Systematic Desensitisation
Describe and evaluate this form of therapy
What is a phobia?What is a phobia?An exaggerated fear of an object or
situationAccording to behaviourism, it is a learned
response to a stimulus
Remember Little Albert?
Noise Fear UCR
UCR
CR
UCS
UCS
NS
CS
+RatNoise Fear
Rat Fear
Phobias
• What do people with phobias do when they are confronted with their feared stimulus?
avoidance
• How do you think we can treat this disorder without using drugs or talking therapy?
counterconditioning
An example in everyday An example in everyday life...life...
How Ivan became phobic
of walking in the forest
Work it out...Work it out...
UCR
UCR
CR
UCS
UCS
NS
CS
+
Systematic Systematic desensitisationdesensitisation
This therapy aims to extinguish an undesirable behaviour by replacing it with a more desirable one .
fear relaxation
We cannot feel fear and
relaxed at the same time
This called reciprocal inhibition
How does it How does it work?work?It is a step by step
approach
The client learns relaxations techniques
The client works out a hierarchy of fear from the least frightening to the
most frightening
Fur Paw
Dog
Mouth
The client works through the hierarchy learning to use relaxation techniques in the presence of the feared object
Systematic desensitisation
Counter-conditioning
Reciprocal Inhibition
Desensitisation hierarchy
Task
Apply the desensitisation hierarchy to the following scenario:
Alana has an extremely anxious reaction to spiders. She completely freezes if a spider is in the room, no matter what the size. She even struggles with plastic and cuddly toy spiders. Explain how a behavioural therapist might use SD to help Alana with her fear of spiders (6 marks).
Pair-work (if time)1. Therapist2. PatientThink of a phobia and work through
hierarchy and any techniques below to help the patient.
Using systematic desensitisation
What difficulties do you think this therapy has?
e.g. if someone is afraid of flying – what difficulty will the therapist have?
To the right are some aspects of flying that may cause different levels of anxiety.
Anxiety GradeLow Anxiety 1–19Medium Low Anxiety 20–39Medium Anxiety 40–59Medium High Anxiety 60–79High Anxiety 80–100
Ways to overcome this...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CQgKEp_NhHk
As the clip rolls, make notes on key psychologists’ namesand examples
IdeasPatient needs to be briefed well, so can give
informed consent. High levels of arousal/ distress possible. Quicker analysis than drug therapy or lengthy psychoanalysis?
Effect might diminish once removed from lab setting and positive reinforcement from therapist, high chance of relapse?
Psychotic, as opposed to neurotic, disorders?
Disorders with no clearly identifiable behavioural component? Genetic/ physiological/neurochemical?
Other behavioural therapies
• Aversion therapy
• Modelling
• Flooding
• Token economy
Evaluation
Use key words below (textbook 118) to write at least 2 strengths and 2 weaknesses of SD
Effectiveness
Appropriateness
Symptom substitution
Depends on the type of phobia; some may be biologically based
Phobia workshop – sketch show
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=koNwUeG-iKE&feature=related