phobias introduction Flashcards
what is the diagnostic criteria for phobias?
- marked and persistent fear that is excessive / unreasonable, cued by the presence / anticipation of a specific object or situation
- exposure to the phobic stimulus that provokes an immediate response (e.g. panic attacks)
- duration is at least 6 months
what are the different categories of phobias?
- animal type (e.g. arachnophobia)
- natural environment type (e.g. heights, storms, water)
- situational type (e.g. aeroplanes, elevators, enclosed spaces)
Classical Conditioning in phobias
example = dog bite
before learning:
NS (dog) - no response
UCS (bite) - UCR (fear)
during:
NS (dog) + UCS (bite) - UCR (fear)
after:
CS (dog) - CR (fear)
Operant Conditioning in phobias
can explain how a phobia is maintained
phobias can be negatively reinforced e.g. if a person with a phobia of dogs sees a dog whilst out walking, they might try to avoid the dog by crossing over the road
Social Learning Theory in phobias
SLT would suggest that we learn phobias through observation and imitation of our role models. Many specific phobias are developed through childhood and are therefore likely to be learnt from parents.
Vicarious learning would also be important because rewards and punishments linked to phobias can be observed from role models
what is exposure?
the patient must confront their fear until the fear subsides because of habituation (the process of your behavioural and sensory responses diminishing over time).
exposure can be in vivo (real life exposure to the feared stimulus) or in vitro (imagination) or both
what is response prevention?
refraining from engaging in typical avoidance or escape behaviours when faced with a feared situation. This is necessary so that these maladaptive behaviours are no longer reinforced.
CC is extinction of phobias
once habituation occurs, the fearful behaviour will eventually be extinguished
