Psychopathology

Question 1

Systematic desensitisation

Answer 1

A form of BEHAVIOURAL THERAPY used to treat PHOBIAS and other anxiety disorders.

• Client gradually exposed to (images) or threading situations under relaxed conditions until the anxiety reaction is extinguished

Question 2

How does Systematic desensitisation work?

Answer 2

Step 1: Patient taught how to relax their muscles completely

Step 2: Therapist and paitent together construct a desensitisation hierarchy- series of imagined scenes, each one cause a little more anxiety.

Step 3: Paitent gradually works their hierarchy through desensitisation hierarchy, visualising agh anxiety - envoking event while engaging n the competing relaxation response .

Step 4: Once paitent mastered one step in the hierarchy (remain relaxed while imagining it) they are ready to move on to the next.

Step 5: Patient eventually masters the feared situation that caused them to seek help in the first place.

Question 3

How does flooding work?

Answer 3

Step 1: Patient is taught how to relax their muscles completely

Step 2 : Patient masters the feared response situation that caused them to seek help in the first place. This is accomplished in the one long session

Question 4

Rationale

Answer 4

A person’s fear response (and the release of adrenaline underlying this) has time limit.

• As adrenaline levels naturally decrease, a new stimulus-response link can be learned
• the feared stimulus now associated with a non-anxious response.