Psychopathology - Phobias

Question 1

What is a phobia?

Answer 1

Uncontrollable, extreme, irrational fears

Question 2

Behavioural characteristics of a phobia

Answer 2

Panic, endurance, avoidance

Question 3

Emotional characteristics of a phobia

Answer 3

Anxiety (long-term), fear (short-term), unreasonable response

Question 4

Cognitive characteristics of a phobia

Answer 4

Selective attention, irrational beliefs, cognitive distortion

Question 5

How are phobias developed?

Answer 5

Acquired by classical conditioning & maintained with operant conditioning (two-process model)

Question 6

How can phobias be treated?

Answer 6

Systematic desensitisation or Flooding

Question 7

Systematic desensitisation

Answer 7

1. Relaxation techniques (reciprocal inhibition - being stressed and relaxed at the same time is impossible)
2. Anxiety hierarchy (ranking interactions with the stimulus from what causes least-most anxiety)
3. Exposure (work through hierarchy from least-most)

Question 8

Flooding

Answer 8

Forced to confront the phobia without avoiding until they eventually relax around it (in vitro [imaginary/virtual] or in vivo [actual] exposure)

Question 9

Strengths of behavioural explanations (phobias)

Answer 9

Real-world application (exposure therapy & the two-step process, ceases to be reinforced by experience of anxiety decreasing - cures phobia)
Evidenced (Little Albert study [conditioning], Jongh et al 2006 - 73% with fear of dentists had trauma compared to 21% in control group)
Individual explanations (two-process model - credible for how phobias are developed and maintained)

Question 10

Limitations of behavioural explanations (phobias)

Answer 10

Cognitive (fails to account for cognitive aspects [irrational beliefs and cognitive distortion], only explains avoidance and not all symptoms)
Prevalence (not all develop from bad experiences, not all frightening experiences lead to phobias)
Evolution (general aspects explained by evolutionary theory [Seligman 1971 - preparedness])

Question 11

Strengths of behavioural treatments (phobias)

Answer 11

Effective (Gilroy et al 2003 - SD group less fearful without exposure [effective across all phobias])
Learning disability (SD appropriate for treating this group [cognitives are unsuitable due to confusion])
VR (Avoid dangerous situation)
Cost-effective (Flooding - highly cost-effective due to limited session amount [more are able to be treated])

Question 12

Limitations of behavioural treatments (phobias)

Answer 12

VR (Wechsler et al 2019 - lack of realism [evidence of being ineffective for some phobias])
Traumatic (flooding is highly unpleasant [Schumacher et al 2015 - significantly more stressful & raises ethical issues -> high attrition rates])
Symptom substitution (mask symptoms & not tackle underlying phobia [Person 1986 - substituted fear of death for fear of being criticised after flooding, instead of getting over it])