The behavioural approach to explaining and treating phobias Flashcards
What is the two-process model?
Acquisition of phobias is seen as occurring through classical conditioning or indirectly through social learning. The maintenance of phobias is seen as occurring through operant conditioning where avoiding a feared object acts as a negative reinforcer.
What is classical conditioning in relation to phobias?
It is where a natural response that causes fear becomes associated with a neutral stimulus so the neutral stimulus by itself causes a fear response.
What is operant conditioning in relation to phobias?
Learning through the consequences of behaviour. An outcome of a behaviour that is pleasant is positive reinforcement but an outcome of a behvaiour that results in escaping something unpleasant is negative reinforcement. It explains how phobias are maintained.
What is the procedure of Watson and Rayner’s little Albert experiment?
A lab experiment with 11 month old Albert who lived in the hospital with his mother who was a nurse. He was presented with a white rat, rabbit and cotton wool. The bar and hammer were struck when he reached to touch the rat which was repeated 3 times.
What are the findings of the little Albert study?
When shown the rat, Albert would cry and roll away - he developed a fear towards the rat and similar animals.
Give evaluations of little Albert study.
It is unethical - he wasn’t debriefed and it was done without the mother’s knowledge and he experienced distress.
Not replicable.
Unrepresentative as small sample.
What is King et al’s research and how can it be used to support the two-process model?
Reported that case studies showed that children tended to acquire strong phobias through a traumatic experience, which supports phobia being acquired through CC.
What is Bagby’s research and how can it be used to support the two-process model?
Case study of woman who had a phobia of running water through her feet getting stuck in some rocks near a waterfall. The NS of the sound of the running water became associated with the fear.
What are the strengths of the behaviourist approach for explaining phobias?
Can be combined with biological approach to give better understanding of phobias.
Effectiveness of behaviourist treatments help to support behaviourist explanations.
What are the limitations of the behaviourist approach for explaining phobias?
Bounton argues that the two-process model neglects the influence of evolution history where avoidance responses are learned more rapidly if the required response resembles and animal’s natural defensive behaviour.
Not everyone experiencing traumatic events develop a phobia.
What is systematic desensitisation (SD)?
Patients learning in stages to replace fear responses with feelings of calm. The hierarchy is constructed before treatment, going from least to most feared types of contact with the fear and patients are taught relaxation techniques.
What is flooding?
Patients go straight to the top of the hierarchy and have direct contact with their fear. Patients can’t make their usual avoidance responses and anxiety eventually subsides.
What is the procedure for Brosnan and Thorpe’s treatment of technophobia study?
In first study - 8 computer-anxious participants and control group of 8 non-anxious - a 10 week SD programme was given.
In second study - 30 computer-anxious participants were assigned to a treatment/non-treatment group and a control group of 59 non-anxious.
What are the findings for Brosnan and Thorpe’s study?
In first study, computer anxiety and coping strategies were significantly improved.
In second study, reduction in anxiety was 3 times greater in the treated group than non-treated group - by the end of the year the non treated group had significantly more anxiety.
Give evaluations for Brosnan and Thorpe’s study
It isn’t known whether SD had a long term effect in reducing technophobia. But the success of the therapy suggests a major benefit for technophobes in a technological world.
