Phobias Flashcards
(18 cards)
What is a phobia?
An intense and irrational fear of an object, place, situation or activity that poses no actual danger
What are the emotional characteristics of phobias?
Excessive fear, anxiety and panic
What are the behavioural characteristics of phobias?
Avoidance or the fight or flight response
What are the cognitive characteristics of phobias?
Selective attention and irrational thinking
Where does the behaviourist approach say that phobias come from?
They are learnt from the environment
What model does the behaviourist approach use to explain where phobias come from?
The two process model
What are the two parts of the two process model?
Classical conditioning and operant conditioning
Which experiment helps to explain classical conditioning?
The little Albert experiment by Watson and Raynor 1920
How does classical conditioning explain a phobia?
Learning to associate a previously neutral stimulus with fear
How does operant conditioning explain a phobia?
Negative reinforcement strengthens the behaviour. When a person avoids the stimulus the strengthens the phobia because the absence makes them feel better.
What is the blood and needle questionnaire?
Os et al 1991
What is the buzzer experiment?
Bandura and Rosenthal 1966
Why is the behaviourist approach not good at explaining phobias?
Not everyone who has the same experience develops a phobia
Which was the dog biting experiment?
DiNardo 1988
Which spider experiment went against behaviourist theory?
Davey 1992
Can some phobias be explained by evolution?
Yes, such as heights, fire and spiders
What does the diathesis stress model say about phobias?
That phobias arise because of genetics and environment
What does the behaviourist model say about the cognitive aspects of phobias?
Nothing. It says nothing about selective attention or irrational thinking
