Phobias (intro)

Question 1

What is the definition of phobias/phobic disorders?

Answer 1

Instances of irrational fears that produce a conscious avoidance of the feared object or situation.
This includes agoraphobia, social phobia, and specific phobias

Question 2

What are the emotional characteristics of phobias?

Answer 2

Fear that is marked and persistent, and likely to be unreasonable/excessive
Feelings of anxiety and panic
Feelings are out of proportion to the actual danger posed

Question 3

What is the obvious behavioural characteristic of phobias and give an example?

Answer 3

Avoidance
E.g. a person with arachnophobia would avoid being near spiders

Question 4

What is the opposite behavioural response?

Answer 4

Flight, fight or freeze
(Freezing is an adaptive response)

Question 5

What effect does avoidance have in the feared situation?

Answer 5

Interferes significantly with the individual’s normal routine, occupation, social activities, relationships
Distress about having the phobia

Question 6

What does this mean?

Answer 6

This distinguishes phobias from everyday fears that do not interfere with normal day-to-day living

Question 7

What is a cognitive characteristic of phobias and give an example?

Answer 7

The irrational nature of the person’s thinking and the resistance to rational arguments
E.g. a person with a fear of flying is not helped by arguments that flying is actually the safest form of transport

Question 8

What is the second cognitive characteristic of phobias?

Answer 8

The individual recognises that their fear is excessive or unreasonable (this may be absent in children)

Question 9

What does this characteristic allow?

Answer 9

Allows us to distinguish between a phobia and a delusional mental illness, e.g. schizophrenia, where the individual is not aware of the unreasonableness of their behaviour