Ost

• 81 individuals with blood phobia were used and 59 individuals with injection phobia. These were compared with sample from people with other specific phobias
• Participants did a screening interview with a clinician and completed a self-report questionnaire on the history and nature of their phobia.
• Participants also underwent a behavioural test:

  • Blood phobia: Those with blood phobia were shown a colour silent film of surgery being done. They were told not to close their eyes but to try and watch for as long as possible. The researcher tracked their gaze and if the participant closed their eyes or stopped the video with a remote, the study was terminated.
• • Injection phobia: Participants went through a 20-step live process. Firstly, the individual's fingertip was cleaned and they had an intradermal skin prick test. Each step was described to the participants and they had to voice if they were OK with it being performed or not.
• The measures used included a score relating to how long they watched the video, the experimenter's evaluation of fainting behaviour, and a self-rating of anxiety.
• The experimenters rating on fainting behaviour had as scale of 0-4 (0= no fainting and 4=fainting).
• The self-rating for anxiety had a scale of 0-10 (0=not at all anxious and 10=extremely anxious).
• Participants also completed a questionnaire on their thoughts during the study and their heart rate and blood pressure were monitored.
• Family histories showed that:

  • 50% of the people with the blood phobia had a parent that had the same phobia.
  • 27% of those with the injection phobia had at least one parent who had the phobia.
  • 21% of people who had the blood phobia had at least one sibling who had the phobia.
• A high proportion of those who had blood phobia and injection phobia tended to faint when confronted with the fearful stimuli.