Wednesday, March 6, 2024

Snake Phobia or Ophidiophobia

 


Ophidiophobia is an intense, irrational fear of snakes. Unlike normal fear, which arises in response to actual danger (like encountering a rattlesnake in the woods), ophidiophobia triggers anxiety even when thinking about snakes or seeing them on television.

Symptoms of ophidiophobia include:

Emotional stress and anxiety

A sense of immediate danger or doom

Rapid heart rate

Sweating

Shaking, trembling

Shortness of breath

Chest pain or discomfort

Nausea

Dizziness, or feeling lightheaded

Fear of losing control or death (also dread and terror)

Tingling sensations

Avoidant behavior (e.g., reptile houses at zoos, nature trails, some movies and jobs)

Prevalence

In the US, 64% reported snakes as a cause of fear—32% reported being “very afraid” (Moore, 2014, March 27). The level of fear is worse for older (over age 65) Americans (79% are scared). Fear of snakes is not the top fear in the UK but is still common at 52% behind fear of heights and public speaking.

The fear of snakes is among the most common fear. About half of a population reported a fear of snakes and 2-3% met diagnostic criteria for snake phobia (Polák, 2016).

Gender Differences

Multiple studies, including Fredrikson, Annas, Fischer and Wik (1996), have found specific gender differences in the prevalence of ophidiophobia. In fact, women are four times more likely to have a phobia of snakes compared to men.


Preparedness Theory and Ophidiophobia:

Humans are biologically predisposed to fear snakes more readily than other animals.

Fear acquisition happens faster with snakes due to our evolutionary history.

The amygdala, a brain structure, which plays a role in processing snake-related fear and response. (The amygdala is also involved in memory formation.)

Causes and Diagnosis:

The fear network in the human brain, involving the amygdala, plays a role in processing snake-related stimuli.

Diagnosis is based on symptoms outlined in the most recent DSM.

Treatment and Overcoming Ophidiophobia:

Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) is effective in treating specific phobias.

Techniques like exposure therapy help desensitize individuals to snake-related stimuli.

Practical ways to overcome ophidiophobia include gradual exposure, relaxation techniques, and seeking professional help.

Ophidiophobia and Religion

The fear of snakes is common in many cultures. In the Hebrew Bible, a snake appears as a talking character that deceives Eve, the first woman in Genesis.

 

References

Fredrikson, M., Annas, P., Fischer, H., & Wik, G. (1996). Gender and age differences in the prevalence of specific fears and phobias. Behaviour research and therapy34(1), 33–39. https://doi.org/10.1016/0005-7967(95)00048-3

Moore, P. (2014, March 27). Snakes, heights and public speaking are the top three fears in the Home of the Brave. YouGov. Retrieved from https://today.yougov.com/society/articles/8983-argh-snakes

Polák, J., Sedláčková, K., Nácar, D., Landová, E., & Frynta, D. (2016). Fear the serpent: A psychometric study of snake phobia. Psychiatry research242, 163–168. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psychres.2016.05.024

Cite this post

Sutton, G. W. (2024, March 6). Snake Phobia or Ophidiophobia. Psychology Concepts and Theories. Retrieved from https://suttonpsychology.blogspot.com/2024/03/snake-phobia-or-ophidiophobia.html




Geoffrey W. Sutton, PhD is Emeritus Professor of Psychology. He retired from a clinical practice and was credentialed in clinical neuropsychology and psychopharmacology. His website is  www.suttong.com

 

Please check out my books on   AMAZON       or  GOOGLE STORE

Follow on    FACEBOOK   Geoff W. Sutton    

   X  @Geoff.W.Sutton    


You can read many published articles at no charge:

  Academia   Geoff W Sutton     ResearchGate   Geoffrey W Sutton 

 

Dr. Sutton’s posts are for educational purposes only. See a licensed mental health provider for diagnoses, treatment, and consultation. 



Sunday, March 3, 2024

Consciousness in psychology

 


Consciousness is a person’s awareness of oneself and one’s context. This subjective state is studied scientifically by searching for brain activity correlated with the experience of consciousness.

Clinically, consciousness is experienced in terms of the common cognitive-behavioral triad (Affective, Behavior, Cognition or ABC) and two contexts. The internal context of physiological processes and the external context of social space and time. Briefly, consciousness includes thoughts, feelings, and action patterns contextualized by physiological processes of which we are sometimes aware and an external social space-time context such as where and when an experience occurs and who and what were prominent features in that context. These components of the psychological self are summarized elsewhere in the SCOPES model of functioning.

Consciousness is an emergent property of brains. Researchers have looked for the Neuronal Correlates of Consciousness (NCCs). The entire brain is an NCC but we do not appear to be aware of the basic processes that capture audio or visual stimuli. Brain imagery research suggests the proximal source of consciousness lies within the posterior part of the cortex called the hot zone. Electrical stimulation of cortical tissue in the hot zone elicits reports of flashing lights, shapes, distorted faces, feelings, urges, and hallucinations. The removal of parts of the posterior cortex has resulted in losses of selective consciousness such as an awareness of motion, color, or space.

