Treating Phobias: Systematic Desensitisation & Flooding

Question 1

What are the 2 approaches to treating phobias?

Answer 1

• Systematic Desensitisation
• Flooding

Question 2

What approach do both methods of treating phobias link to?

Answer 2

The behaviourist approach

Question 3

What is Systematic Desensitisation?

Answer 3

A behavioural therapy that involves gradually exposing the individual to the phobic stimulus in a controlled and relaxed environment

Question 4

What is Flooding?

Answer 4

A behavioural therapy in which a client is exposed to the phobic stimulus without a gradual build-up

Question 5

What is the new response to the phobic stimulus learnt in Systematic Desensitisation?

Answer 5

Relaxation

Question 6

How many stages are there to Systematic Desensitisation?

Answer 6

3

Question 7

What are the 3 stages of Systematic Desensitisation?

Answer 7

• Curating an anxiety hierarchy
• Learning relaxation techniques
• Gradual exposure to the phobic stimulus

Question 8

Describe the curation of an Anxiety Hierarchy

Answer 8

Together the client and therapist arrange a list of situations and objects related to the phobic stimulus in order from least to most fear inducing

Question 9

What idea is Systematic Desensitisation based on?

Answer 9

Counterconditioning: an individual’s response of fear to a phobic stimulus is reduced via classical conditioning by teaching them a new, alternative response to it

Question 10

What are same examples of relaxation techniques the client may be taught in the 2nd Stage of Systematic Desensitisation?

Answer 10

• Breath work
• Meditation techniques

Question 11

What is the idea of teaching clients relaxation techniques in Systematic Desensitisation based on?

Answer 11

Reciprocal Inhibition: the idea it is physiologically impossible to feel two contradictory emotions (e.g. fear and relaxation) simultaneously, and therefore one cancels out the other

Question 12

Describe the 3rd Stage of Systematic Desensitisation

Answer 12

The client is gradually exposed to the phobic stimulus, whilst encouraged to remain in a relaxed state at the same time, starting at the bottom of the anxiety hierarchy

Question 13

When does the client move their way up the anxiety hierarchy in Systematic Desensitisation?

Answer 13

Only when they are able remain relaxed in the level below it

Question 14

Which approach to treating phobias is considered more ethical?

Answer 14

Systematic Desensitisation

Question 15

What evidence is there of Systematic Desensitisation’s effectiveness? (2 Studies)

Answer 15

• McGrath et al, who found that 75% of patients with phobias were successfully treated using systematic desensitisation
• Barlow et al, who found success rates between 60-90% for specific phobias

Question 16

What did Gilroy’s Longitudinal Study conclude in relation to Systematic Desensitisation?

Answer 16

42 patients with arachnophobia who were treated using 3 45-minute systematic desensitisation sessions were less fearful when assessed both 3 months and 33 months later compared to the control group who were only taught relaxation techniques

Question 17

What did Ohman et al suggest in regards to Systematic Desensitisation?

Answer 17

It may not be effective for treating phobias with an underlying evolutionary basis, such as a fear of the dark or heights, as they weren’t acquired via classical conditioning

Question 18

Why is it important that Systematic Desensitisation is client-centred?

Answer 18

It allows them some control, in turning making them feel more secure

Question 19

Why may Systematic Desensitisation be limited in its application to real-life scenarios?

Answer 19

It is not reflective of how phobias are encountered in everyday life, due to the controlled, contained environment

Question 20

What idea is Flooding based on?

Answer 20

• That anxiety will eventually level out and subside once the individual has been exposed to the phobic stimulus for a long enough period of time, with some clients exhausting themselves from their own fear response
• By eliminating the option of avoidance behaviour, the client learns that the phobic stimulus is not dangerous

Question 21

How long do Flooding sessions typically last?

Answer 21

2-3 hours, or until anxiety subsides

Question 22

Which approach to treating phobias is more cost-effective and why?

Answer 22

Flooding, as it can work in as little as one session

Question 23

What did Ougrin conclude about Flooding?

Answer 23

That it is just as effective as other treatment methods, such as systematic desensitisation

Question 24

Which approach to treating phobias is considered more traumatic?

Answer 24

Flooding, which may mean that therapists are less inclined to use it

Question 25

What evidence is there to suggest that Flooding can be highly traumatic?

Answer 25

Wolpe, who reported the case of a client who had to be hospitalised because flooding made her so anxious

Question 26

Why does Flooding lack generalisability? (2 Points)

Answer 26

• It may not be generalisable to children or people with learning difficulties, due to them finding it overwhelming and confusing
• It is limited in what phobias it can be applied to, and may be difficult to implicate in terms of social phobias or certain specific phobias (e.g. a fear of the deep ocean)