Phobias Flashcards
Phobia
an irrational fear of an object or situation
Behavioural
ways in which people act
Emotional
related to a person’s feelings or mood
Cognitive
refers to the process of ‘knowing’, including thinking, reasoning, remembering and believing
DSM-5 categories of phobia
- specific phobia - phobia of an object or a situation
- social anxiety - phobia of a social situation
- agoraphobia - phobia of being outside or in a public place
Behavioural characteristics of phobias
- panic
- avoidance
- endurance
panic
in response to the presence of the phobic stimulus - crying, screaming, running away
avoidance
tend to go to a lot of effort to prevent coming into contact with the phobic stimulus
endurance
alternative behavioural response to avoidance is endurance - person chooses to remain in the presence of the phobic stimulus
Emotional characteristics of phobias
- anxiety
- fear
emotional response is unreasonable
anxiety
prevents a person relaxing and difficult to experience any positive reaction
fear
immediate and extremely unpleasant response we experience when we encounter or think about a phobic stimulus
emotional response is unreasonable
anxiety or fear is much greater than is normal and disproportionate to any threat posed
Cognitive characteristics of phobias
- selective attention to the phobic stimulus
- irrational beliefs
- cognitive distortions
selective attention to the phobic stimulus
keeping our attention on something really dangerous is a good thing as it gives us the best chance of reacting quickly to a threat, but this not as useful
