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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.
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]
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. [43]
Thought suppression has been seen as a form of "experiential avoidance". Experiential avoidance is when an individual attempts to suppress, change, or control unwanted internal experiences (thoughts, feelings, bodily sensations, memories, etc.). [22] [23] This line of thinking supports relational frame theory.
Two examples of assessments developed to measure safety behaviors performed by people with social anxiety are the Social Behavior Questionnaire and the Subtle Avoidance Frequency Examination. [ 2 ] [ 27 ] An assessment developed to measure safety behaviors performed by people with panic disorder is the Texas Safety Maneuver Scale.
Children can practice the muscle relaxation techniques by tensing and relaxing different muscle groups. With older children and college students, an explanation of desensitization can help to increase the effectiveness of the process. After these students learn the relaxation techniques, they can create an anxiety inducing hierarchy. For test ...
Maladaptive techniques are only effective as a short-term rather than long-term coping process. Examples of maladaptive behavior strategies include anxious avoidance, dissociation, escape (including self-medication), use of maladaptive humor styles such as self-defeating humor, procrastination, rationalization, safety behaviors, and sensitization.
An abbreviated example of an exposure hierarchy is pictured in Image 1. Image 1: Exposure hierarchy example for treating public speaking fears. When exposure to an item at the bottom of the hierarchy leads to moderately reduced distress or increased tolerance, a client progresses up the hierarchy to more and more difficult exposures.