Phobias - The Behaviourist Approach

• What do behaviourists believe about behaviour?

  It's learned from interacting w/ environment, so from experience
• What is the 2 process model? Who created it?

  Mower: phobias are acquired through classical conditioning, maintained through operant conditioning
• Breakdown the acquisition of a phobia through CC (Bee example)

  1. Phobic object (bee) starts as NS, causes NR, so no response.
  2. UCS (pain of being stung) produces UCR (unconditioned fear response) = link is automatic, not learnt.
  3. Association formed when NS paired with UCS. Object (bee) becomes CS, producing CR (fear)
• Explain how phobias can be generalised (bee example)

  Conditioned fear response is also experience in presence of similar stimuli to conditioned stimulus. So fear of bees generalised to small flying insects.
• Explain how phobias are maintained through OC

  Form of learning that occurs through learning consequences of action.

  1. Person w/ phobia is aware of phobia and will try to avoid phobic object or situations that put them in contact w/ it.
  2. Avoidance behaviour leads to reduction in anxiety = pleasant sensation. Reinforcement strengthens phobia, making them more likely to avoid phobic object in future.
• A strength of the approach regarding a study?

  Watson + Rayner - Little Albert showed no phobic response when introduced to rat for first time. Watson paired rat w/ hitting large metal pole behind Albert's head, creating loud noise, scaring Albert. A phobic response formed, rat produced fear response. (phobias acquired through CC). LA showed generalisation = showed fear response to dogs, furry blankets
• A limitation of the approach regarding hereditary phobias?

  Humans don't often display phobic responses to objects that cause most pain in day to day life (knives/cars) Snakes or spiders more common. These phobias better explained by evolutionary theory, as these are dangers evolutionary ancestors faced.
• A strength of the approach regarding practical applications?

  Behaviourist theories of phobia acquisition + maintenance have been practically applied to counter conditioning therapies, SD and F. As these treatments are effective = theories = valid
• What is reciprocal inhibition?

  Fear and relaxation = 2 antagonistic emotions, as you can't feel 2 opposite emotions simultaneously. If therapist can help client hold phobic object w/o fear, they've been successfully counter-conditioned
• What are the 4 stages of systematic desensitisation?

  1. Therapist teaches client relaxation techniques e.g breathing exercises
  2. Client create anxiety hierarchy (list of feared situations w/ phobic object from least to most feared)
  3. Client exposed to each level of hierarchy, starting w/ least anxiety producing level. Client MUST relax at each stage, therapist only move on when fully relaxed
  4. When client can hold phobic object w/o fear, association is extinct, new association of relaxation formed.
• What is flooding?

  Attempts to counter condition a phobia by immediate/full exposure to maximum level of phobic stimulus.
• What are steps of flooding?

  1. Immediate exposure is expected to cause extreme panic response in client (cry/scream). Therapist should stop client from escaping situation.
  2. Fear response takes energy. Client will become exhausted and calm down in presence of phobic object.
  3. If client ends treatment before this point, anxiety will decrease due to removing stimulus, phobia is reinforced.
• What is a strength/limitation of SD regarding client control?

  1. Client controls SD, more pleasurable experience as limits their anxiety. However, this slower process means more sessions than F.
• What are limitations of flooding regarding age and failure?

  1. Due to its stressful nature, not recommended for older people, children or people w/ heart conditions.
  2. Phobia is reinforced if flooding fails and client released before anxiety subsides.
• What is a limitation of both treatments regarding environments?

  Effectiveness of both treatments may be limited to controlled environment of therapist's office and may not translate to real world experiences. E.g person may successfully conquer fear of birds in presence of tame bird in office, when confronted w/ lots of wild birds in outside world, phobia may resurface.
• What is a limitation of both treatments regarding social phobias?

  Both more effective in treating specific phobias (fear of objects) than social phobias. Easier to construct and gradually advance an anxiety hierarchy for object-related phobias, or undergo intense exposure to snakes in controlled setting, than to stimulate social situations/interactions w/ unfamiliar people in therapist's office.