AVERSION THERAPY + COVERT SENSATION
aversion therapy
a behavioural intervention that works on principles of classical conditioning
aim is to decrease or eliminate undesirable behaviours associated with addiction by associating them with unpleasant or uncomfortable sensations
procedure
an individual learns to associate the aversive stimulus (eg. UCS foul smell, electric mild shock, nauseous feeling) with an action they had previously enjoyed (eg. NS drinking, smoking)
the behaviour becomes associated with unpleasant stimulus, it will begin to decrease in frequency
asked to engage in the addictive behaviour while at the same time being exposed to something unpleasant
the pleasurable association with the addictive substance is then broken and replaced with a negative association
antabuse
antabuse UCS --> Vomiting UCR
Alcohol NS + antabuse UCS --> vomiting UCR
alcohol CS --> vomiting CR
research support
compared emetic (vomiting) drug aversion therapy and electric shock aversion therapy
20 male alcoholics assigned to one of three groups, including a control group
Cannon and Baker 1981 - looked into the effectiveness of aversion therapy into resting alcoholism
emetic drug therapy to be effective in reducing alcoholism, however the electric shock aversion therapy was not effective
suggest aversion therapy can be effective, although it does depend on the unconditioned stimulus used
individual differences
in contrast to the idea that we all have the capacity to be classically conditioned
the fact there is individual differences means that aversion therapy is effective with some people but not others
Danaher 1977 shows that aversion therapy does not work for everyone
therefore has limited usefulness
covert sensitisation
based on classical conditioning
very similar to aversion therapy but with one major difference, the unpleasant stimulus is only imagined by the individual
assumes that the behaviour was learned and can therefore be unlearned
procedure
relaxation techniques = patient taught to relax using techniques such as breathing exercises. encourage a calm state, removing agitation, enable to concentration
verbal aversion therapy = the unpleasant feelings are imagined, these become associated with the drug or behaviour
therapist encourages the client to go into details so they can mentally picture the situation
ashem and donner 1968
40% patients receiving covert sensitisation for alcohol addiction were still abstinent 6 months after treatment, whereas none of the control group remained alcohol free
research support found covert sensitisation effective in treating addiction to alcohol
ethical
the negative consequences never actually happen to the client, they are imagined
therefore the therapist is not compromised and there are no physical risks posed to the patient
this treatment does not have many of the ethical problems that other behavioural therapies such as aversion therapy have