Creating a Computerized Instrument for the Assessment of Blood-Injury-Injection Phobia.

A new computerized instrument (the Multimedia Behavioral Avoidance Test, or MBAT) for blood-injury-injection phobia (BII) assessment is presented. Analogous stimuli such as images and videos can also elicit anxiety responses; thus, they can be used for the assessment of phobia. The MBAT was applied to participants via computer, and subjective anxiety responses and time latency were recorded. The MBAT was composed of 30 original images and 30 videos related to blood, injury and injections. The MBAT was compared with other pencil-and-paper questionnaires for BII phobia, and heart rate was also measured with a pulsioximeter. The participants included 160 students and professionals (34.5% males, 65.6% females; mean 28.6 years old). The results showed a high reliability for internal consistency in images and videos (α = .98 both), with a single factor that groups all the items. In addition, the MBAT had high concurrent validity (r = .78 to .85) with the different anxiety scales compared. The MBAT diagnosed 12 participants with possible BII phobia. It is a useful instrument in the assessment of this kind of phobia because it is easier and quicker than pencil-and-paper questionnaires, it uses more objective measurements, and it is useful in planning subsequent exposure with images and videos.

Creating a computerized instrument for the assessment of blood-injury-injection phobia

A new computerized instrument (the Multimedia Behavioral Avoidance Test, or MBAT) for blood-injury-injection phobia (BII) assessment is presented. Analogous stimuli such as images and videos can also elicit anxiety responses; thus, they can be used for the assessment of phobia. The MBAT was applied to participants via computer, and subjective anxiety responses and time latency were recorded. The MBAT was composed of 30 original images and 30 videos related to blood, injury and injections. The MBAT was compared with other pencil-and-paper questionnaires for BII phobia, and heart rate was also measured with a pulsioximeter. The participants included 160 students and professionals (34.5% males, 65.6% females; mean 28.6 years old). The results showed a high reliability for internal consistency in images and videos (α = .98 both), with a single factor that groups all the items. In addition, the MBAT had high concurrent validity (r = .78 to .85) with the different anxiety scales compared. The MBAT diagnosed 12 participants with possible BII phobia. It is a useful instrument in the assessment of this kind of phobia because it is easier and quicker than pencil-and-paper questionnaires, it uses more objective measurements, and it is useful in planning subsequent exposure with images and videos

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An experimental analysis of obsessive-compulsive checking as avoidance behaviour / Un análisis experimental de la comprobación obsesivo-compulsiva como conducta de evitación

BACKGROUND: Many explanatory models of obsessive-compulsive disorders (OCD) support the idea that compulsive behaviours are an attempt to avoid an aversive situation. There are few experimental studies carried out on the onset of repetitive behaviours. This study tries to create a repetitive checking behaviour as an analogue explaining similar OCD behaviours. METHOD: An inter-group design with 3 levels of aversion (minimal, progressive and maximum) in a visuo-spatial reasoning task was used. 48 university students without OCD problems (mean= 23 years old) were the participants, randomly distributed in 16 per group. Checking frequency (semi-hidden chronometer) for each task was measured and the questionnaires TONI-2, STAI, MOCI and YBOCS-SR were applied. RESULTS: Participants with a minimal or maximum level difficulty showed a significantly higher level of checking behaviour than those in the progressive difficulty. The differences occurred between the minimal and the progressive group, and between the minimal and maximum difficulty. There were no differences in any other variable. CONCLUSION: In this analogue, the continuous checking of a chronometer was reinforced by the elimination of boring tasks. The momentary escape from an aversive situation explains the checking behaviour. This study could be an experimental analogue of checking behaviour, showing its avoidance function

ANTECEDENTES: múltiples modelos explicativos sobre los trastornos obsesivo compulsivos (TOC) apoyan la idea de que las conductas compulsivas son un intento de eliminar una situación aversiva. Hay pocos estudios experimentales sobre cómo aparecen las conductas repetitivas. Este estudio intenta crear una conducta de comprobación repetitiva como un análogo que podría explicar conductas TOC similares. MÉTODO: se ha utilizado un diseño entregrupos con 3 niveles de aversión (mínimo, progresivo y máximo) en una tarea de razonamiento viso-espacial. Han participado 48 estudiantes universitarios sin problemas TOC (media= 23 años), aleatorizados 16 por grupo. Se ha medido la frecuencia de comprobaciones (cronómetro semioculto) en cada tarea y se aplicaron los cuestionarios TONI-2, STAI, MOCI y YBOCSSR. RESULTADOS: los participantes con dificultad mínima o máxima mostraron significativamente más respuestas de comprobación que el grupo de dificultad progresiva. Las diferencias ocurrieron entre el grupo con tarea de dificultad mínima y progresiva, y mínima frente a máxima. No hubo diferencias en ninguna de las otras variables. CONCLUSIONES: en este análogo la comprobación continua se vería reforzada negativamente al aliviar una tarea monótona, el propio escape momentáneo explicaría la comprobación. Este estudio podría ser un análogo experimental de que las conductas de comprobación tienen una función de evitación

An experimental analysis of obsessive-compulsive checking as avoidance behaviour.

BACKGROUND: Many explanatory models of obsessive-compulsive disorders (OCD) support the idea that compulsive behaviours are an attempt to avoid an aversive situation. There are few experimental studies carried out on the onset of repetitive behaviours. This study tries to create a repetitive checking behaviour as an analogue explaining similar OCD behaviours. METHOD: An inter-group design with 3 levels of aversion (minimal, progressive and maximum) in a visuo-spatial reasoning task was used. 48 university students without OCD problems (mean= 23 years old) were the participants, randomly distributed in 16 per group. Checking frequency (semi-hidden chronometer) for each task was measured and the questionnaires TONI-2, STAI, MOCI and YBOCS-SR were applied. RESULTS: Participants with a minimal or maximum level difficulty showed a significantly higher level of checking behaviour than those in the progressive difficulty. The differences occurred between the minimal and the progressive group, and between the minimal and maximum difficulty. There were no differences in any other variable. CONCLUSION: In this analogue, the continuous checking of a chronometer was reinforced by the elimination of boring tasks. The momentary escape from an aversive situation explains the checking behaviour. This study could be an experimental analogue of checking behaviour, showing its avoidance function.