This document describes systematic desensitization therapy, a behavioral therapy technique used to treat phobias. Systematic desensitization involves creating a hierarchy of feared stimuli from least to most anxiety-provoking and teaching clients relaxation techniques to use while gradually exposing them to items on the hierarchy. The goal is to extinguish the fear response through counterconditioning by pairing the feared stimulus with relaxation.

1. Systematic Desensitisation
Describe and evaluate this form
of therapy

3. What is a phobia?
An exaggerated fear of an object or
situation
According to behaviourism, it is a learned
response to a stimulus

4. Remember Little
Albert?
Noise UC
S
Fear UC
R
Noise UC + Rat NS
S
Fear UC
R
Rat CS
Fear CR

5. 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

6. An example in everyday life...
How Ivan
became phobic
of walking in
the forest

7. Work it out...
UC
S
UC
R
UC + NS
S
CS
UC
R
CR

8. Systematic desensitisation
This therapy aims to extinguish an undesirable
behaviour fear by replacing it with a more
desirable one relaxation .
This called
We cannot
feel fear and
relaxed at the
same time
reciprocal
inhibition

9. How does it 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
Mouth
Dog
The client works
through the hierarchy
learning to use
relaxation techniques
in the presence of the
feared object

10. Systematic desensitisation
Counter-conditioning
Desensitisation hierarchy
Reciprocal Inhibition

11. 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. E
xplain how a
behavioural therapist might use SD to
help Alana with her fear of spiders (6

12. Pair-work (if time)
1. Therapist
2. Patient
Think of a phobia and work through hierarchy
and any techniques below to help the patient.

13. 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?

14. To the right are some
aspects of flying that
may cause different
levels of anxiety.
Anxiety Grade
Low Anxiety 1–19
Medium Low Anxiety 20–39
Medium Anxiety 40–59
Medium High Anxiety 60–79
High Anxiety 80–100

15. Ways to overcome this...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=CQgKEp_NhHk
As the clip rolls, make notes on key psychologists’ names
and examples

16. Ideas
Patient 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?

17. Other behavioural therapies
• Aversion therapy
• Modelling
• Flooding
• Token economy

18. Evaluation
Use key words below (textbook 118) to write at least 2
strengths and 2 weaknesses of SD
 Effectiveness
 Symptom substitution
 Appropriateness
Depends on the type of
phobia;
some may be biologically
based

19. Phobia workshop – sketch show
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=koNwUeG-iKE&feature=related