Phobias Flashcards
1
Q
Features of phobias
A
- a form of intense anxiety
- persistent and irrational fear of an object or situation
- a powerful urge to avoid fearful stimuli
- triggered flight or fight response = causes increase heart rate, sweating, shaking etc
2
Q
3 categories of phobias
A
- specific phobias
- social phobia
- agoraphobia
3
Q
Describe specific phobias
A
- intense persistent fear of an object to situation other than being in public places
E.g. animal type - natural environment ( height, storm )
- blood injection type
- situational type (airplanes/ lifts )
- others
4
Q
Describe social phobias
A
- irrational severe persistent fear of situation which the patient could be evaluated which involves other people
E.g. public speaking , eating in public / using public toilet / fear of functioning inappropriately when other s are watching
5
Q
Describe agoraphobia
A
- usually paired with a panic attack into intense fear of public places
- can cause intense embarrassment = loss of bladder or bowel control
- severe case when patients avoid in public places = make their virtual prison at home
6
Q
How can CC explain the acquisition of phobias ?
A
- when any NS repeatedly pair with UCS ( that naturally gives you a fear response) = produce a UCR of fear response
- after repeated parings = NS present will cause CR to produce = cause persistent phobia on NS
7
Q
What study criticise use of CC to explain acquisition of phobia
A
- Hekmat = investigated a group of students with various animal phobia, found only 23% of those reported due to direct conditioning experience
8
Q
How can SLT explain phobias acquisition ?
A
- attention = when see role model have fear towards something
- retention = when remember the fear response model has
- reproduction = imitate fear behaviour the model displayed before
- Motivation= models receive attention or reinforcement when fear displayed = encourage observer to imitate behaviour in order to get similar reinforcement
= gradually adapt into your phobia
9
Q
How is OC explain maintenance of phobias ?
A
- positive reinforcement = every time fear behaviour shown, reinforcement or attention is given = encourage it to take place more as wanted more reinforcement
- negative reinforcement = every time fear shown, stimuli is removed or avoidance of stimulus = exposure reduced so phobia remains
10
Q
How can SLT explain maintenance of phobias ?
A
- when model showed being negative reinforced as avoidance of stimuli = imitation occurs to display the same behaviour of avoidance = limit frequency of exposure = phobia remains
11
Q
Pros of how learning theories explain acquisition and maintenance of phobia
A
- supportive evidence = Watson and Rayner of the use of CC
Or Dubi et al = found toddler show negative reactions to fear irrelevant stimuli when observing mothers avoidance to them = shows maternal modelling impact young children’s fear
12
Q
Cons of using learning theories to explain phobias
A
- criticism of supportive evidence
- all supportive evidence is experimental = apply to W&R = lacks eco v
13
Q
AO1 of SD
A
- gradually reduce fear response
- based on idea of counter conditioning, reciprocal inhibition
1) relaxation techniques taught to clients e.g. breathing exercise and muscle relaxation
2) fear hierarchy used, least fear at bottom = in vitro imagining situation happening
Most fear at top = in vivo situation occur in reality - gradual exposure of level of fearful situation on the hierarchy
14
Q
Describe counter conditioning in SD
A
- learn to be calm when facing the fearful stimuli = based on CC aim to replace fear response with non fear response
15
Q
Describe reciprocal inhibition
A
- not possible to experience two conflicting emotions at the same time = replace feelings of anxiety to stimuli to feelings of calm
16
Q
Pros of SD
A
- supporting evidence = Deff et al= anxiety of people in public speaking course went down when they receive SD
- ethical = clients have full control on creating their fear hierarchy, decide if they are ready to move on to next step = empowers individual, allow self control
- practical = quick method comparing to psychotherapy
17
Q
Cons of SD
A
- requires commitment on part of the patient = put yourself into uncomfortable situation first
- symptoms substitution = don’t know why first fearful emotion happen
- only works for certain anxiety disorders
- issues related to socially sensitive research = morality of therapist and patient
18
Q
AO1 of flooding
A
- exposing clients under fearful stimuli physically for a prolonged period of time with no means to remove themselves from the situation.
- Continual exposure = eventually see it as less fear producing object
- rapid exposure to fearful stimuli = so extinction of anxiety symptoms can be accelerate
- use idea of reciprocal inhibition = replacing anxiety emotion to more calm emotion when facing the same object
- idea of alarm reaction
19
Q
Describe alarm reaction in flooding
A
- when the body give the person energy for flight or fight response to the situation. When blood sugar if energy slowly used up and no more is available, the body will eventually calm down.
- we only experience alarm reaction for a certain length of time, the reaction will need to be subsided because biological reaction cannot sustained indefinitely.
- so person will learn to have a calm response to previously fearful object
20
Q
Pros of flooding
A
- quick therapy = useful in strong anxiety as relaxation cannot be maintained unlike SD
- supporting evidence from Wolpe = girls afraid of cars
- it rests on strong theories = use of biological explanation of alarm reaction and CC of replacing emotions
21
Q
Cons of Flooding
A
- unethical = intentionally put clients under stressful conditions, cannot use on clients with medical conditions
- effectiveness of treatment may be short lived
- questions about morality of therapy = angar families and dominance of therapist of controlling
