Phobias

• what are phobias


  uncontrollable, irrational and extreme reactions to an object or situation that are out of proportion to real life
• what are the 3 main types of phobias

  1. specific

  2. social

  3. agoraphobia (open/public spaces)
• what is an emotional characteristic of phobias

  persistent fear and anxiety over the feared object
• what are the behavioural characteristics of phobias

  avoidance responses

  panic behaviours: crying, screaming, fainting, vomiting...
• what are the cognitive characteristics of phobias

  selective attention

  recognition of exaggerated anxiety
• what is the 2 process model

  acquired through classical conditioning

  maintained through operant conditioning
• how does CC explain learning phobias

  when a NS is paired with something that causes fear (UCS), so the NS becomes conditioned to produce fear
• how are phobias maintained

  avoidance of the feared stimuli reduces anxiety, so the unpleasant emotions go away = negative reinforcement and phobias persist
• 2 strengths of the 2 part process model

  + supporting research (can apply to Little Albert)

  rats conditioned to fear the sound of a buzzer as it was repeatedly paired with an electric shock, so the rats learnt to jump when the buzzer sounded, supports roles of CC and OC

  HOWEVER rata behaviour may not generalise, BUT has been shown in humans

  + practical applications

  systematic desensitisation, so this explanation has successful means to treat phobias
• what are 3 weaknesses of the 2 part process model

  - not everyone who's had a traumatic experience develops a phobia, 50% of non-phobic people have had a bad encounter with a dog, this contradicts 2PPM as they should have developed a phobia, THEREFORE may be biological factors

  + contradictory research

  only 2% of people with a water phobia reported an unpleasant experience with water, contradicts as it would be expected they had a traumatic experience to develop the phobia

  - alternative explanations

  biological preparedness, an innate predisposition to acquire certain fears that are passed down through evolution, issue because there are alternative explanations
• what are the 2 treatments for phobias

  systematic desensitisation

  flooding
• what is SD


  gradually exposing a person to their fear whilst trying to relax
• what is the aim of SD

  to replace an undesirable response (fear) with a desirable one (relaxation) this works because of reciprocal inhibition
• what is reciprocal inhibition

  you cannot feel 2 conflicting emotions at the same time
• what did Wolpe's study involve

  CC to make cats fear a box through electric shocks, then gradually exposing them back to the box whilst feeding them and the fear was unlearned
• how could SD be used for little Albert


  the mother could hug/comfort him whilst gradually reintroducing the rat to provide relaxation
• what are the stages of SD

  1. create a hierarchy of fear

  2. client learns relaxation techniques

  3. gradually work through hierarchy whilst using relaxation techniques and guided by a therapist
• what are some techniques used for gradual expose to feared stimulus

  visualisation = in vitro desensitisation

  actual exposure = in vivo desensitisation

  virtual reality

  modelling

  role play
• what does flooding involve

  immediate exposure to the final stage of their hierarchy, they're exposed until anxiety reduces - the client is unable to practice avoidance so fear becomes extinct, sometimes only 1 session is needed
• what are the strengths of SD

  + research evidence

  75% effectiveness for specific phobias, supports bc a high percentage found it effective HOWEVER 25% still didn't overcome their fear, so not effective for everyone FURTHERMORE said to be more effective for specific than social, because social has more cognitive elements so CBT

  + long term effects of SD

  those who had 3 sessions for fear of spider were less fearful 3months & 33months after treatment than a control that didn't receive exposure, suggests results last and have long-term effectiveness
• evaluation of SD and flooding

  + research compared them

  equally effective, so ppl should be given a choice by being given stats of each

  + SD may be preferred

  low number that refuse SD and a low number drop out, bc SD is a more gradual and relaxing processing that builds up confidence, whereas flooding is more intense and potentially traumatic HOWEVER flooding is a far quicker process and cheaper as it may only need 1 sessions