The Assessment of Fear of Flying: Elaboration and Validation of a Videotape as an Analogous Situation of a Flight1

Abstract

The results are presented for the validation of a videotape as an analogous situation for a flight. The video includes the most significant elements of a flight by air: confirmation of the flight, packing, going to the airport, checking-in, going through the metal-detector, departure lounge, boarding the plane, demonstration of the personal safety drills, interiors and exteriors during the flight and landing. Two physiological measures are used for validation (heart rate and temperature) and a subjective measure (situational anxiety, SA). The results (both t-tests and the discriminant analysis) indicate that the videotape is able to discriminate between phobics and non-phobics of flying in the three variables considered. With respect to sensitivity in detecting change produced by various treatments in clients with phobia of flying, the results are also satisfactory. A greater differentiation is produced between the pre-post treatment measures, both in subjective and in the physiological measures.

A reattributional training program as a therapeutic strategy for fear of flying

“…The third instrument used for assessment was a video tape of a #ight. In a previous study (CapafoH ns et al, 1997b) the video tape has shown a di!erence between subjects with and without #ying phobia with an acceptable level of reliability. Furthermore, this instrument was able to detect changes produced by psychological treatment in phobic patients, taking into account psychophysiological and self-report information.…”

“…The two groups together with the above-mentioned non-fear group were speci"cally analysed with respect to which subject was allocated to which group. The variables included in this discriminant analysis were the most representative of the whole set, selected by the analysis of the correlations resulting from the validation studies of the subjective scales of fear of #ying (Sosa et al, 1995) as well as the video tape exposure variables (CapafoH ns et al, 1997b). Table 2 shows means and standard deviations obtained from both fear groups before and after treatment.…”

“…The study presented here was subsidised by the Autonomous Government of the Canaries. It is part of a wider research project which deals with the subject of the fear of #ying under three broad headings, the "rst of which refers to the preparation of valid and reliable instruments for the analysis of this problem (CapafoH ns, Sosa, Herrero & Vin a, 1997b;Sosa, CapafoH ns, Vin a & Herrero, 1995). The second refers to the study of this fear at a psychopathological level (Sosa et al, 1993) and "nally, the third broad heading deals with di!erent experimental intervention strategies aimed at eradicating this disorder (CapafoH ns, Sosa & Avero, 1997a;Vin a, 1996).…”

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

“…Brandon and Kleinknecht (1982) used a videotaped simulated dental operation as a BAT to assess dental fear via self-report and physiological palmar sweating. Capafóns, Sosa, Herrero, and Viña (1997) carried out a study to validate an analogous observation with flight videos; they used subjective measurements, heart rate and temperature. This system identified people with or without a flying phobia and showed sensitivity to the treatment's effects.…”

Specific Phobia: Flight

“…Conversely both convergent and divergent validity is assessed with comparison to the Visible Analogue Flight Anxiety Scale (VAFAS), and the Fear Survey Schedule (FSS-III) (Wolpe & Lang, 1977) respectively. (Van Gerwen,Van Dyke & Diekstra, 1999) One study, (Capafóns, Sosa, Herrero, & Viña, 1997) notes the extra complexity of diagnosis, which in turn restricts research into this area. The authors assess the efficacy of using videotape to provide apparently provide "isolated stimulus", and concluding that that "viewing video evokes differences between phobics and non phobics at the subjective level."…”