Abstract
It was hypothesized that implicit choice in a traditional systematic desensitization procedure produces dissonance, the reduction of which is partially responsible for anxiety reduction. To test this, 24 female snake-phobic 5s were divided into 3 treatments, which varied in the degree of perceived choice in progressing through the hierarchy. Desensitization with Choice decreased fear as measured by self-report (n.s.) and a behavioral test more than Traditional Desensitization, which in turn decreased fear more than Forced Desensitization. The principle of reciprocal inhibition could not account for the results, while both dissonance theory and attribution theory could.
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This paper is based on portions of an unpublished Masters thesis by the first author under the supervision of the junior authors.
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MacDonough, T.S., Adams, H.E. & Tesser, A. The Effects of Choice in Systematic Desensitization. Psychol Rec 23, 397–404 (1973). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03394184
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03394184