Question

Behavioral therapies draw from psychological research on learning in order to help treat various psychological ailments. For instance, ideas of ____ can be used to help those with phobias by slowly exposing them to stress-inducing stimuli.

Answer 1

Behavioral therapies use principles of learning, such as classical and operant conditioning, to treat psychological ailments like phobias through systematic desensitization, which involves exposing clients to feared stimuli while teaching them relaxation techniques.

Step-by-step explanation:

Behavioral therapies are psychological treatments that utilize principles of learning to help individuals overcome psychological difficulties. These therapies include techniques such as classical conditioning and operant conditioning. In the context of treating phobias, therapists often use a method called systematic desensitization, which involves gradually exposing clients to the stimuli that cause anxiety while teaching them relaxation techniques to cope with their fear responses.

In classical conditioning, individuals learn to associate two stimuli, developing a conditioned response. This learning process can lead to the development of phobias, where a neutral stimulus becomes associated with a fear response. Conversely, through carefully controlled exposure to the fear-inducing stimulus without the expected negative outcome, individuals can learn to no longer fear the stimulus.

Moreover, operant conditioning focuses on the association between behaviors and their consequences. Positive reinforcement and negative reinforcement can be used to increase desirable behaviors, while punishment can decrease undesirable behaviors. In the context of phobias, rewards can be used to reinforce progress made during exposure therapy.