PSYB45H3 Chapter 24: Behaviour Modficiation - Chapter 24 Book Notes
Document Summary
Fear and anxiety reduction procedures are based on principles of operant and responding conditioning. allison experienced intense fear reactions whenever she saw a spider. she experienced rapid heartbeat, muscle tensions, sweating, etc. the only way that allison could get relief was to get away from the spider or see it killed. the doctor uses relaxation exercises while gradually approaching the spider in sessions. by the end of the treatment, she was able to get close enough to a spider & kill it herself while reporting a low fear rating. Fear: composed of both operant and respondent behaviour. when the stimulus is present, the person experiences unpleasant bodily responses and engages in escape or avoidance behaviour. the bodily responses are respondent behaviours, also called anxiety. the autonomic nervous system arousal involved in anxiety is an establishing operation that makes it more likely that the individual will engage in escape or avoidance behaviour.
