Phobias (Behavioural explanations) Flashcards
What are the main assumptions of the behavioural approach in regards to phobias?
- The behavioural approach emphasises the role of learning in phobias.
- Mowrer states that a combination of classical and operant conditioning can explain how phobias are learnt and why they are difficult to extinguish.
What is the 2 process model? (Classical conditioning)
- States that phobias are acquired through classical conditioning: an unconditioned fear response is associated with a stimulus which should be a neutral, but has become a conditioned stimulus through being paired with a ‘threatening’ stimulus.
- After this pairing, the conditioned stimulus produces a fear response (conditioned response) in its own right (in the absence of the unconditioned stimulus).
Little Albert experiment (pt.1)
- Watson & Raynor= conditioned Little Albert to fear white fluffy animals.
Little Albert experiment (p.2)
- A tame white rat (NS) was paired with a sudden loud noise (UCS). The noise caused Little Albert to experience fear (UCR) and after repeated pairings, this fear became associated with the rat (now the CS).
- Little Albert’s fear extended to other white fluffy animals. This is called stimulus generalisation.
What is the 2 process model? (Operant conditioning)
- States that operant conditioning maintains a fear response. Avoidance behaviours lead to a reduction in unpleasant feelings and this negatively reinforces the phobia. These avoidance responses make phobias very resistant to extinction.
Evaluation of behavioural explanations of phobias (Research support)
- Watson & Raynor’s study of Little Albert supports classical conditioning as an explanation for the acquisition of phobias, this is also supported by DiNardo et al who found that over 50% of people with dog phobias could recall being bitten or having a frightening past experience with a dog.
- DiNardo’s study can also be used to challenge this explanation, with nearly 50% of people unable to recall a negative experience, this is problematic for the behavioural explanation.
Evaluation of behavioural explanations of phobias (Alternative explanations)- pt.1
Not all phobias have a traumatic experience linked to them and this explanation cannot explain why some phobias are more common that others.
- This might be better explained by the evolutionary explanation of ‘biological preparedness’.
- This explanation states that phobias that helped our hunter-gatherer ancestors to survive have been passed down through successive generations, and this explains why phobias of heights, spiders and open spaces are common, whereas phobias of guns and cars (that pose an actual threat in our society) are not apparent.
Evaluation of the behavioural explanations of phobias (Alternative explanation)- pt.2
- Cognitive explanations are also considered superior to behavioural explanations for phobias because they account for the thought processes that underpin phobias. Many phobias are characterised by extreme, irrational thought processes that the behavioural explanation cannot account for.
Evaluation of the behavioural explanations of phobias (Successful therapies)- pt.1
- This explanation has led to the development of effective behavioural treatments, including systematic desensitisation. This works on the principle that fear can be ‘counter conditioned’ and a new association can be made between an experience and relaxation in the place of fear.
Evaluation of the behavioural explanations of phobias (Successful therapies)- pt.2
- Systematic desensitisation and flooding both prevent avoidance behaviour, and this stops any reinforcement through anxiety reduction. The effectiveness of these treatments supports the value of the two-process model.
What is stimulus generalisation?
- When the fear (response produced) is extended to other stimuli.
