The Behavioural Approach to Treating Phobias Flashcards
(28 cards)
What are the two different ways of treating phobias?
- Systematic desensitisation
- Flooding
Who suggested that phobias are acquired by classical conditioning and maintained by operant conditions?
Mowrer
How are phobias maintained?
Operant conditioning
What are the aims of behavioural treatments to reduce phobic conditioning?
- Reduce phobic anxiety by counter-conditioning (Classical conditioning side)
- By preventing the avoidance behaviour (Operant conditioning side)
What did Wolpe (1958) suggest?
Two competing emotions cannot occur at the same time so if fear is replaced with relaxation the fear cannot continue
What is the aim of systematic desensitisation?
- Teach patient to learn a more appropriate association
- Reduce unwanted responses
What is reciprocal inhibition in reference to anxiety and phobias?
-Inhibiting anxiety by substituting a competing response
What is the process of systematic desensitisation?
- Anxiety hierarchy
- Relaxation techniques
- Exposure
What is an anxiety hierarchy?
- Constructed by patient and therapist
- List of fearful stimulus
- Order from least to most
Why is the patient taught relaxation techniques?
To enable them to relax quickly and as deeply as possible
What does exposure mean when associating it with systematic desensitisation?
Practising relaxation techniques whilst moving up their hierarchy
What is flooding?
Inescapable exposure to the feared stimuli until fear/anxiety disappears
What does flooding suggest?
Fear response cannot be sustained and will fall eventually
What is extinction during the flooding procedure?
Patient having to learn quickly the object is harmless through exhaustion of their fear response
Is there any build up or relaxation techniques learned during flooding?
No
Is flooding unethical?
No
Is flooding an unpleasent experience?
Yes
Does the participant give full informed consent before taking part of flooding?
Yes
Who showed how effective the systematic desensitisation?
Gilroy et al (2003)
What did Gilroy et al (2003) do/find?
- Fear of spiders
- Group with relaxation and exposure were less fearful than group who were not explored
- Effects showed to be long lasting
Is systematic desensitisation suitable for a diverse range of patients?
Yes
Which treatment for phobias is more preferred by patients?
Systematic desensitisation
Which treatment has a higher attrition rate (numbers of patients dropping out of treatment)?
Flooding
Which treatment has a lower refusal rate?
Systematic desensitisation
