phobia

[fo´be-ah]

a persistent, irrational, intense fear of a specific object, activity, or situation (the phobic stimulus), fear that is recognized as being excessive or unreasonable by the individual himself. When a phobia is a significant source of distress or interferes with social functioning, it is considered a mental disorder (sometimes called a phobic disorder). Some typical phobias are: acrophobia (fear of heights), astraphobia (fear of lightning), cenotophobia (fear of new things or new ideas), claustrophobia (fear of closed places), hemophobia (fear of blood), and xenophobia (dread of strangers). Phobias are subclassified as agoraphobia, social phobias, and specific phobias. See also anxiety disorders. adj., adj pho´bic.

simple phobia specific phobia.

social phobia an anxiety disorder characterized by fear and avoidance of social or performance situations in which the individual fears possible embarrassment and humiliation, for example, fear of speaking, performing, or eating in public.

specific phobia an anxiety disorder characterized by persistent and excessive or unreasonable fear of a circumscribed, well-defined object or situation, in contrast to fear of being alone or of public places (agoraphobia) or fear of embarrassment in social situations (social phobia). Common specific phobias involve fear of animals, particularly dogs, snakes, insects, and mice; fear of closed spaces (claustrophobia); and fear of heights (acrophobia).

specific phobia

1. a persistent pattern of significant fear of specific objects or situations, manifesting in anxiety or panic on exposure to the object or situation or in anticipation of them, which the person realizes is unreasonable or excessive and which interferes significantly with the person's functioning;

2. a DSM diagnosis that is established when the specified criteria are met.

Synonym(s): simple phobia

Farlex Partner Medical Dictionary © Farlex 2012

A phobia related to exposure to specific objects or situations

Examples Animals (e.g., snakes, rats), insects (e.g., spiders), heights, lightning, flying, most common in children
Specific phobias are not generally associated with mental disorders and often respond well to desensitisation therapy

specific phobia

Psychology A persistent, irrational fear of an object, activity or situation that compels a person to avoid it, evoking distress and functional impairment, disproportionate to the actual threat of a feared object or situation Examples Animals, insects, heights, lightning, flying, most common in children; SPs are not generally associated with mental disorders. See Phobia.

spe·cif·ic pho·bi·a

(spĕ-sif'ik fō'bē-ă)

A persistent pattern of significant fear of specific objects or situations, manifesting in anxiety or panic on exposure to the object or situation or in anticipation of them, which the person realizes is unreasonable or excessive and which interferes significantly with the person's functioning.
Synonym(s): simple phobia.

Medical Dictionary for the Health Professions and Nursing © Farlex 2012

spe·ci·fic pho·bi·a

(spĕ-sif'ik fō'bē-ă)

Persistent pattern of significant fear of specific objects or situations, manifesting in anxiety or panic on exposure to object or situation or in anticipation of them, which person realizes is unreasonable or excessive and significantly interferes with the person's functioning.

Medical Dictionary for the Dental Professions © Farlex 2012

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References in periodicals archive

For the child interference scale, both parents and children reported higher levels of impairment for the children with a principal diagnosis of generalised anxiety than for the children with a principal diagnosis of a specific phobia. Additionally, on the child's report, children with generalised anxiety also display significantly higher levels of impairment that did children with social phobia as their principal diagnosis.

Preliminary analysis of the Portuguese version of the child anxiety life interference scale/Analise preliminar da versao Portuguesa da escala de interferencia da ansiedade na crianca

The low representation of specific phobias (6.5%) is noteworthy, despite the fact that many studies report that specific phobias and social phobias are the most frequent ADs.

Treatment of anxiety disorders in a psychology clinic

(2001) Specific Phobias, in Anxiety Disorders: An Introduction to Clinical Management and Research (eds E.

Understanding fear in school children

The present case was a typical example of specific phobia related to an animal, usually found in women.

Psychological intervention of murophobia

(2008) for assessing approach/avoidant behavior within specific phobia in the same population.

Targeting fear of spiders with control-, acceptance-, and information-based approaches

For example, tranquilizers would be well suited if the specific phobia was something our patient only occasionally has to deal with--like a patient phobic for needles who must take a premarital blood test in order to obtain a marriage license.

Musical performance anxiety: adapting psychotherapy techniques of desensitization to the voice studio, part 1

The lifetime prevalence of any specific phobia has been estimated at between 5.2% and 12.8% in various studies [2-4].

Vestiphobia in a military conscript: a case report

Specific phobia was the most commonly reported comorbidity with a positive CSI-4 screening cut-off score in both the treatment and no- / other-treatment groups (53%), followed by vocal tics (41%), motor tics (39%), and ODD (37%).

A prospective observational study of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder in Asia: baseline characteristics of symptom severity and treatment options in a paediatric population

The most common anxiety disorders, as defined by the 'Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorder' (American Psychiatric Association, 1994), are specific phobia, social phobia, generalized anxiety disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), acute stress disorder and separation anxiety disorder.

Hypnosis and anxiety: early interventions

Driving phobia is defined as a specific phobia, situational type, in the DSM-IV (APA, 1994).

Exposicao por realidade virtual no tratamento do medo de dirigir

Alongside a widespread media campaign based on expert advice and specific phobia cures, Leader will be managing online activities.

No fears with Andy

Along with a widespread media campaign based on expert advice and specific phobia cures, Leader will be managing an online campaign.

The Fear Master calls on PR firm to raise profile; CREATIVE