Phobias Flashcards
What is a phobia
An Anxiety Disorder that causes you to avoid an extreme fear
What behaviour does most phobias commonly produce
The person to produce a conscious avoidance of the feared object due to Irrational Fears
What is the DSM-IV
Stands for Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders
- A book to provide a framework for classifying disorders an defining diagnostic criteria for the disorders
What is meant by a Specific Phobia
Specific phobia is an intense, irrational fear of something that poses little or no actual danger.
The fear that they have is caused by a specific stimulant
What is a Social Phobia
- An intense fear of a social situation
OR - An intense fear of having to interact with other people
What is the difference between Phobias and Anxiety
- Anxiety is a natural response to a perceived threat
- Though a Phobia is an irrational, Persistent and Extreme fear of something
What is the function of a phobia
It compels you to avoid an irrational fear
Though well knowing that it can be harmless
Name 2 Emotional (Feel) Characteristic of Phobias
- The person feels panic and anxiety when in the presence of or in anticipation of meeting the feared object
- There is an immediate fear response, or panic attack cued by the specific situation or object
Name 2 Cognitive (Thoughts) Characteristic of Phobias
- Irrational Thoughts
- Resistance to Logic (Facts do not convince you)
Name 2 Behavioural (Act) Characteristic of Phobias
- Avoidance
- Fight or Flight (Big Adrenaline Rush)
Describe on behavioural characteristic that might be seen in a person who has a phobia of Wasps
Avoidance - Tend to avoid activities or places that may cause an encounter with a wasp, such as Beaches or Gardens
What are the 2 things Mowrer suggested would combine to understand how phobias are learned
Classical and Operant Conditioning
Define Classical Conditioning
A Learning process that occurs when two stimuli are repeatedly paired: a response which is at first elicited by the second stimulus is eventually elicited by the first stimulus alone.
Describe Little Albert’s Experiment
- Albert was first introduce to a white rat and showed no fear response
- During the experiment, each time the rat appeared, a loud bang was made by an iron bar and a hammer
- Albert Showed distress at the sound
- So Watson and Rayner paired the two so Albert would be conditioned to be scared of the rat when hearing the noise
- So then Albert had developed a conditioned fear of the rat without the bang
How does the Behavioural approach explain the maintenance of Phobias
Operant Conditioning takes place when our behaviour is reinforced
- It increases the frequency of a behaviour
- When we avoid a phobic stimulus, we successfully escape the fear and anxiety
- That therefore rewards us with the freedom and negatively reinforces the avoidance behaviour and the phobia is then maintained
