Transcript Phobia – Psychological Theories

•
Phobias are acquired through learning
from the environment
– Classical conditioning
– Operant conditioning
– Social learning
•
Two process theory of phobia
1. Acquisition of phobia
2. Maintenance of phobic behaviour
www.psychlotron.org.uk
Phobia – Psychological Theories
• Through classical conditioning (direct):
– Traumatic experience e.g. get bitten by a
dog
– False alarm e.g. have a panic attack in a lift
• Through social learning (vicarious):
– Observe fear in another e.g. parent
– Hear about danger from another
www.psychlotron.org.uk
Initial Acquisition
• Through operant conditioning:
– Approaching phobic object/situation elicits
conditioned anxiety response
– Retreat from phobic object reduces anxiety
– This acts as a (negative) reinforcer, so the
more the person avoids the phobic
object/situation the more likely they will
continue to do so.
– Others may unwittingly reinforce avoidance
www.psychlotron.org.uk
Maintenance
• Hypotheses from learning theory:
– Phobias should be traceable to an original
learning experience
– Should centre on situations/objects that are
potentially harmful
– Should be possible to condition and
decondition phobias artificially
www.psychlotron.org.uk
Phobia