Characteristics of phobias

• What are the behavioural characteristics of phobias?

  Panic: panicking in response to the phobic stimulus such as crying, screaming or running away.

  
  

  Avoidance: going out of their way to avoid contact with phobic stimulus e.g. never leaving their house to avoid seeing a dog.

  
  

  Endurance: remaining in the presence of stimulus to keep watch of it e.g. freezing and staring relentlessly at a spider
• What are the emotional characteristics of phobias?

  Anxiety: being in a constantly unpleasant state that prevents relaxation and experiencing positive feelings

  
  

  Fear: an immediate unpleasant response that is of higher intensity than anxiety but has a shorter time period

  
  

  Unreasonable emotional response: when anxiety or fear experienced is greater than normal, and is disproportionate to the actual threat posed
• What are the cognitive characteristics of phobias?

  Selective attention to phobic stimulus: when it becomes difficult to look away from the stimulus which is not practical when the fear is irrational

  
  

  Irrational belief: when they have unfounded and uneasily explained thoughts regarding the stimulus that have no basis in reality

  
  

  Cognitive distortions: when they have inaccurate and unrealistic perceptions of phobias e.g. people with a phobia of snakes may think they are alien-like and aggressive-looking
• What is a phobia?

  • An anxiety disorder characterised by an irrational fear of any object/situation
  • Can be split into 3 categories:
  • Specific phobia - phobia of a specific object/thing e.g. spiders
  • Social anxiety phobia - phobia of social situations that involve people e.g. speaking to others
  • Agoraphobia - phobia of being outside or in a place where they feel trapped with no way to escape e.g. crowds