Phobias Flashcards
phobia definition
an irrational fear of an object or situation
behavioural definition
ways in which people act
emotional definition
related to a person’s feelings or mood
cognitive definition
refers to the process of ‘knowing’, including thinking, reasoning, remembering, believing
what is the DSM-5
there are a number of systems for classifying and diagnosing mental health problems. perhaps the best known is the DSM. this stands for diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorder and is published by the American psychiatric association
DSM updates
DSM is updated every so often as ideas about abnormality change. the current version is the 5th edition so is commonly called the DSM-5 which was published in 2013
how are phobias categorised
excessive fear and anxiety, triggered by an object, place or situation. the extent of fear is out of proportion to any real danger presented by the phobic stimulus
How does the latest DSM-5 categorise phobia and relayed anxiety disorder
-specific phobia- phobia of an object, such as an animal or body part, or a situation such as flying or having an injection
-social anxiety (social phobia)- phobia of a social situation such as public speaking or using a public toilet
-agoraphobia- phobia of being outside or in a public place
what is a specific phobia
phobia of an object, such as an animal or body part, or a situation such as flying or having an injection
what is social anxiety (social phobia)
phobia of a social situation such as public speaking or using a public toilet
what is agoraphobia
phobia of being outside or in a public place
which 3 ways are phobias characterised
-behavioural
-emotional
-cognitive
what is behavioural characteristic of phobia
we respond to things or situations we fear by behaving in particular ways. we respond by feeling high levels of anxiety and trying to escape. the fear responses in phobias are the same as we experience for any other fear even if the fear is irrational (out of proportion to the phobic stimulus)
what are 3 factors of behavioural characteristics of phobias
-panic
-avoidance
-endurance
what is panic as a behavioural characteristic of phobias
a person with a phobia may panic in response to the presence of the phobic stimulus. panic may involve a range of behaviours including crying, screaming or running away. children may react slightly differently, for example by freezing, clinging or having a tantrum
what is avoidance as a behavioural characteristic of a phobia
unless the person is making a conscious effort to face their fear they tend to go to a lot if effort to prevent coming into contact with the phobic stimulus which can make it hard to go about daily life. for example someone with a fear of public toilets may have to limit the time they spend outside the home in relation to how long they can last without a toilet, this in turn can interfere with work, education and social life
what is endurance as a behavioural characteristic of phobias
an alternative behavioural response to avoidance is endurance. this occurs when the person chooses to remain in the presence of the phobic stimulus. for example a person with arachnophobia might choose to remain in a room with a spider on the ceiling and keep a wary eye on it rather than leaving
what are the 3 emotional characteristics of phobias
-anxiety
-fear
-emotional response is unreasonable
what is anxiety as an emotional characteristic of a phobia
phobias are classed as anxiety disorders. by definition they involve an emotional response of anxiety, an unpleasant state of high arousal. this prevents a person relaxing and makes it very difficult to experience any positive emotion. anxiety can be long term
what is fear as an emotional characteristic of phobias
anxiety and fear have distinct meanings. fear is the immediate and extremely unpleasant response we experience when we encounter or think about a phobic stimulus. it is usually more intense by experienced for shorter periods than anxiety
emotional response is unreasonable as an emotional characteristic of phobias
the anxiety of fear is much greater than is normal and disproportioned to nay threat posed. for example, a person with arachnophobia will have a strong emotional response to a tiny spider. most people would respond in a less anxious way even to a poisonous spider
what are the 3 cognitive factors of phobias
-selective attention to the phobic stimulus
-irrational beliefs
-cognitive distortions
what is the cognitive element of phobias
concerned with the ways people process information, people with phobias processes information about phobic stimulus different from other objects or stimulus
what is selective attention to the phobic stimulus as a cognitive characteristic of phobias
if a person can see the phobic stimulus it is hard to look away from it. keeping our attention on something really dangerous is a good thing as it gives us the best chance of reacting quickly to a threat, but this is not useful when the fear is irrational. a person with pogonophobia will struggle to concentrate on what they are doing if there is someone with a beard in the room
what is irrational belief as a cognitive characteristic of phobias
a person with a phobia may hold unfolded thoughts in relation to phobic stimuli (ie that can’t be easily explained and don’t have any basis in reality). for example, social phobias can involve beliefs like i must always sound intelligent or if i blush people will think I’m weak. this kind of belief increases the pressure in the person to perform well in social situations
what are cognitive distortions as a cognitive characteristic of phobias
the perceptions of a person with a phobia may be inaccurate and unrealistic. so, for example, someone with mycophobia sees mushrooms as disgusting, and an ophiophobic may see snakes as alien and aggressive-looking
