desensitisation procedure
A therapist guides a patient through a desensitisation procedure for a fear of spiders.
Noun: A therapeutic technique, primarily used in behavior therapy, to treat anxiety-related disorders, such as phobias. The procedure involves the systematic and gradual exposure of a client to a feared object, situation, or stimulus while they are in a state of relaxation. The goal is to repeatedly pair the anxiety-provoking stimulus with the relaxed state until the fearful or anxious response is eliminated or significantly reduced.
This term is used in clinical psychology, psychiatry, and therapeutic contexts to describe a specific, evidence-based treatment method. It is a formal, technical term.
Examples: * The therapist recommended a desensitisation procedure to help the patient overcome their intense fear of flying. * Systematic desensitisation procedure is a cornerstone of cognitive-behavioral therapy for specific phobias. * The success of the desensitisation procedure depends on the client's ability to achieve and maintain relaxation during exposure.
- The term is often used interchangeably with systematic desensitization, which emphasizes the step-by-step, hierarchical nature of the exposure.
- It can be contrasted with flooding, another exposure therapy technique where the client is exposed to the most anxiety-provoking stimulus immediately, rather than gradually.
- Desensitization (noun, US spelling): The general process of reducing sensitivity or emotional reactivity.
- Systematic Desensitization (noun phrase): A more specific term for the graduated exposure technique.
- Exposure Therapy (noun phrase): A broader category of treatments that includes desensitisation procedures.
- Counterconditioning (noun): The learning principle underlying the procedure, where a new response (relaxation) is conditioned to replace an old one (anxiety).
- Systematic desensitization
- Graduated exposure therapy
- Exposure with response prevention (a related, but not identical, technique often used for OCD)
- Hierarchy of fears: A list of anxiety-provoking scenarios related to the phobia, ranked from least to most frightening, used to guide the desensitisation procedure.
- In vivo exposure: A form of desensitisation procedure where the client is exposed to the actual feared object or situation.
- Imaginal exposure: A form of desensitisation procedure where the client vividly imagines the feared scenario.
A therapist guides a patient through a desensitisation procedure for a fear of spiders.
- a technique used in behavior therapy to treat phobias and other behavior problems involving anxiety; client is exposed to the threatening situation under relaxed conditions until the anxiety reaction is extinguished