Objective 16
Describe the
application of the principles of classical conditioning to the therapeutic
situation (systematic desensitization and aversive counter conditioning).
Explanation:
Classical conditioning principles can be used in therapeutic situations. Counterconditioning is a behavior therapy that uses classical conditioning to create new responses to stimuli that are triggering unwanted behaviors. Exposure therapies treat anxiety by exposing people to what they fear or avoid. Systematic desensitization is a type of exposure therapy that associates a pleasant relaxed state with gradually increasing anxiety triggering stimuli. This is used to treat phobias. Adversive conditioning is a type of counterconditioning that associates an unpleasant state with an unwanted behavior.
Classical conditioning principles can be used in therapeutic situations. Counterconditioning is a behavior therapy that uses classical conditioning to create new responses to stimuli that are triggering unwanted behaviors. Exposure therapies treat anxiety by exposing people to what they fear or avoid. Systematic desensitization is a type of exposure therapy that associates a pleasant relaxed state with gradually increasing anxiety triggering stimuli. This is used to treat phobias. Adversive conditioning is a type of counterconditioning that associates an unpleasant state with an unwanted behavior.
Example:
My textbook, Psychology the Tenth Edition in Modules, gives a good example of systematic desensitization. If you were afraid of public speaking a therapist would first ask you to create a hierarchy of anxiety triggering speaking situations. They might range from talking to your friends to speaking to a large audience. The therapist would then tell you to relax your muscles until you are calm. Then the therapist would ask you to imagine a mildly anxiety arousing situation. If the scene causes you to feel anxiety you would raise your hand and the therapist would tell you to switch off the mental image and go back to relaxing. The therapist would progress up the anxiety hierarchy using the relaxed state to desensitize you to each imagined situation. The imagined scene is repeatedly paired with relaxation until you feel no anxiety. After several sessions you move to an actual situation which helps you become a confident public speaker.
My textbook, Psychology the Tenth Edition in Modules, gives a good example of systematic desensitization. If you were afraid of public speaking a therapist would first ask you to create a hierarchy of anxiety triggering speaking situations. They might range from talking to your friends to speaking to a large audience. The therapist would then tell you to relax your muscles until you are calm. Then the therapist would ask you to imagine a mildly anxiety arousing situation. If the scene causes you to feel anxiety you would raise your hand and the therapist would tell you to switch off the mental image and go back to relaxing. The therapist would progress up the anxiety hierarchy using the relaxed state to desensitize you to each imagined situation. The imagined scene is repeatedly paired with relaxation until you feel no anxiety. After several sessions you move to an actual situation which helps you become a confident public speaker.
Example:
My textbook, Psychology the Tenth Edition in Modules, also gives good examples of aversion conditioning. It is when you associate an unwanted behavior with unpleasant feelings. If you want to quit biting your nails you could paint them with a bad tasting nail polish. If you want to stop drinking alcohol, an aversion therapist would offer you an alcohol drink with a drug that produces nausea. By linking alcohol with nausea your reaction to alcohol would change from positive to negative, and you would stop drinking alcohol.
My textbook, Psychology the Tenth Edition in Modules, also gives good examples of aversion conditioning. It is when you associate an unwanted behavior with unpleasant feelings. If you want to quit biting your nails you could paint them with a bad tasting nail polish. If you want to stop drinking alcohol, an aversion therapist would offer you an alcohol drink with a drug that produces nausea. By linking alcohol with nausea your reaction to alcohol would change from positive to negative, and you would stop drinking alcohol.