Conditioning and Phobia Treatment

Paper Summary:

This paper discusses the causes and treatment of phobia from the perspective of classical conditioning. First, the author looks at the roots of classical conditioning and explains how people learn through this process. The next part of this paper then examines the role classical conditioning plays in how people develop their fears and phobias. In the conclusion, the effectiveness of various phobia therapies are analyzed. Particular emphasis is given to techniques such as flooding, counter-conditioning and other therapies that employ classical conditioning.

Outline:
Classical Conditioning
Conditioning Fear
Therapies to Phobia

From the Paper:

"However, today, many humans continue to experience fear, even when the emotion is clearly not warranted. Such irrational fears can elicit strong emotional and physical symptoms from people. When these intense and irrational fears cause unwarranted anxiety and interfere with his or her ability to enjoy life, a person is said to be suffering from phobia."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Bouton, ME and Bolles, RC. 1979. "Role of conditioned contextual stimuli in reinstatement of extinguished fear." Journal of Experimental Psychology: 368 to 378,
• Gardner, J and Ball, A. 2005. Phobias And How To Overcome Them: Understanding And Beating Your Fears. San Francisco: New Page Books.
• McCallister DE and McCallister WR. 1971. "Behavioral measurement of conditioned fear." FR Bush, ed. Aversive Conditioning and Learning. New York: Academic Press.
• McCallister WR et al. 1986. "Persistence of fear-reducing behavior." Journal of Abnormal Psychology 95: 365-372.
• Ost, L. G. (1989). One-session treatment for specific phobias. Behavioral Research and Therapy, 27, 1-7. In Gray, P. (1994). Psychology, 2nd. ed. New York: Worth.

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