Question

Wasim has a phobia of lizards. What causes will a behaviour therapist assign to Wasim's phobia?

Hint:

When analyzing the cause of phobias in the context of behavior therapy, focus on learning, conditioning, and reinforcement patterns.

Answer 1

Faulty Learning Patterns: A behavior therapist is likely to explain Wasim’s phobia of lizards as a consequence of faulty learning patterns. This usually results due to classical conditioning.
Conditioning Patterns: It is possible that Wasim experienced an earlier trauma associated with lizards, which has led to a negative association of fear.
Faulty beliefs: They could also point towards certain kinds of beliefs or ideas that he may have about lizards.