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Systematic desensitization, (relaxation training paired with graded exposure therapy), is a behavior therapy developed by the psychiatrist Joseph Wolpe. It is used when a phobia or anxiety disorder is maintained by classical conditioning .
Desensitization is commonly used with simple phobias like insect phobia. [23] [24] In addition, desensitization therapy is a useful tool in training domesticated dogs. [25] Systematic desensitization used in conjunction with counter-conditioning was shown to reduce problem behaviours in dogs, such as vocalization and property destruction. [25]
In exposure therapy, an exposure hierarchy is developed to help clients confront their feared objects and situations in a manner that is systematic and controlled for the purpose of systematic desensitization. Exposure hierarchies are included in the treatment of a wide range of anxiety disorders.
At a post-treatment follow-up four years later 90% of people retained a considerable reduction in fear, avoidance, and overall level of impairment, while 65% no longer experienced any symptoms of a specific phobia. [15] Agoraphobia and social anxiety disorder are examples of phobias that have been successfully treated by exposure therapy. [44]
Assertiveness training proved especially useful for clients who had anxiety about social situations. However, assertiveness training did have a potential flaw in the sense that it could not be applied to other kinds of phobias. Wolpe's use of reciprocal inhibition led to his discovery of systematic desensitization.
If your dog is barking at some outdoor trigger that you recognize, you can work on reducing his reaction to it by using a combination of systematic desensitization and counterconditioning if the ...
Flooding is a psychotherapeutic method for overcoming phobias. In order to demonstrate the irrationality of the fear, a psychologist would put a person in a situation where they would face their phobia. Under controlled conditions and using psychologically-proven relaxation techniques, the subject attempts to replace their fear with relaxation.
Wolpe's systematic desensitization "consists of exposing the patient, while in a state of emotional calmness, to a small 'dose' of something he fears" using imaginal methods that allow the therapist to "control precisely the beginning and ending of each presentation". [15] This graduated exposure is similar to the SE concept of "titration ...