>pychopathology - phobias - treatments Flashcards
define counter conditioning
a new association is taught to counter original association
define reciprocal inhibition
idea that certain emotions cannot be felt simultaneously (eg fear + relaxation)
define desensitisation hierachy
a list of things that cause the patient fear, gradually increasing from stimuli that creates the least to most fear
what is meant by systematic desensitisation?
-behavioural therapy developed by Joseph Wolpe
-aims to extinguish an undesirable behaviour (fear) by replacing it with a more desirable one (relaxation)
-patient is taught a new association to counter original one, known as counter conditioning
-fear response usually replaced by relaxation due to the idea that an individual cannot feel fear + relaxation at the same time as they inhibit each other (reciprocal inhibition)
stages of systematic desensitisation?
-relaxation techniques: patient is taught relaxation techniques eg deep breathing, muscle relaxation, meditation
-therapist + patient work to construct a desensitisation hierachy
-patient gradually works through hierarchy whilst practising relaxation techniques
-once patient is relaxed at one stage, they can move onto next
-eventually patient will master feared situation
Rothbaum et al?
-systematic desensitisation may be effective when using virtual reality
-shown by Rothbaum who investigated effectiveness of SD in treating fear of flying
-enjoyed a success rate of 80%+ using VR based treatment approach, also found in follow up -> low incidence of relapse
advantages of SD?
-supporting research, Gilroy et al investigated the efficacy of SD on 45 patients, each patient had taken part in 3 45 minute sessions for a spider phobia, in both 3 months + 33 months after treatment, SD group less fearful than control group
-appropriate treatment for a diverse range of patient, relatively fast + requires little effort from the patient (in comparison to CBT), may be good especially for children/people with learning difficulties that may struggle with the thinking involved in therapies like CBT
-more appropriate than flooding due to it being less traumatic for the patient, resulting in relatively low refusal + drop out rates
what is meant by flooding?
-involves exposing patient to their phobic stimulus without the gradual build up as seen in SD
-patient will endure one long session exposed to their phobia at its worst whilst they practise relaxation
-session will continue until person feels relaxed in presence of their phobia
-eg phobia of clowns -> room full oh clowns
how does flooding work?
-prevents reinforcement of phobia
-no longer avoid feared stimulus so is no longer being negatively reinforced
-fear will eventually subside + new response (relaxation) is learned
advantages of flooding?
-less time consuming than other therapies, only lasts for 1 session
-Choy et al found that flooding was more effective than others for those that are able to endure it
disadvantages of flooding?
-individual differences in how effective treatment is, patients may not be suited for highly traumatic experience
-patients give their consent however patients may drop out due to it being traumatic, leads to time + money being wasted on the therapy -> ineffective + left with trauma
evaluation points for both SD + flooding?
-behavioural treatments for phobias are dealing with the symptoms, not cause of phobia -> symptom substitution where symptoms will resurface, sometimes in another form eg little hans
