DR.
YOUSSEF
SHIBAN
Prof. of Clinical Psychology
PFH - Private University of Applied Sciences
Conditioning
Social anxiety and conditioning research
Social conditioning
Social conditioning refers to the process by which an individual's beliefs, attitudes, values, and behaviors are shaped by the experiences, expectations, and norms of their social environment. This can occur through direct experiences and interactions, as well as indirect exposure to media, education, and cultural messages.
How to prevent return of fear
My work is also connected with studying the mechanisms of conditioning, mainly social conditioning.
In one study we investigated whether gradually reducing the frequency of aversive stimuli during extinction can prevent the return of fear. The unconditioned stimulus was an air blast. A spider and a scorpion were used as conditioned stimuli. The outcome variables were contingency ratings and physiological measures (skin conductance response, SCR and startle response). One main result was that gradual extinction compared to standard extinction significantly reduced the return of fear in the reinstatement test for the startle response but not for SCR or contingency ratings. The results suggest that the gradual extinction process is suitable for increasing the efficacy of fear extinction.
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