The target behavior in this study is the fear of social gatherings that are shown by Marla. Marla is suffering from social anxiety disorder, which is characterized by abnormal fear for social gatherings (Coon, Mitterer, Talbot & Vanchella, 2010). This might be because Marla is worried that she can do something embarrassing in front of other people. In most cases, social anxiety disorder is characterized by low self-esteem and abnormal fear and worries.
2. Marla developed anxiety disorder because she has a behavior keeping away from social gatherings. She did not take time to fight the fear and attempt to social with other people. As a result, the conditioned stimulus for anxiety and fear is a social gathering. In these cases, the conditioned stimulus is the presence of social gatherings while the conditioned response is fear of embarrassing herself in social gatherings.
3. Desensitization has been effective in the treatment of many patients…show more content… The patient is then required to work through the hierarchy from the least fearful to the most fearful. It is essential to note that in-vitro desensitization is made of up abstract fears, which are only imagined. It has been efficient in the treatment of many diseases. The main advantage with in-vitro desensitization is the fact the patient has a chance to prepare before facing fears in real life.
The only major difference between in-vitro and in-vivo desensitization is the fact that the fears are not imagined in the case of in-vivo desensitization. This means that the patient is taken through a hierarchy of fears in real life situations. As a result, the patient gets to live the experience as he/she goes through the process of desensitization. The main advantage with in-vivo desensitization is the fact that the patient is likely to recover much faster (Furakawa et al., 2013). This is because the real life hierarchy is likely to speed up the process of
