Saavedra & Silverman - Buttons Phobia Flashcards
Which classical conditioning learning type was present in the Saavedra & Silverman study?
Evaluative learning
What is Evaluative learning?
(looking back) A form of classical conditioning where attitudes towards stimuli is as a result of a negative evaluation, commonly causing emotions such as disgust, rather than fear which may be more present in expectancy learning
Which assumption of the learning approach does the buttons phobia study best suit?
Conditioning can help to explain changes in behaviour
What is classical conditioning?
Learning through association - for example: Pavlov’s dog and bell experiment
What is the psychology investigated in the Buttons phobia experiment?
Evaluative learning
What is the aim of the Buttons Phobia experiment?
To bring disgust and evaluative learning to the forefront of children’s psychiatric literature, as they are lacking at present
To get rid of the boy’s phobia of buttons
What was the demographic of the sample in Saavedra & Silverman - buttons phobia?
1 9-year-old Hispanic, American boy
- Diagnosed with a specific phobia of buttons according to the DSM IV 4
What was the volunteer sample used in Buttons Phobia study?
Opportunity - Florida international University, Miami
At what age did the boy’s symptoms begin in Saavedra and Silverman?
5
How did the boy develop his fear of buttons?
- During a kindergarten arts project, the boy had run out of buttons for his posterboard, and was asked to go up to the front of the classroom and retrieve more buttons from the teachers desk.
- Boy reached up to grab buttons, and his hand slipped and all buttons fell on him
Independent variables of Saavedra and Silverman
Which session used (1 or 2)
- how many buttons the boy could manipulate
- The boy’s distress severity rating
Dependent variables of Saavedra and Silverman
- Boy’s ratings of distress on the “feelings thermometer” (9 point scale) 0-8
Length of behavioural exposure sessions, and how many?
4 sessions:
- 30 minutes with just the boy
- 20 minutes with both the boy and his mother
How many sessions of imagery exposure were there in Saavedra & Silverman?
7
What happened in therapy 1 in Saavedra and Silverman?
The boy was faced with handling an increasing number of buttons in each session. His mother was used for positive reinforcement which helped with the exposure.
What were the results of therapy 1 in Saavedra ad Silverman?
The boy was able to increase the number of buttons he handled from session 1 (5 buttons) to session 4 (30 buttons). HOWEVER, the boy’s distress ratings only increased as a result. This went from 6 in the first session to an 8 in the fourth session.
What was the issue found with the buttons after therapy 1 in Saavedra and Silverman?
The boy reported feeling more “disgust” towards the buttons, and that they emitted “unpleasant odours”
What happened in therapy 2 in Saavedra and Silverman?
The boy was told to imagine disgust-related imagery such as imagining buttons falling onto his body, and . hugging his mother with a shirt full of buttons. Some questions included “What do they look, feel and smell like?”
What were the three steps to Therapy 2 in Saavedra & Silverman?
- identify the thought
- Challenge the thought
- Replace the thought with something more positive
What were the results of Therapy 2 in Saavedra & Silverman?
The boy’s distress ratings of buttons decreased.
Imagining buttons falling onto his body: 8, 5, 3
Imagining hugging his mother with a shirt full of buttons: 7, 4, 3
How often were the post-treatment sessions held in Saavedra & Silverman?
6-12 month follow-ups
What was reported during the follow-up sessions in Saavedra and Silverman?
- The boy no longer met the DSM IV for specific phobia of buttons
- The boy was wearing his school shirt with buttons with minimal to no distress
What were the highest and lowest scoring buttons on the feelings thermometer in the buttons phobia case study?
Highest: Small, clear, plastic buttons - 8
Lowest: Large denim jean buttons - 2
What were the conclusions of the Saavedra and Silverman study? (3)
- Disgust imagery related exposure can be successful in getting rid of specific phobia of buttons
- Evaluative learning can form, as well as help cure specific phobias.
- Imagery exposure can have long-term effects on diminishing stress due to phobias.
Nature or Nurture? Buttons phobia case study
This study supports the nurture side of the debate - evaluative learning.
Generalisability
Saavedra & Silverman
Negative:
- 1 Participant
- rare phobia
Reliability
Saavedra & Silverman
Positive:
- Feelings thermometer was created by the child, and used throughout
- DSM IV criteria used for both diagnosis and follow-ups
negative
- Feelings thermometer was a subjective rating device
- not enough detail within the study to be accurately replicable.
Application of the Saavedra & Silverman study
Therapists may be able to use the same procedure to tackle other phobias, and use of the feelings thermometer for measurement of progress.
Validity
Saavedra & Silverman
Positive:
- Boy checked specifically for button phobia, and it was assured he didn’t have OCD, GAD, or past traumas
- 2 treatments - after first one was unsuccessful, used another one
- ecological validity - experiments conducted in the safe environment of a therapists office
- Both qualitative and quantitative data for in depth understanding of boy’s phobia
Negative:
- potential demand characteristics
- potential researcher bias - having gotten to know the boy over time
Ethics
Saavedra & Silverman
Positive:
- No deception used
- Debrief - with follow-ups
- informed consent
- confidentiality
Negative
- psychological distress due to treatment of phobia
