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Citation |
Hood HK, Antony MM, Koerner N, Monson CM. Behav. Res. Ther. 2010; 48(12): 1161-1169. |
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Affiliation |
Department of Psychology, Ryerson University, 350 Victoria Street, Toronto, Ontario M5B 2K3, Canada. |
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Copyright |
(Copyright © 2010, Elsevier Publishing) |
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DOI |
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PMID |
20870219 |
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Abstract |
The use of safety behaviors has been considered one of the primary maintaining mechanisms of anxiety disorders; however, evidence suggests that they are not always detrimental to treatment success (Milosevic & Radomsky, 2008). This study examined the effects of safety behaviors on behavioral, cognitive, and subjective indicators of fear during exposure for fear of spiders. A two-stage design was used to examine fear reduction and approach distance during an in vivo exposure task for participants (N=43) assigned to either a safety behavior use (SBU) or no safety behavior use (NSB) condition. Overall, both groups reported significant and comparable reductions in self-reported anxiety and negative beliefs about spiders at posttest and 1-week follow-up. Participants in the SBU group approached the spider more quickly than did participants in the NSB condition; however, participants in the SBU condition showed a small but significant decrease in approach distance at follow-up. These results call for a reconceptualization of the impact of safety behaviors on in vivo exposure. Language: en |