Quiz 10

Question 1

Defining Fear & Anxiety Problems

Answer 1

• Fear of a particular stimulus or stimulus situation
• A fear is composed of both operant & respondent behavior
• When the fearful stimulus is present, person experiences unpleasant physiological responses (autonomic nervous system arousal)
• As a result, they engage in escape or avoidance behavior

– Autonomic nervous system arousal = establishing operation for avoidance & escape behavior

– Physiological response = respondent behavior (anxiety)

Question 2

Example: Fear of Spiders

Answer 2

• CS (presence of spider) -> CR (autonomic arousal; anxiety - rapid heart rate, sweating, upset stomach, light-headed)
• Operant behavior = screaming for someone to come and kill the spider & running away

– The running away and yelling behaviors are reinforced by the removal of or escape from the spider & the anxiety symptoms

Question 3

Considerations for Addressing Fear & Anxiety

Answer 3

• Respondent behavior is a component of fear, but it is unknown how fear was developed through respondent conditioning

– Unclear how the CS (feared stimulus) became conditioned to elicit the CR (anxiety)

• You do not need to have knowledge of how the fear was conditioned to help the person overcome the fear

– Need to identify all of the stimuli that currently function as a CS that elicits the fear

• Some problem behaviors that are associated with fear and anxiety are simply an operant behavior (environment changes) with no respondent behavior or fear component

– Conduct a functional assessment to determine the function

Question 4

Procedures to Reduce Fear & Anxiety: Relaxation Training

Answer 4

• Strategies that people use to decrease autonomic arousal that they experience as part of fear & anxiety problems
• Individual engages in specific relaxation behaviors that result in bodily response opposite to the autonomic nervous system arousal

– Decrease in muscle tension, heart rate, and breathing rate

Question 5

Types of Relaxation Training

Answer 5

• Progressive muscle relaxation (PMR): The person systematically tenses & relaxes each of the major muscle groups in the body
• Diaphragmatic breathing (deep breathing): person breaths deeply in a slow, rhythmic fashion
• Attention-focusing exercises: direct attention to a neutral or pleasant stimulus to remove a person’s attention for anxiety-provoking stimulus (meditation or guided imagery)
• Behavioral relaxation training: person is taught to relax each muscle group in the body by assuming relaxed postures (similar to PMR, but person does not tense & relax muscles)

Question 6

Procedures to Reduce Fear & Anxiety: Desensitization

Answer 6

• Phobia: a fear in which the level of anxiety or escape/avoidance behaviors is severe enough to disrupt the person’s life
• Systematic Desensitization: person with a phobia practices relaxation while imagining scenes of the fear-producing stimulus

1. Client learns relaxation skills
2. Client and therapist develop a hierarchy of fear-producing stimuli
3. The client practices the relaxation skills while the therapist describes scenes from the hierarchy

• In Vivo Desensitiation

1. Client learns relaxation skills
2. Client and therapist develop a hierarchy of fear-producing stimuli
3. The client experiences each situation in the hierarchy while maintaining relaxation

• Importantly, clients must advance through each step without an increase in anxiety