Behavioural, Emotional, And Cognitive Characteristics Of Phobias, Depression, OCD

Question 1

Phobias

Answer 1

Behavioural

Panic - may involve crying, screaming, running from phobic stimulus

Avoidance- decided effort to avoid contact with the phobic stimulus. Can affect everyday life if the phobic stimulus would be commonly occurring e.g. public places

Emotional

Anxiety and fear + unreasonable/disproportionate response to phobic stimulus e.g. an arachnophobe will have strong emotional response to a small spider

Cognitive

Selective attention towards phobic stimulus- finding it hard to look away. An arachnophobe cannot concentrate on a task if a spider is present.
Irrational beliefs - e.g. social phobics may have thoughts such as ‘I must always sound intelligent’, ‘if I smile I will be seen as weak’

Question 2

OCD

Answer 2

Behavioural

Compulsions - repeating certain actions in a ritualistic way to reduce anxiety e.g. hand washing
Avoidance - coping by avoiding situations that may trigger anxiety e.g. sufferers obsessed with washing and cleanliness may avoid germs at all costs

Emotional

Overwhelming anxiety/distress accompanies obsessive thoughts.
Irrational guilt over minor issues
Disgust towards oneself or something external like dirt

Cognitive

Obsessive thoughts - recurring intrusive thoughts e.g contamination by dirt and/or germs
Insight into the excessive anxiety - awareness of the irrationality of the obsession/compulsion and hypervigilance/over-awareness of their obsession

Question 3

Depression

Answer 3

Behavioural

Low levels of energy+activity make sufferers lethargic and disinterested. Some sufferers may not be able to get out of bed
Disruption to sleep+eating - may experience insomnia or hyersomnia, and appetite may dramatically increase/decrease

Cognitive

Poor concentration- sufferers are likely to have an inability to commit to a task or make simple decisions

Emotional

Lowered mood - feelings of worthlessness and emptiness
Anger- these emotions can lead to aggressive behaviour or self-harming
Absolutist or ‘black and white’ thinking. Mildly unfortunate situations will be seen as as disastrous