Research Paper On Phobias

A phobia is defined as an irrational fear of something that can sometimes pose little or no real danger. In this paper we will look further into what a phobia really is and the theories and experiments behind them. There have been many experiments behind phobias including one experiment conducted by John B. Watson known as The Little Albert Experiment. We will dig deeper into this experiment and others later in the paper. According to the National Institute of Mental Health more than 10 million adults in the United States today suffer from some sort of phobia. Some of these phobias that so many suffer from include spiders, heights, snakes, public spaces, social situations, needles, and millions more. Over the past several decades psychologists and other researchers have developed some effective treats for phobias as technology has evolved. A phobia is based on fear and is still a topic of research today for psychologists and other researchers. Fears and phobias go hand in hand. A fear is survival mechanism that is built in when we are born. Fear is normal for humans and even as babies we possess this survival …show more content…
Often times people who develop these phobias are apart of family with a history of anxiety problems. Children and teens who tend to be fearful often share this trait with their parents. Genetics and learning are two things that both can cause the development of a phobia. Someone who develops a phobia will become anxious when they are near the object or situation that is causing this anxiety. They find out that avoidance of this can reduce their anxiousness. This will make that person more likely to avoid it the next time as well. As this continues to occur the person will find themselves worrying about the feared situation occurring and the avoidance will become more and more powerful. Phobias can tend to grown and become more interfering over