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Pyschopathology > Phobias > Flashcards

Phobias Flashcards

1
Q

What are phobias?

A

An irrational fear of an object, place or situation that causes a constant avoidance of said object, place or situation.

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2
Q

What are the categories of phobias recognised by the DSM-5?

A

The DSM-5 recognises the following categories of phobias:
1. Specific phobia: Phobia of a specific object or situation (e.g. needles, spiders, flying)
2. Social phobia (Social anxiety): Phobia of social situations (e.g. public speaking)
3. Agoraphobia: Phobia of being outside

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3
Q

Behavioural characteristics of phobias

A

Ways in which people act
Panic
Avoidance
Endurance

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4
Q

Emotional characteristics of phobias

A

Ways in which people feel
Fear
Anxiety
Unreasonable responses

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5
Q

Cognitive characteristics of phobias

A

Ways in which people process information Selective attention

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6
Q

Panic

A

May involve crying, screaming, running away

Example: A person with panic disorder may experience a sudden and intense fear when faced with a trigger.

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7
Q

Avoidance

A

Can make it difficult to go about daily life
Can interfere with work education social life etc

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8
Q

Endurance

A

Remain in the presence of the phobic stimulus but experience high levels of anxiety

Example: A person with a fear of heights may endure being on a tall building but feel extremely anxious.

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9
Q

Fear

A

Immediate response
Occurs when encountering or thinking about the phobic stimulus

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10
Q

Anxiety

A

Phobias are classed as anxiety disorders
Can be long term
Prevents relaxation

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11
Q

Unreasonable responses

A

Response to stimulus is wildly disproportionate to the danger posed by the stimulus

Example: Someone with a phobia of spiders may scream and run away at the sight of a tiny spider.

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12
Q

Selective attention

A

May be hard to look away from phobic stimulus

Selective attention can make it challenging to focus on anything else when faced with a phobic trigger.

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13
Q

Irrational beliefs

A

Beliefs that are difficult or impossible in reality

Example: A person with a phobia of public speaking may believe that they will always embarrass themselves.

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14
Q

Cognitive distortions

A

Perception of the phobic stimulus is likely to be different to people without a phobia
Example: people scared of snakes will find them alien like

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15
Q

How are phobias charecterised

A

Phobias are characterised by excessive fear and anxiety caused by the object, place or situation.

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16
Q

What does the behavioural approach emphasise?

A

The behavioural approach emphasises the role of learning in the acquisition of behaviour, and focuses on observable behaviours

17
Q

Who proposed the two-process model?

A

Mowrer (1960) proposed the two-process model, based on the behavioural approach. This states that phobias are learnt through classical conditioning, and maintained through operant conditioning

18
Q

What is classical conditioning?

A

Classical conditioning involves learning to associate a neutral stimulus (something we are not afraid of) with an unconditioned stimulus (something that already triggers a fear response)

E.g Little Albert was conditioned to have a phobia

19
Q

What is operant conditioning?

A

Operant conditioning reinforces behaviour (the behavioural characteristics of phobias)

Negative reinforcement (avoiding the unpleasant situation) leads to a desirable consequence (no fear or anxiety), meaning the behaviour is likely to be repeated, and so the phobia is maintained

20
Q

What does the Little Albert case study show?

A

The Little Albert case study shows that phobias can be learnt
It also shows that phobias can be generalised to other stimuli
Therefore mowers model has validity

21
Q

Why is the two-process model considered incomplete and reductionist

A

does not consider all perspectives
- some phobias exist without an initial traumatising experience

• The role of cognition and biology (e.g. inherited vulnerability) have been ignored in this explanation

22
Q

What is flooding therapy?

A

-Flooding involves exposing patients to their phobic stimulus without the gradual build-up
-involves immediate exposure to a very frightening situation
- usually lasts 2-3 hours
• patients are unable to avoid the phobic stimulus, so they quickly learn that it is harmless
• In some cases, the patient may achieve relaxation in the presence of the phobic stimulus simply because they become exhausted by their own fear response

23
Q

Why is flooding considered cost-effective and preparatory

A
  • Flooding is as effective as other treatments for specific phobias Ougrin (2011) found flooding to be highly effective and quicker than cognitive therapies
  • Prepares individuals for worst case scenario
    • This makes the treatment more generalisable to real-life situations, and is therefore potentially more useful than SD
24
Q

What are limitations of flooding therapy?

A

-Flooding is traumatic whilst not really unethical (as patients give consent)

  • It’s less effective for some phobias (social phobias are far more complex)
  • Symptom substitution
    When one phobia is treated, it is quite common for it to be replaced with another
25
Q

What is Symptom substitution

A

When one phobia is treated, it is quite common for it to be replaced with another

e.g Treating a fear of heights may lead to developing a fear of enclosed spaces

26
Q

What is Systematic Desensitisation (SD)

A

Gradually reduces a phobia through classical conditioning by learning to relax with the phobic stimulus

27
Q

What is a Anxiety Hierarchy

A

Patient and therapist work together to create a list of situations related to the phobic stimulus that provoke anxiety

28
Q

What is Relaxation in SD

A

The therapist teaches the patient to relax as deeply as possible which may involve
- deep breathing
- mediation
- mental imagery
- drugs (Valium)

29
Q

What is Exposure in SD

A

The patient is exposed to the phobic stimulus while in a relaxed state through several stages on the anxiety hiarchy

30
Q

PROS OF SD effectiveness

A
  • Research supports the effectiveness Gilroy et al. (2003) followed up 42 patients who had been treated for arachnophobia in three 45-minute sessions of SD
  • Acceptability of SD to patients
    Patients prefer SD over other phobia treatments, such as flooding
31
Q

Limitations of SD effectiveness

A
  • LACK OF IRL APPLICATION In reality, patients would not get to choose when or how they are exposed to a phobic stimulus
  • NOT GENERALLY APPROPRIATE While SD may be effective for phobias of objects, things like concepts or unavoidable situations may be more difficult to work up to

Pyschopathology (4 decks)

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