Psychology being Investigated
Classical conditioning: learning with association.
- Pavlov observed dogs salivating. Salivation (unconditioned response) to food (unconditioned stimulus).
- Dog expected food when researchers were present.
- Through association, when dog heard bell (conditioned stimulus) they began to salivate (conditioned response)
Phobia: fear of an object or event that poses little danger but causes anxiety.
Evaluative learning: classical conditioning where attitudes to stimuli are the product of complex thoughts and emotions, creating a negative association.
Operant conditioning: learning through the consequences of our actions.
- can explain phobias as; by avoiding the phobia, it creates a reinforcement for the future on how to maintain that avoidance.
- Psychologists use reinforcements to tolerate phobias.
Background
Aim
Examine the role of classical conditioning in relation to fear and avoidance of particular stimulus.
Research Method and Design
- Case study (involved one participant whose life history was studied in depth).
- Data collected was through self-report measures.
- Mother and boy interviewed about the onset of the phobia and his behaviors.
- Results of the treatment were measured on a nine-point scale, Feelings Thermometer.
Sample
- 9-year-old Hispanic American boy
- Support from Child Anxiety and Phobia Program at Florida International University, Miami.
- Experienced symptoms four years prior to study
Procedure
- Mother and boy gave informed consent.
- Interviewed to determine if trauma or abuse caused the phobia.
His phobia began at age 5:
- Knocked a bowel of buttons in front of class and teacher.
- Found the situation distressing, and his fear of buttons increased.
- It affected him as he couldn’t dress himself and became preoccupied with avoiding buttons or clothes that had buttons.
- A hierarchy was created (Feelings Thermometer)
- Small clear plastic buttons were feared most = 8
- Large denim jean buttons were least feared = 2
1) Contingency management: positive reinforcement therapy.
- Boy rewarded for showing less fear and for holding the buttons.
- Positive reinforcement was given to the boy by his mother after he had completed a gradual exposure to buttons.
- Researcher observed the boy’s approach.
- Measured his subjective ratings.
2) Imagery exposure therapy: person asked to vividly imagine their feared object
- Interviews revealed that the boy found buttons touching his body disgusting and that buttons smelled unpleasant.
- The boy was asked to imagine buttons falling on him and how they looked, felt and smelled.
- Asked to talk about how these imagery exposures made him feel.
- Exposure progressed from the hierarchy created.
- Self- reports were taken of his subjective distress using Feelings Thermometer.
Results
1) Contingency management:
- Successful completion of exposure tasks.
- Boy approached buttons more positively (handled larger numbers of buttons)
- His fear and anxiety increased from the positive reinforcement therapy.
2) Imagery exposure therapy:
- Successful in reducing the rating of distress.
- Small clear plastic buttons (score 8) reduced to 5 midway and 3 after the exposure.
6 month and 12 month follow-ups were conducted.
The boy reported feeling minimal distress about buttons.
No longer met the diagnostic criteria for the phobia.
His feelings towards buttons no longer interfered with normal functioning.
Conclusion
Positive reinforcement therapy was successful in changing observable behavior and imagery exposure therapy was successful in reducing disgust.
- Emotions and cognitions relating to disgust are important when learning new responses to phobic stimuli
- imagery exposure can have a long-term effect on reducing the distress associated with specific phobias as it takes negative evaluations
