clinical characteristics of phobias

Phobias are what type of disorders

Anxiety disorders

What are primary symptoms of phobias

Extreme anxiety

Desire to avoid the feared object or situation

When does it actually become a phobia

The person woul only be judged to have a phobia if ithe fear affects their daily life

What is the definition of behavioural characteristics

How a person responds in terms of how they behave

What are 4 behavioural characteristics

PANIC

AVOIDANCE

FREEZING

ENDURING

• DESCRIBE ALL 4 BEHAVIOURAL CHARACTERSITCS

PANIC

typical response

crying screaming or running away

Some might freeze or have a tantrum and get angry

AVOIDANCE

Avoids being near the thing

KEY CHARACTERSITC AND LEADS TO DISRUPTION OF PERSONS LIFE

FREEZING

Doesn’t move o respond

Might be an evolutionary adaption where predator might think they’re dead or wont see them

ENDURING

Chooses to stay with the stimulus and monitors the stimulus

For example a person with arachnophobia might choose to stay in a room with a spider in it and kee it under surveillance

Might hyperventilate or shake

Might also be af=ggressive towards stimulus such as hitting a clown

What are the 4 behavioural characteristics of phobias?

The four main behavioural characteristics are:

1. Panic

2. Avoidance

3. Freezing

4. Endurance

WHAT is the definition of emotional characteristics

How a person feels in response to the stimuli

What are the 3 emotional charactersitcs

Anxiety

Fear

Embarrassment

Describe anxiety

Anxiety

Unpleasant high state of emotional arousal

Unable to relax

Hard to experience positive emotions

Describe fear

NOT SAME AS ANXIETY

Unpleasant and immediate emotion caused by threat or danger pain or harm

Describe embarrassment

Self conscious emotion

Often embarrassed about their phobia because they realise their response is out of proportion to the threat

What are the cognitive characteristics of phobias

Problems with attention

Irrational beliefs

Cognitive distortions

What are the typ of problems to do with detention

Hyper orienting - attention system is captured and drawn to the stimulus right away and struggle to divert attention

Hyper vigilance - constantly on the looout for the phobia and checking if the stimulus is there

Describe irrational beliefs

Holding a belief that isn’t true or an exaggeration

E.g when u blush you are showing weakness (social phobia)

Describe cognitive distortion

The perception the person has might be inaccurate or unrealistic

The thoughts exaggerate how scary the stimulus actually is