The Nature of Threat: Enhanced Recall of Internal Threat Words in Fear of Flying

Abstract

Conditioning theories propose that fear of flying becomes a conditioned response through the association of flight situations with a threatening aversive event. This implicates that targeting the source of the conditioned fear is essential for exposure treatment. Therefore, the present study aims to investigate the nature of threat in fear of flying, which can be external or internal. The sample consisted of 25 undergraduate students: 12 with fear of flying and 13 controls. We measured free recall of external versus internal threat words and neutral words embedded in a dichotic listening task. The results indicated that all subjects reported more external threat words as compared to the other word categories. However, the only group difference was found for the internal threat words: subjects with fear of flying recalled significantly more internal threat words than controls. This enhanced recall for internal threat-related stimuli in individuals with fear of flying indicates that internal sensations may also be essential threat stimuli to use in exposure, next to external stimuli.Keywords Fear of flying Á Dichotic listening Á Memory bias Á Anxiety People suffering from fear of flying experience an intense fear to take a flight, not only during the different stages of the flight but commonly also in anticipation of a flight.Because flying becomes more popular as a means of transportation, ever more people struggle with their fear to fly, with estimates of prevalence ranging from 10 to 40% of the general population (Van Gerwen et al. 1997).Limited research has been done on underlying mechanisms in fear of flying, with most of the research efforts relating to the treatment of the disorder. This is unfortunate because in order to effectively treat the disorder, knowledge on its causal and maintaining factors is essential. In line with conditioning theories of the etiology of fear, flying becomes a conditioned stimulus (CS) when it is paired or associated with a threatening aversive event (the unconditioned stimulus or UCS) such as an accident, which inherently produces fear [unconditioned reaction (UCR)]. Simply taking a flight will subsequently also elicit fear as a conditioned reaction (or CR). However, this account has some limitations, which also relate to more general criticisms formulated to conditioning theory (Davey 1999). First, not everyone with fear of flying has experienced threatening, aversive or traumatic events while flying. In fact, there a not enough aircraft-related incidents to explain the high prevalence of fear of flying in the general population. Second, not everyone who has experienced aversive events while flying develops fear of flying. For instance, a study by Wilhelm and Roth (1997) has shown that controls cite more flight-related aversive events than flight phobic subjects do. These limitations of conditioning theory to explain the origin fear of flying show that there might be other sources of conditioned fear than the abovementioned external aversive unconditioned stimuli. Alternativel...

Evaluating Perceived Probability of Threat-Relevant Outcomes and Temporal Orientation in Flying Phobia

“…The scale is represented on a horizontal line, anchored by word descriptors at each end. Visual analogue scales have previously been employed to identify low and high anxiety fliers in a number of flying phobia studies [ 6 ] and are considered an appropriate screening instrument for identifying flying and non-flying phobics.…”

“…The fear of flying has been found to be associated with the appraisal of both internal and external sources of threat [ 6 ]. External danger appraisals typically relate to negative flying outcomes (e.g.…”

“…Consequently, fears regarding imminent threat of external negative flying-related outcomes can be considered to reflect an overestimation of threat. It is noteworthy that the processes involved in the maintenance of flying phobia are poorly understood [ 6 ]. Thus, determining the mechanisms which lead to, and maintain, the overestimation of threat may facilitate a better understanding of flying phobia and how best to treat this common presenting problem.…”

The Relationship Between Fear of COVID-19 and Psychological Distress in Tour Guides: The Mediating Role of Job Insecurity and the Moderating Role of Psychological Resilience

“… 35 Job insecurity depends on the severity of the threat. 32 That is, the higher the threat perceived, the higher the job insecurity. And fear affects the person’s internal threat.…”

“…Seen as “guardians” in the tourism industry, the respondents still considered searching for new job opportunities. 30 It has been suggested that job insecurity might depend on the severity of the threat 32 that is, the higher the threat perceived, the higher the job insecurity. Whereas fear affects one’s internal threat, 33 this study proposes that it is probable that the fear of COVID-19 may also have an impact on job insecurity in tour guides.…”