specific phobia Flashcards
what is anxiety?
state of physiological arousal associated with feelings of apprehension, worry or uneasiness that something is wrong or unpleasant is about to happen
what is a phobia?
characterised by a persistent intense and irrational fear of a specific event or situation that impairs functioning
what are similarities between stress and anxiety?
- common, normal experiences in certain situations
- everyone experiences this at some time
- tend to be adaptive in the short-term in threatening situations
- mild-moderate levels= more alert and improve ability to cope
- severe or exaggerated stress and anxiety can be counterproductive and disabling (potential contributory factor to mental health disorder)
what are similarities between stress, anxiety and phobias?
- can impact on a person’s functioning if not managed
- influenced by biological, psychological and social factors
- accompanied by physiological changes➝ may involve fight-flight-freeze response
what are the distinguishing features of stress?
- may be eustress or distress
- source/cause of response is usually known
- can be experienced in response to a wide range of stimuli
what are the distinguishing features of anxiety?
- source/cause of response is not always apparent
- feelings of something in the future
what are the distinguishing features of phobias?
- fear response is out of proportion to the actual danger passed by the object or situation
- people have compelling desire to avoid the phobic stimulus
- significantly impacts a person’s functioning
- source/cause of a response is usually known➝ typically in response to specific stimuli
- diagnosable mental disorder
- not considered adaptive or helpful
- not considered a ‘normal’ experience
what is stress, anxiety and phobia on a mental health continuum?
used to describe how stress, anxiety and phobia can vary independently and collectively in relation to each other
what is a specific phobia?
a disorder characterised by significant anxiety provoked by exposure to a specific feared object or situation usually leading to avoidance behaviour
eg. animals, situations, blood, injections and injury, natural environments and other phobias
what happens when someone is exposed to a specific phobia?
- usually triggers an acute stress response➝ physio changes similar to the fight-flight-freeze response
- may experience a panic attack➝ period of sudden onset of intense fear often associated with feelings of impending doom
- may experience anticipatory anxiety➝ thinking they will be exposed to the phobic stimulus= gradual rise in anxiety levels
what are the 3 biological contributing actors to the development of a specific phobia?
- GABA dysfunction
- (role of the) stress response
- long-term potentiation
what is GABA dysfunction?
low levels of GABA in the brain due to failure to produce, release and receive adequate amounts of GABA
how does GABA dysfunction contribute to a specific phobia?
predisposing:
- GABA counterbalances the excitatory action of glutamate to regulate neuronal activity in the brain➝ calming agent to the excitatory neurotransmitters
- not enough GABA= not enough inhibitory effects to counteract the excitatory effects= anxiety/fear response more easily triggered
what is a stress response?
appraised as a threat that is unable to cope with
- activation of the sympathetic nervous system when presented with a phobic stimulus (F-F-F)= heightened arousal, including [physiological change]
how does stress response contribute to a specific phobia?
precipitating:
- physical stress response is triggered in the absence of any real threat
- The experience of stress/fear becomes associated with the phobic stimulus.
- anxiety is excessive➝ perception of threat is out of proportion to the danger it poses
- stress response is severe and prolonged
how does long-term potentiation contribute to the development of a specific phobia?
perpetuating:
- connections between phobic stimulus and fear response is strengthened due to repeated stimulation= enhanced/more effective synaptic transmission along the neural pathway of fear information
- decreases likelihood of forgetting
what are the psychological factors contributing to a specific phobia?
- behavioural models: precipitation by classical conditioning & perpetuation by operant conditioning
- cognitive bias: memory bias & catastrophic thinking
what are behavioural models and what does it propose?
phobias are learned through experience: can be acquired through CC and OC
- CC pays a role in the development (precipitating)
- OC plays a role in the maintenance (perpetuating)
how does precipitation by classical conditioning contribute to a specific phobia?
- development of a specific phobia occurs when a stimulus with no particular significance (NS) becomes a sign of impending threat, danger or other unpleasant events (CS) by association.
- naturally occurring fear response (UCR) eventually becomes a conditioned fear response
- CR is disproportional to any actual risk
how does perpetuation by operant conditioning contribute to specific phobias?
- consequence of avoidance behaviours of the phobic stimulus= reduction of anxiety and fear acts as negative reinforcement➝ strengthens or increases the likelihood of the avoidance behaviours occurring again= helps maintain the phobia
what are the focus of cognitive models?
- focuses on how the individual processes info about the phobic stimulus and related events
what does the cognitive model emphasise?
how and why people with a phobia have an unreasonable and excessive fear of phobic stimulus
what is the key assumption of cognitive models?
- people can create their own problems and symptoms by the way they interpret objects/situations
what are cognitive biases (cognitive distortions)?
- tendency to think in a way that involves errors of judgement and faulty decision making
- can become habitual= make a person more prone to fear/anxiety in response to a phobic stimulus
how are cognitive biases perpetuating risk factors?
perpetuating: strengthens phobic response in that stimulus becomes associated with a traumatic experience (memory bias)/very bad consequences (catastrophic thinking)
