Sienna has a severe phobia of balloons. This began when she was seven years old, when a large metallic balloon suddenly burst with an extremely loud bang right next to her face at a birthday party, causing her terror. Now, even seeing uninflated balloons or hearing high-pitched rubbery rubbing sounds causes her intense panic. Consequently, Sienna strictly avoids children's birthday parties, shopping malls during festive promotions, and any celebratory events where decorations might be present.
Suggest how the behavioural approach might be used to explain Sienna’s phobia of balloons.
Practise AQA A Level Psychology Behavioural approach to phobias with exam-style questions for A Level Psychology. 62 questions, matched to the AQA A Level Psychology (7182) specification and written in Paper 1, Paper 2 and Paper 3 style. Every question includes a full worked solution and mark scheme, so you can see where marks are awarded rather than just whether you got the answer right.
