Phobias Flashcards
What are the three DSM-5 categories of phobias?
- Specific phobia
- Social anxiety (social phobia)
- Agoraphobia
What is meant by agoraphobia?
A phobia of being outside or in a public space.
What is meant by a specific phobia?
A phobia of an object, such as an animal or a body part, or situation such as flying.
What is meant by a social phobia?
A phobia of being in a social situation such as public speaking or using a public toilet.
What is a phobia?
An irrational fear of an object or situation where the extent of fear is way out of proportion to any real danger presented by the phobic stimulus.
A common phobia is arachnophobia, what is this a fear of and what type of phobia is this?
Phobia of spiders, this is a specific phobia as it focus’ on a (specific) animal (spider).
Behavioural characteristics of phobias?
Panic, avoidance or endurance.
What is endurance?
Where the sufferer remains in the presence of their phobic stimulus but continues to experience high levels of anxiety.
What is avoidance?
The sufferer making a conscious effort to avoid coming into contact with their fear.
What is an alternative behaviour to endurance?
Avoidance.
What is an alternative behaviour to avoidance?
Endurance.
If someone has a fear of public toilets then what behavioural characteristic are they likely to show?
Avoidance, they are likely to avoid endurance at all costs and this can interfere with their social life as they cannot be out for too long.
What behavioural characteristic is shown by a child running and screaming from a spider?
Panic.
Which category of phobia does a fear of public speaking come under?
Social phobias.
What are the emotional characteristics of phobias?
Irrational and unreasonable levels of fear and anxiety.