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Necrophobia is a specific phobia, the irrational fear of dead organisms (e.g., corpses) as well as things associated with death (e.g., coffins, tombstones, funerals, cemeteries). With all types of emotions, obsession with death becomes evident in both fascination and objectification. [ 1 ]
Fear extinction is the fundamental principle behind exposure therapy, a common treatment for anxiety disorders. In this process, the conditioned fear responses diminish progressively over time, when the previously conditioned stimulus is presented without being paired with the unconditioned stimulus. [ 20 ]
Exposure therapy is based on the principle of respondent conditioning often termed Pavlovian extinction. [10] The exposure therapist identifies the cognitions, emotions and physiological arousal that accompany a fear-inducing stimulus and then tries to break the pattern of escape that maintains the fear.
Fear is an unpleasant emotion that arises in response to perceived dangers or threats. Fear causes physiological and psychological changes. It may produce behavioral reactions such as mounting an aggressive response or fleeing the threat, commonly known as the fight-or-flight response. Extreme cases of fear can trigger an immobilized freeze ...
A phobia is an anxiety disorder, defined by an irrational, unrealistic, persistent and excessive fear of an object or situation. [7] [8] [9] [1] Phobias typically result in a rapid onset of fear and are usually present for more than six months. [1]
It is known in rodents that fear responses diminish when rodents are able to exert control over threatening stimuli, so Heartley and her team sought to determine if this was also true in humans. [20] Using fMRI they found that active avoidance is more important than extinction in leading to long term changes in fear responses in humans. [20]
Operant conditioning originated with Edward Thorndike, whose law of effect theorised that behaviors arise as a result of consequences as satisfying or discomforting. In the 20th century, operant conditioning was studied by behavioral psychologists, who believed that much of mind and behaviour is explained through environmental conditioning.
Death anxiety can mean fear of death, fear of dying, fear of being alone, fear of the dying process, etc. [29] Different people experience these fears in differing ways. There continues to be confusion on whether death anxiety is a fear of death itself or a fear of the process of dying. [30]