Phobias

Question 1

What is the two-process model?

Answer 1

Step 1: acquisition of phobia by Classical Conditioning - association by UCS & NS - e.g. child having no fear of dog, put then getting bitten - generalisation occurs & child is scared of all dogs

Step 2: maintenance of phobia by operant conditioning - CS creates fear (CR), avoidance lessens this feeling, which is rewarding, thus, negative reinforcement, thus, strengthening fear

Question 2

What are the components of systematic desensitisation?

Answer 2

Anxiety Hierarchy - client & therapist work together to develop fear hierarchy, patient starts from bottom of fear hierarchy, when they remain relaxed in presence of stimulus, they move to next level

Relaxation techniques - e.g. breathing techniques, muscle relaxation, mental imagery

Exposure - patient confronts phobic stimulus while in relaxed state - reciprocal inhibition states person can’t exist in 2 opposing emotional states at same time, relaxation should overtake anxiety

Question 3

What is flooding?

Answer 3

Exposes patient to their worst fears for extended period of time in safe environment
Fear is time-limited response, after long time exhaustion sets in & anxiety goes down
Prolonged intense exposure eventually creates new association between feared object & something positive
Prevents reinforcement of behaviour through avoidance

Question 4

Evaluate the two process model

Answer 4

Limitation - behaviourist approach can’t account for all phobia - when asked, 2% of children with water phobia could recall traumatic experience with it Menzies & Clarke (1993) - if TPM true in all then percentage much higher

Limitation - some phobias of dangerous objects rare - knives - phobias of snakes, birds, dogs more common, they have evolutionary base as our ancestors hunted by them, goes against TPM

Strength - good explanatory power - TPM was step forward & explained how phobias maintained over time & was important for therapists, once patient prevented from avoidance fear declines

Question 5

Evaluate systematic desensitisation?

Answer 5

Strength - suitable for diverse range of patients - e.g. people with learning disabilities & heart conditions - can treat more people

Strength - low refusal/drop out rates - compared to flooding - more people successfully treated

Limitation - treatment can be costly - typical program lasts 6-7 weeks - more costly to NHS, thus, less likely to be prescribed

Question 6

Evaluate flooding

Answer 6

Strength - cost-effective - compared to cognitive therapy - patients free of symptoms & cheaper

Limitation - less effective for some phobias - e.g. social phobias - phobia may benefit from cognitive therapies more as they tackle irrational thinking

Limitation - treatment traumatic for patients - high drop out rates - time & money wasted