Phobias-EVAL Flashcards
(10 cards)
One strength of the behavioural approach to explaining phobias is that it has REAL LIFE APPLICATIONs.
Application through THERAPY.
The approach suggests phobias can be treated through SD or flooding, and once the patient cant avoid the stimulus, the behaviour stops being reinforced and so will decline.
Both these treatments have been effective which suggests that there’s SUPPORT for the phobias being CAUSED through learning via the 2 process models, as we can REVERSE learn it, giving a successful therapy.
One weakness is that using the behaviourist approach to explain phobias is environmentally reductionist as it takes the complex issue of PHOBIAS and reduces it down to JUST learning from environment.
Weakness as it may miss other important FACTORS that could be influencing this phobia e.g. traumatic past experiences.
Suggested that the behavioural approach should take an interaction approach instead, where it’s COMBINED with an other approach e.g. COGNITIVE to form a cog. behavioural approach which has been SUCCESSFUL in therapy.
But a positive of the B approach being reductionist is that by reducing causation down to a single factor, e.g. learning, means it’s EASIER to MEASURE and show cause and effect and so easier to TREAT, further adding to the SCIENTIFIC CREDIBILITY of the behavioural approach explaining phobias.
one weakness is that the behaviourist approach of explaining phobias is ENVIRONMENTALLY DETERMINISTIC as it suggests learning WILL lead to a phobia and we have no freewill, so on CHOICE in whether we perform the behaviour (phobia) or not.
A problem with this is that it can be seen as a PESSIMISTIC view of behaviour explaining phobias.
However, can also be a strength of the approach as determinism is in LINE with science and adds to the scientific CREDIBILITY of the behav. approach explaining phobias. This is because determinism shows CAUSE+EFF and causation is a key feature of science.
A strength of the behaviourist approach and 2 process models explaining phobias is that it explains the LINK between bad experiences and phobias
E.g. research found that 73% of people with a fear of dental treatment had experienced a traumatic dentistry experience. This was compared to a control group of people with LOW dental anxiety where only 21% had experienced trauma.
Therefore this supports the association between dental treatment and the UCR of pain, leading to a PHOBIA of dental treatment, supporting the CLASSICAL CONDITIONING part of the 2 process model.
However, not all phobias appear following a bad experience. E.g a phobia of snakes occurs wihtout any trauma with a snake. And some ppl have traumatic experiences which DONT lead to a phobia.
This is an issue as it suggests that the 2 process model CANT explain all phobias and sometimes they aren’t the result of EXPERIENCES but instead biological.
One strength of SD is that it is EFFECTIVE for treating phobias
supported by researach of 42 patients who were treated from a phobia of spiders within 45 MINUTUES using SD. 1 contorl group was treated y relaxation without exposure, at both 3 and 33 months after treatment, the SD group were LESS fearful than relaxation group.
This suggests that SD is MORE effective at treating phobias than flooding.
One strength of SD as a way of treating phobias is that patients PREFER it and choose it over flooding
This is because it doesn’t cause the same DEGREE of trauma as flooding, and includes RELAXATION procedures.
Low refusal and dropping our rates also prove the preference.
This means patients are MORE likely to tart and COMPLETE treatment, which means the COST of treatment is not being wasted and we’re more likely to enable patients to get back to WORK which has positive implications to the ECONOMY.
One problem with SD as a treatment of phobias is that it’s environmentally REDUCTIONIST as it takes the complex issue of TREATING phobias and reduces it down to just REVERSE learning.
This is an issue as it IGNORES other factors which could be important e.g. bio or cog factors which could change the way we treat phobias.
Suggested that an INTERACTIONIST approach to the treatment of phobias should be used instead, where a combo of treatments are used such as the cog.behaviourist approach where we still use counter conditioning but also address the cog. issues around behaviours e.g. irrational belief.
One strength of flooding is that it’s COST-EFFECTIVE.
Studies comparing flooding to cog. therapies found that flooding is highly EFFECTIVE and QUICKER.
This is therefore a strength as the same person needs to have LESS sessions than e.g. someone who has had SD
Therefore the use of flooding in treatment could have positive implications for the ECONOMY as it wouldn’t put so much STRAIN on consts of running it/
One issue with flooding is that it can be TRAUMATIC
It’s not that it’s unethical as patients DO give consent, but that patients are often NOT willing to see it through to the end due to how TRAUMATIC the experience is.
Weakness as it prevents flooding from providing the treatment it had hoped to, wasting MONEY and TIME.
Also environmentally reductionist, exact same strucute for SD.