Phobias Flashcards
What are the behavioural characteristics?
1) Avoidance - making a conscious effort to avoid coming into contact with phobic stimulus
2) Panic - crying, screaming, running away from phobic stimulus. Even fainting or freezing.
What are the cognitive characteristics?
1) Persistent irrational beliefs about phobic stimulus e.g. a spider will harm you
2) Selective attention - Keeping attention focused on phobic stimulus and finding it difficult to look away in case of danger
What are the emotional characteristics?
1) Anxiety - exposure to phobic stimulus can cause unreasonable/excessive distress or worry
2) Fear - exposure to phobic stimulus can cause unreasonable/excessive terror.
AO1: Behavioural approach to explaining phobias
The behavioural approach argues that phobias are learned. Mowrer argues that phobias are initially learnt through classical conditioning and are maintained through operant conditioning. This is called the two process model. Classical conditioning involves learning to associate something we initially have not fear of (neutral stimulus) with something that already triggers a a fear response (unconditioned stimulus). This fear is triggered every time we think about or see the feared object.
For example they classically conditioned Little Albert who initially had no fear of rats. Whenever the rat (neutral stimulus) was presented they made a loud banging noise (unconditioned stimulus) by baking an iron bar close to him to produce a fear response (unconditioned response). When the rat was presented with the bang Albert learnt to associate them together. The rat become the conditioned stimulus which reduces the conditioned response of fear.
Responses acquired by classical conditioned tend to decline over time however they are painted through operant conditioning. By continuing to avoid the feared stimulus they are being negatively reinforced by avoids the anxiety they feel. Therefore phobias are lost lasting due to continued avoidance.
What are the evaluations for explaining phobias? (3 + counter argument)
1) Environmental reductionism
2) Practical applications
3) RTS Ad De Jognh - dentist
4) Counter argument
AO3: Explaining - environmental reductionism
The behavioural approach to explaining behaviour can be criticised for environmental reductionism. It reduces the complex human behaviour of phobias into simple basic units of learning phobias through associations between neutral stimulus, unconditioned stimulus and unconditioned response and painting phobias through negative reinforcements. This neglects a holistic approach which would take into account how a persons social and cultural context would influence phobias. For example Taijin Kyofusno is the extreme fear of displeasing others which is relative to Japan, a collectivist, non-western culture, which is less likely to occur in a western, individualistic culture. Therefore the behavioural approach to explaining phobias may lack validity as it doesn’t allow us to understand behaviour in context.
AO3: Explaining - Practical applications
The behavioural approach to explaining behaviour can be praised for having practical applications. The principles of the theory that phobias are learnt by classical conditions suggests that they can be unlearned by classical conditioning which has led to the treatment of systematic desensitisation. This works by teaching individuals relation techniques and gradually exposing them to there phobic stimulus so they learn to associate it with relaxation instead of fear, removing the phobia. Therefore this is an important part of applied psychology as it helps to treat people in the real world.
AO3: Explaining - RTS
Research to support explaining phobias comes from Ad de Jongh. They compared participants who had high dental anxiety to participants with low dental anxiety (no phobia). They found that 73% of people who had a fear of dental treatment had experienced a traumatic event mostly involving dentistry compared to 21% who had a traumatic experience but no phobia. Thus supports associating a stimulus (dentistry) with an unconditioned response (pain) lead to the development of phobia, increasing the internal validity of the behaviourist explanation of phobias
AO3: Explaining - counter
However, its important to note that not all bad experiences lead to phobias. as the 21% in the control group had a traumatic experience involving dentistry but did not develop a phobia. Additionally some people have phobias of things they’ve never encountered or had a bad experience with e.g. snakes which suggests there are other explanations e.g. biological that should be considered when explaining behaviour.
AO1: Behavioural approach to treating phobias - systematic desensitisation
The aim of classical conditioning is to use classical conditioning to unlearn a maladaptive behaviour response to the phobic stimulus.
The martinet is taught how to relax using muscle relaxation techniques and breathing exercise. The patient then works with the therapist to make a graded scale , hierarchy of anxiety, starting with the stimuli that scares them the least to the most. For example a picture of a wasp would be low on the scale but being in the same room as the wasp would be the highest. The client is the gradually exposed to the phobic stimulus while putting relaxation techniques in place. This is knows as reciprocal inhibition - the concept that two incompatible states of mind can’t co-exist - such as anxiety and relaxation. The client moves onto the next stage when they are completely relaxed. Complete treatment is achieved when they have been desensitised and can move through the hierarchy without anxiety.
What are the evaluations for systematic desensitisation? (4)
1) RTS - Gilroy - spider phobia
2) Motivation and commitment
3) High control over therapy
4) Virtual reality
AO3: SD - RTS Gilroy
Research to support SD as an effective behavioural treatment for phobias comes from Gilroy. She followed up 42 people who had SD for a phobia of spiders in three 45-minute sessions. She found that after 3 months and 33 months the SD group were much less fearful of the phobic stimulus the control group who did not have exposure to phobic stimulus as part of their therapy. Therefore this shows the effectiveness of reassociating a feared stimuli with relaxation in SD as a treatment for phobias.
AO3: SD - Motivation
However SD may not be an appreciate treatment for phobias as it requires motivation and commitment. Patients must attend sessions over a period of time in situations that are anxiety provoking, making them stop therapy. If they are stopping therapy it is ineffective as anxieties will return. This is unlike drug therapy where patients only have to take a tablet in order to reduce anxiety which requires little willpower. Therefore this reduces the appropriateness of SD as a behavioural treatment of phobias.
AO3: SD - High control
A strength of SD as a treatment is that patients have high control over their therapy. This is because the patients works with there therapist to create their own hierarchy of anxiety and move through using gradual exposure. They only move onto the next stage when the patient feels relaxed. This is unlike flooding which can be quite traumatic as the oaten is exposed to their most feared stimulus straight away which can cause high anxiety levels. Therefore SD is a more appropriate treatment as patients are more likely to opt for this and it has low attrition rates.
