Phobias: Learning theory explanations Flashcards
What are learning theories?
A collective term for explanations based on conditioning (classical and operant). This also includes social learning theory
What is acquisition?
The process of acquiring (getting or developing) something, in thise case a phobia. We tend to use the term “acquisition” in psychology because it is theoretically neutral. This is prefereable to saying ‘learning’ because learning is actually an explanation for acquisition, not a synonym.
What is maintenance?
The processing of maintaining something (keeping it going). If a phobia is acquired by classical conditioning we would expect it to decline over time unless some other process maintains it
What is the 2 process model?
This states that phobias can be acquired (i.e. developed in the first place) by a process of classical conditioning, and are then maintained through operant conditioning.
What does classical conditioning of a phobia invlove?
Involves learning to associate one stimulus with another stimulus.
One stimulus initially creates no fear (NS) and the other stimulus is one that already triggers a fear response (UCS). Through association the NS becomes a conditioned stimulus (CS) producing a conditioned fear response (CR) of fear.
How does operant conditioning explain the maintenance of a phobia?
Operant conditioning takes place when behaviour is reinforced or punished.
When someone with a conditioned phobia responds by avoiding the fear- provoking stimulus, their anxiety lesseons, and this provides negative reinforcement for the avoidance behaviour. This negative avoidance and its negative reinforcement is what matains phobias.
What is another way of acquiring a phobia?
Social learning through observational learning
What study supports acquisition of phobias through classical conditioning?
Little Albert- Watson and Rayner
What study supports the maintenance of a phobia through operant conditioning?
Mowrer’s study of rats
Mowrer demonstrated this by conditioning a rat to develop an avoidance response to a shock - the rat was placed in a cage where shocks were delivered. The rat could escape the shock by jumping over a barrier. Escape was negatively reainforcing and in this way, the avoidance response was learned.
What study supports the acquisition of a phobia through social learning?
Cook and Mineka demonstrated that infant rhesus monkeys who watched adult monkeys displayed fear and fear-relevant stimuli such as toy snaked and crocodiles acquired fear of those toys.
What is a weakness of using learning theories to explain the acquisition and maintenance of phobias?
It cannot be explained by learning alone.
We easily acquire phobias of things that have been a source of danger in our evolutionary past, such as fear of snakes or the dark but not of other dangerous things like cars or guns despite the fact that these are far more hazardous. Also, some people acquire phobias without conditioning experiences or modelling
