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Excessive avoidance has been suggested to contribute to anxiety disorders, leading psychologists and neuroscientists to study how avoidance behaviors are learned using rat or mouse models. [1] Avoidance learning is a type of operant conditioning (also known as instrumental conditioning).
Avoidance behavior raises the so-called "avoidance paradox", for, it may be asked, how can the non-occurrence of a stimulus serve as a reinforcer? This question is addressed by several theories of avoidance (see below). Two kinds of experimental settings are commonly used: discriminated and free-operant avoidance learning.
An avoidance response is a response that prevents an aversive stimulus from occurring. It is a kind of negative reinforcement . An avoidance response is a behavior based on the concept that animals will avoid performing behaviors that result in an aversive outcome.
Avoidance reinforces the notion that discomfort, distress and anxiety are bad, or dangerous. Sustaining avoidance often requires effort and energy. Avoidance limits one's focus at the expense of fully experiencing what is going on in the present. Avoidance may get in the way of other important, valued aspects of life.
Anxious avoidance is when a person avoids anxiety provoking situations by all means. This is the most common method. Dissociation is the ability of the mind to separate and compartmentalize thoughts, memories, and emotions. This is often associated with post traumatic stress syndrome. [37] Escape is closely related to avoidance.
This unique aspect of the theory emphasizes the proactive nature of learning in avoidance behaviors. Sidman's work emphasized the principles governing the acquisition and maintenance of avoidance behavior. He explored how organisms, both human and non-human, learn to perform specific behaviors to prevent or avoid aversive consequences.
Avoidance coping is measured via a self-reported questionnaire. Initially, the Multidimensional Experiential Avoidance Questionnaire (MEAQ) was used, which is a 62-item questionnaire that assesses experiential avoidance, and thus avoidance coping, by measuring how many avoidant behaviors a person exhibits and how strongly they agree with each statement on a scale of 1–6. [1]
Pavlovian-instrumental transfer (PIT) is a psychological phenomenon that occurs when a conditioned stimulus (CS, also known as a "cue") that has been associated with rewarding or aversive stimuli via classical conditioning alters motivational salience and operant behavior.