealistic anxiety and fearfulness, disproportionate to the actual threat.
Specific Phobia
An excessive, unreasonable, and persistent fear of a specific object or situation.
Social Anxiety Disorder (SAD)
Fear of social situations or interactions where negative evaluation is possible, leading to overwhelming anxiety.
Co-morbidity
The presence of one or more additional medical or psychological disorders co-occurring with a primary condition.
Displacement (in psychology)
A defense mechanism where emotions or impulses are redirected from their original target to a less threatening substitute.
Oedipus Complex
In psychoanalytic theory, a stage of psychosexual development (phallic stage) where a child develops unconscious sexual desires for the opposite-sex parent and rivalry with the same-sex parent.
Castration Anxiety
In psychoanalytic theory, an irrational fear in boys that their father will castrate them as punishment for their desire for their mother.
Conditioning
A learning process where a neutral stimulus becomes associated with a meaningful stimulus, eliciting a specific response.
Mowrer’s Two-Factor Model
A theory of phobia development that suggests fear is acquired through classical conditioning and maintained through operant conditioning.
Biological Preparedness
The theory that humans are predisposed to fear certain stimuli that posed threats to our ancestors, facilitating survival.
Non-Associative Fear Acquisition
The development of fear towards biologically relevant stimuli without prior learning or conditioning.
Habituation
A decrease in response to a stimulus after repeated exposure.
Amygdala
A brain structure involved in processing emotions, particularly fear and anxiety.
Exposure Therapies
Therapeutic approaches based on principles of classical conditioning, involving gradual or sudden exposure to feared stimuli to reduce anxiety.
Counterconditioning
A technique where a feared stimulus is paired with a positive stimulus to reduce the fear response.
Systematic Desensitization
A type of exposure therapy where individuals are gradually exposed to a hierarchy of fear-inducing stimuli while practicing relaxation techniques.
Flooding
A type of exposure therapy where individuals are directly exposed to the most feared stimulus for a prolonged period, preventing avoidance and promoting extinction of the fear response.
Cognitive Therapy Techniques
Therapeutic approaches focusing on identifying and changing unhelpful thoughts and beliefs that contribute to anxiety.
Cognitive Restructuring
A cognitive therapy technique that involves identifying and challenging negative or distorted thoughts and replacing them with more realistic and helpful ones.
Self-Focused Attention
A tendency to focus inward on oneself and one’s anxiety responses during social situations, exacerbating anxiety.
Information and Interpretation Bias
A cognitive bias where individuals selectively attend to and interpret information in a way that confirms their existing beliefs or anxieties.
Selective Attention
The process of focusing on specific stimuli while ignoring others, often influenced by anxiety or fear.
Behavioural Inhibition (BI)
A temperamental trait characterized by distress and withdrawal from unfamiliar situations, people, or environments, often considered a precursor to social anxiety.
Safety Behaviours
Actions or strategies used by individuals with anxiety to avoid or minimize perceived threats, often maintaining or exacerbating anxiety in the long run.
Modeling Behaviours
Learning by observing and imitating the behaviour of others, particularly influential figures like parents.
Social Skills Training
A therapeutic approach that teaches individuals with social anxiety specific social skills and techniques to improve their interactions and reduce anxiety.
Pharmacological Treatment
The use of medications to treat mental health conditions, such as anxiety disorders.
Monoamine Oxidase Inhibitors (MAOIs)
A class of antidepressants that block the enzyme monoamine oxidase, increasing levels of neurotransmitters like serotonin and norepinephrine.
Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs)
A class of antidepressants that block the reuptake of serotonin, increasing serotonin levels in the brain.
What are the three components of fear and anxiety, and how do they differ in fear and anxiety responses?
The three components are: Cognitive/subjective (“I am in danger!” for fear, “I am worried about what might happen” for anxiety), Physiological (increased heart rate and sweating for fear, tension and chronic overarousal for anxiety), and Behavioural (desire to escape for fear, general avoidance for anxiety). Fear responses are immediate and focused on the present threat, while anxiety responses are future-oriented and involve anticipation and worry.
Briefly explain Freud’s psychoanalytic explanation of phobia development using the case of Little Hans.
Freud believed phobias represented repressed id urges displaced onto symbolic external objects. In Little Hans’ case, his fear of horses was interpreted as a displacement of his Oedipal desire for his mother and fear of castration by his father, symbolized by the powerful horse.
Explain Mowrer’s two-factor model and its relevance to understanding phobias.
Mowrer’s two-factor model proposes that phobias are acquired through classical conditioning (pairing a neutral stimulus with a fear-inducing one) and maintained through operant conditioning (avoidance of the feared stimulus reducing anxiety, reinforcing the avoidance behaviour).
How does the “biological preparedness” theory explain the development of specific phobias?
Biological preparedness suggests that humans have evolved to quickly develop fears towards stimuli that posed threats to our ancestors (e.g., snakes, spiders), as this enhanced survival. These innate predispositions make us more susceptible to developing phobias related to these evolutionarily relevant threats.
Describe the two pathways in the brain involved in detecting danger and triggering fear responses, highlighting the differences between them.
The fast, direct route (Evolved Fear Module) sends sensory information directly to the amygdala, triggering immediate fear responses. The slower, indirect route involves processing information through the cortex, allowing conscious evaluation of the threat before triggering a fear response if deemed necessary. People with specific phobias tend to have an overactive direct route.
What are the core principles of exposure therapies, and how do they aim to reduce fear and anxiety?
Exposure therapies are based on the principle of habituation, where repeated exposure to the feared stimulus in a safe environment leads to a decrease in fear. They aim to break the cycle of avoidance and fear by promoting direct confrontation with the feared object or situation.
Differentiate between systematic desensitization and flooding as exposure therapy techniques.
Systematic desensitization involves gradual exposure to a hierarchy of fear-inducing stimuli while practicing relaxation techniques, whereas flooding involves prolonged and intense exposure to the most feared stimulus, preventing avoidance and promoting rapid extinction.
What are some common cognitive factors that contribute to social anxiety disorder?
Cognitive factors contributing to SAD include self-focused attention (excessive focus on one’s anxiety responses), negative self-evaluation, information and interpretation bias (selectively attending to and interpreting information in a negative way), and difficulty processing positive social feedback.
How can parental behaviour and interactions influence the development of social anxiety in children?
Parents can influence SAD development through direct instruction (teaching children that social situations are threatening), modeling behaviours (demonstrating avoidance and safety behaviours), and their interactive style (overly controlling or critical parenting can increase anxiety).
Briefly describe two types of pharmacological treatments used for social anxiety disorder and their mechanisms of action.
MAOIs block the enzyme monoamine oxidase, increasing levels of neurotransmitters like serotonin and norepinephrine. SSRIs specifically block the reuptake of serotonin, increasing serotonin levels in the brain. Both classes of medications help regulate mood and reduce anxiety.