Measurement

A technique called zap and zip allows neuroscientists to send a pulse of energy to the brain and measure activity using EEG sensors. The results were zipped like a computer zip file. Analysis yielded an index (perturbational complexity index) that has distinguished between consciousness in patients unable to communicate and those who were unconscious—a vegetative state.

Two Approaches to Understanding Consciousness

Global Neuronal Workspace (GNW)

GNW is associated with the work of psychologist Bernard J. Baars and neuroscientists Stanislas Dehaene and Jean-Pierre Changeaux. The idea is that when our brains process a stimulus, many of the brain’s cognitive subsystems access the information. Theoretically, a neural network in the frontal and parietal lobes is activated and the information enters consciousness. In contrast, unconscious processes occur when people carry out automatic behavior like walking while talking on their mobile phones.

 

Integrated Information Theory (IIT)

IIT was developed by Giulio Tononi and others. The focus is on the processing of whole experience scenarios analogous to a video clip. Consciousness of experience is quantified from zero as unconscious with higher numbers representing a more complex integration of information. The quantitative index is phi. The zap-zip meter estimates phi.

Status of Theories

At this point there is no acceptable theory explaining consciousness. This may be in part because of the subjectivity of the experience we call consciousness. Schurger et al. (2022) offer a critique of extant theories, which they view as descriptions of activity rather than an explanation. These authors suggest Attention Schema Theory (AST) as a possible candidate for a scientific theory. AST has been criticized as not explaining consciousness. A quote from the authors may help:

Consciousness, according to AST, is a special kind of percept that arises due to the workings of a hypothetical mechanism called an ‘attention schema’. The attention schema helps to guide, stabilize, and control selective attention, and having an attention scheme can lead to an adamant belief in an ineffable something extra that we might call qualia.

  

 

 

References

Koch, C. (2018, May 9). What is consciousness? Nature. Retrieved from https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-018-05097-x

Neuroscience News (2023, May 20). Unlocking the mind: The neuroscience behind our conscious reality. Neuroscience News. Retrieved from https://neurosciencenews.com/consciousness-neuroscience-23299/

Schurger, A. & Graziano, M. (2022). Consciousness explained or described?, Neuroscience of Consciousness, 1, niac001, https://doi.org/10.1093/nc/niac001

 Sutton, G. W. (2024, March 3). Consciousness in psychology. Psychology Concepts and Theories. Retrieved from https://suttonpsychology.blogspot.com/2024/03/consciousness-in-psychology.html




Geoffrey W. Sutton, PhD is Emeritus Professor of Psychology. He retired from a clinical practice and was credentialed in clinical neuropsychology and psychopharmacology. His website is  www.suttong.com

 

Please check out my books on   AMAZON       or  GOOGLE STORE

Follow on    FACEBOOK   Geoff W. Sutton    

   X  @Geoff.W.Sutton    


You can read many published articles at no charge:

  Academia   Geoff W Sutton     ResearchGate   Geoffrey W Sutton 

 

Dr. Sutton’s posts are for educational purposes only. See a licensed mental health provider for diagnoses, treatment, and consultation. 




 

 

Monday, January 29, 2024

Frames, Narratives, Worldviews and Psychology

 

The Protest 2023
Geoffrey W Sutton & Bing Designer

Narratives offer groups explanations for actions and often justify group behavior. 

Groups of people in conflict create narratives, which frame events for their group and those outside a group. A pervasive narrative offers a framework for understanding future information.

Persistent and pervasive narratives become substantial components of worldviews.

Lewandowsky and others provide an example of the narrative preceding the 2003 US war with Iraq and note that before the war, the narrative used a war metaphor to refer to terrorism and presented the idea of preventive war as self-defense.

Frames or narratives are not propaganda--

"Instead, frames and narratives are necessary cognitive tools, designed to pare down information in order to manage complexity. These tools facilitate communication even if they emphasize facts unevenly (Nisbet, 2009)." (Lewandowsky et al., 2013)

Effective leaders frame history for their people. They create narratives and effective narratives persist. They contribute to people's understanding of themselves and their group identity.

Frames or narratives may apply to nations, organizations, religious groups, families, and individuals.

References

Lewandowsky, S., Stritzke, W. G. K., Freund, A. M., Oberauer, K., & Krueger, J. I. (2013). Misinformation, disinformation, and violent conflict: From Iraq and the “War on Terror” to future threats to peace. American Psychologist, 68(7), 487–501.

Sutton, G. W. (2024, January 29). Frames, narratives, worldviews and psychology. Psychology Concepts and Theories. Retrieved from https://suttonpsychology.blogspot.com/2024/01/frames-narratives-worldviews-and.html


Related post

Propaganda and psychology

 


Geoffrey W. Sutton, PhD is Emeritus Professor of Psychology. He retired from a clinical practice and was credentialed in clinical neuropsychology and psychopharmacology. His website is  www.suttong.com

 

See Geoffrey Sutton’s books on   AMAZON       or  GOOGLE STORE

Follow on    FACEBOOK   Geoff W. Sutton    

   X  @Geoff.W.Sutton    


You can read many published articles at no charge:

  Academia   Geoff W Sutton     ResearchGate   Geoffrey W Sutton 

 

Dr. Sutton’s posts are for educational purposes only. See a licensed mental health provider for diagnoses, treatment, and consultation.