the behavourial approach to treating phobias

Question 1

systematic desensitisation definition

Answer 1

a behavourial therapy designed to reduce an unwanted response such as anxiety to a stimulus . sd involves drawing up a hierarchy to anxiety provoking situations related to the phobic stimulus , teaching the patients to relax and then exposing them to phobic situations . patients work their way through the hierarchy whilst maintaining relaxation .

Question 2

what is it impossible to do

Answer 2

be afraid and relaxed at the same time , so one motion prevents the other . this is called reciprocal inhibition.

Question 3

systematic densensitisation
the anxiety hierarchy

Answer 3

is put together by patient and therapist
a list of situations related to the phobic stimulus that provoke anxiety arranged in order from least to most frightening
ie arachnophobic might identify as seeing a picture of a spider low on the hierarchy and holding a tarantula at the top

Question 4

systematic desensitisation
relaxation

Answer 4

therapist teaches the patent to relax as deeply as possible
this might involve breathing exercises or altenatively the patient might learn mental imagery techniques
patients can be taught to imagine themselves in relaxing situations or they might lear meditation . alternatively relaxation drugs can be used like valium

Question 5

systematic desensitisation
exposure

Answer 5

finally the patient is exposed to the phobic stimulus while in a relaxed state
the takes place acrosss several sessions starting at the bottom of the anxiety hierarchy
when the patient can stay relaxed in the presence of lower levels of the phobic stimulus they move uo the hierarchy
treatment is successful when the patient can stay relaxed in situations high on the anxiety hierarchy

Question 6

flooding definition

Answer 6

a behvourial therpy in which a phobic patient is exposed to an extreme form of a phobic stimulus in order to reduce anxiety triggered by that stimulus . this takes place across a small number of long therapy sessions.

Question 7

how does flooding work

Answer 7

flooding stops phobic response very quickly , as their is no option for avoidance behaviour . the patient learns quickly that the phobic stimulus is harmless in classical conditioning terms this is called extinction.
a learned response is extinguished when the conditioned stimulus is encountered without the unconditioned stimulus. the result is that the conditioned stimulus no longer produces the conditioned response ie fear
- in some cases the patient may achieve relaxation in the presence of the phobic stimulus simply because they become exhausted by their Own fear response

Question 8

ethical safeguards with flooding

Answer 8

flooding is not unethical but it is an unpleasant experience so it is important that patients give fully informed consent to this traumatic procedure and they are fully prepared before the flooding session . a patient would usually be given an option between SD and flooding

Question 9

SD effective
strength

Answer 9

research shows that systematic desensitisation is effective in treatment of specifi phobias
- Gilroy et al 2003
followed up 42 patients who had been treated for spider phobia in three 45 minute sessions
a control group was treated by relaxation and no exposure
at both three months and 33 months after the treatment the SD group were less fearful then the relaxation group.
strength as it shows SDis helpful in reducing the anxiety in spider phobia and that the effects are long lasting

Question 10

SD suitable for a range of people
strength

Answer 10

alternatives to SD like flooding and cognitive therapies are not well suited to some patients ie some sufferers of anxiety disorder shave learning disabilities , explaining the process of what is happening during flooding would be hard to explain .
for these patients SD is probably the most apporopaite treatment

Question 11

SD acceptable to patients
strength

Answer 11

patients prefer it
this given the choice of sd or flooding tend to prefer sd
largely because it does not cause the same degree of trauma as flooding , and some elements ie relaxation methods are pleasant
this is reflected in the low refusal rates and low attrition rates of sd

Question 12

flooding cost effective
strength

Answer 12

flooding is cost effective in comparison to other treatments
studies comparing flooding to cognitive therapies have found that flooding is cost effective , effective and quicker than other treatments
strength as it brand patients are free of their symptoms asap and is cheaper

Question 13

flooding less effective then others
limitation

Answer 13

flooding is highly effective for treating simple phobias it appears to be less effective at treating complex phobias like social phobias
this may be due to their high cognitive aspects . ie a sufferer of a social phobia does not simply experience an anxiety response but thinks unpleasant thoughts about the social situation
this type of phobia may benefit more from cognitive therapies because such therapies tackle the irrational thinking

Question 14

flooding traumatic for patients
limitation

Answer 14

highly traumatic experience
it is not unethical but patients are often unwilling to see it though to the end
a limitation as time and money are sometimes wasted preparing patients only to have them refuse to start or complete treatment