Behavioral therapies counter-condition phobias, replacing fear association with calm association
Reciprocal Inhibition
Fear and calm are opposites, can't co-exist with eachother
Systematic Desensitisation
Gradual treatment
Patient taught relaxation techniques
Scenarios ranked least to most anxious, work through the anxiety hierarchy
Client relaxes at each stage
Gradual exposure leads to extinction of fear
Flooding
Immediate, full exposure to fear
Causes temporary fear, may attempt to escape
Clinician keeps client exposed until temporary panic has stopped due to exhaustion and client is calm in stimulus presence
(+/-) A03: Economic Implications
Flooding requires less sessions, quicker than SD, cheaper treatment, but isn't suited to older clients
(+) A03: Garcia-Palacios
Found 83% of participants with arachnophobia treated with Virtual Reality exposure improved with their phobia, compared to the 0% control; the principles of SD are valid, use of VR allows wide range of exposure
(-) A03: Social Phobias
Both treatments help with scientific phobias, but not so much with social phobias, it is difficult to stimulate social pressures in an office, lacking mundanerealism
