ABSTRACT
Specific phobia is defined in DSM-IV (simple phobia in DSM-III and DSM-III-R) as the presence of marked and persistent fear of circumscribed objects or situations (American Psychiatric Association; APA, 1994). The major focus of fear maybe anticipated harm from some aspects of the object or situation. That is, the fear is usually not of the object itself but of some dire outcome that the individual believes may result from contact with that object. For example, individuals with blood phobia do not fear blood, but instead, they fear the consequences of confrontation with blood (e.g., fainting). Exposure to the phobic stimulus almost immediately provokes an anxiety response which may take the form of a panic attack. The phobic stimulus may be avoided or endured with distress. Individuals with this disorder recognize that their fear is excessive or unreasonable, however, this feature may be absent in children. The avoidance, anxious anticipation, or distress in the feared situation(s) markedly interferes with the person's daily activities, occupational (or academic) functioning, or social activities or relationships, or there is considerable distress about having the phobia. As argued by Silverman and Rabian (1994), specific phobia can be differentiated from normal developmental fears in that the phobic reaction is excessive and out of proportion to the demands of the situation, leads to avoidance, persists over time, and is maladaptive. For individuals under age 18 years, the fear must have persisted for at least 6 months.
