Phobias are included in the DSM5 within the category of anxiety disorders.
Phobias are defined as irrational fears that produce an avoidance of the feared object or situation.
DSM5 categorizes phobias into 3 main types:
Specific Phobias: include animal phobias and situational type phobias (e.g. planes, lifts etc)
Social Phobia: excessive fear of social situations (e.g. eating in public or going into a public lavatory)
Agoraphobia: fear of public places, thought to be the most serious of all phobias
Behavioural Characteristics of Phobias:
Panic: in the presence of the phobic stimulus, may involve crying, screaming or running away
Avoidance: tend to avoid coming into contact with the phobic stimulus
Endurance: remain in the presence of the phobic stimulus but continue to experience high levels of anxiety
Emotional Characteristics of Phobias:
Anxiety: prevents relaxation and experiencing positive emotions, fear is the immediate and extremely unpleasant response when encountering the phobic stimulus
Emotional responses are inappropriate to the situation: too extreme and disproportionate to the danger posed by the phobic stimuli
Cognitive Characteristics of Phobias:
Decrease in concentration: find it difficult to concentrate and complete tasks when the phobic object or situation is around
Irrational beliefs: may hold irrational beliefs in relation to phobic stimuli, increasing pressure to perform well in social situations