Transfer of Behavioral Change Across Phobias in Multiply Phobic Clients

Abstract

Six subjects with multiple phobias were given performance-based treatment for each of their phobias in succession until marked behavioral improvement occurred in each. To test for generalization of behavioral change within and across phobias, behavioral tests of the treated and yet untreated phobias were administered before and after each treatment phase in settings different from those used for treatment. Results showed that although the behavioral gains generalized quite well within the phobic domain treated, there was little generalized improvement across phobias. These findings suggest that multiply phobic conditions such as agoraphobia may be better conceptualized as collections of partially independent phobic reactions than as unitary conditions with global underlying causes.

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