Phobias: Theories and Causes

Many people are afraid of snakes and spiders. Others are afraid of flying or going to high-altitude places. Additionally, some people are nervous about socializing with others or speaking in public. These fears, however, are normal. Only when these fears become so extreme that they impede a person’s daily activities do they become the form of disorder known as phobia.

Phobia is the most common type of anxiety disorder. Other types include panic, GAD (generalized anxiety disorder), post-traumatic stress disorder, and OCD (obsessive-compulsive disorder). At least 80% of the population suffers from one form or another of this disorder. Nevertheless, many do not know about their condition.

Definition

Phobia is defined as an irrational fear towards a certain object, place or situation. In other words, the fear of the object, place or situation is unreasonable. Those who experience this fear may be aware that their fears are irrational. Nevertheless, they still feel powerless to stop their fear and they tend to create means to avoid that which they fear.

The Difference between Simple Fear and Phobia

Fear is a natural reaction to a dangerous situation. The fear response serves as a defense of the body to specific danger. In instances where a person is trapped in a treacherous situation, the body responds by either fighting or escaping from the situation. Feeling fear or being afraid in dangerous situations is therefore normal. In the case of phobia, however, the fear is typically petty or senseless.

Phobia is an exaggerated or imagined fear. For instance, it is normal for a person to be afraid when he or she is at the top of a 21-storey building. However, it is very irrational for a person to be afraid when he or she is standing on a regular chair. Phobia, therefore, refers to irrational but persistent, intense and uncontrollable fear.

Theories on Phobia

General Adaptation Syndrome

Whenever a person has extreme fear of something or someone, he or she experiences stress and his or her body reacts to this stress and the cause of the fear and stress – the so-called stressor. Hans Selye came up with an explanation on how stress affects the way our body functions. He called it the “general adaptation syndrome.”

In his theory, Hans Selye stated that our body undergoes three stages to maintain homeostasis (i.e. internal equilibrium). The first stage is called the “alarm reaction stage.” During the initial encounter with the stressor, the brain – specifically the hypothalamus – signals the adrenal gland to produce adrenalin and norepinephrine to serve as fuel for the body. It also signals the organs (for instance, the liver) to produce glycogen (an alternative for glucose) to prepare for the body’s defensive reaction.

The next stage is the “resistance stage.” During this stage, the whole body rallies and helps those areas that are crucial for the body’s defense. The digestive system lowers its function and shunts blood to the important areas; the lungs expand more to let more air in; and the heart pumps twice as much blood to distribute more oxygen to the muscles. These “resistance mechanisms” of the body is the reason why your stomach is upset and your extremities feel cold when you are nervous.

If a person’s body has been able to adapt to the stress, his or her bodily functions will soon return to normal. On the other hand, if a person reacts negatively to the stress, he or she may experience exhaustion, which is the third and final stage. If the person does not recover, his body reserves and energy stores may be depleted. This may eventually lead to death.

Classical Conditioning

An experiment using the concept of classical conditioning by Ivan Pavlov was done. The theory of classical conditioning works by changing the person’s behavior through conditioning to external stimuli. This was used to determine certain phobias or extreme of certain objects like snakes or spiders.

A person was exposed to two different pictures. The first one was a picture of a bird while the other one was a picture of a snake. The experiment showed that it takes fewer shocks to establish an adverse reaction to the picture of a snake than is needed to achieve the same adverse reaction to the picture of a bird. Thus, it has been concluded that a phobia can be caused by genetic predisposition or it can be traced back to childhood.

Causes of Phobia

Although many researchers have tried to establish the cause of phobia, this disorder still has an unknown cause. It is commonly believed that the cause of phobia and other anxiety disorders can be associated with genes, irregularity in brain chemistry and previous experiences.

Some experts say that phobias run in families. For instance, someone whose immediate family members have a history of hydrophobia (fear of water) is much more likely to have hydrophobia than somebody else whose family has no history of hydrophobia.

Some cases of phobia may also be attributed to the amygdala that is located in the limbic system of the brain. The amygdala is responsible for the regulation of fear and aggression. When a person experiences fear, the amygdala release hormones to alert the body and prepare it for defense. This is called the “flight-or-fight response.”

Childhood experiences are also believed to be a cause of phobias. Someone who has had a traumatic childhood experience – especially a near-death one – may carry his or her fear of the same experience and of the objects associated with this experience into adulthood. For instance, someone who has been in a serious car accident when he or she was a child will probably never learn how to drive or will probably be afraid to ride in a car. Meanwhile, someone who has nearly died from a snake bite when he or she was younger will probably be intensely afraid of snakes; the mere thought of them may even make him or her feel intense fear.

Many people have a phobia. However, such people usually avoid the object of their fear. They also usually avoid anything that will put them in the situation they fear. Thus, their phobias are usually left undiagnosed and untreated.

Unfortunately, extreme phobia can lead to serious repercussions. People who have phobias may resort to social isolation, may engage in harmful or risky activities (e.g. substance abuse), or may experience depression. Ultimately, their phobia may render them unable to lead normal lives.

Conclusion

Phobias are disorders that require professional and medical attention. If you have reason to believe that you have a phobia, you should seek medical attention as soon as possible. Only this way can you prevent your phobia from negatively impacting your normal functions and from leading to graver consequences and further complications.

Taking action and facing your fears is never an easy task, and you need all the help and support that you can get. Before you can get such support, however, you need to take the first step and seek help for yourself.