Behaviour Therapies> Operant-Based Behaviour Therapy - Flooding or Impulsive Therapy

• In the flooding technique, the client cognitively tolerates and adapts to anxiety‑provoking situations rather than avoiding them.
• In this technique, the patient is exposed for a period to a very high‑intensity stimulus until his autonomic responsiveness is reduced.
• At that point, the stimulus cannot arouse anxiety.

• Portney said an anxious person has the inner capacity to face real dangers without distorting their character.
• Flooding uses this inner potential to tolerate stress rather than produce avoidance.
• Maladaptive responses are deconditioned, thereby removing symptoms.
• Desirable responses learned in the laboratory are generalised to real‑life situations.

• Lechman (1969) pointed out that flooding involves the reduction of autonomic responses.
• He also stated that avoidance responses cease automatically when anxiety is reduced.

• Flooding or impulsive therapy is similar to systematic desensitisation.
• It assumes neurotic behaviour results from conditioned avoidance of anxiety‑arousing stimuli.
• The therapist deliberately produces a massive impulse of anxiety.
• This is done by imagination or by actual anxiety‑provoking stimuli.
• The client develops stress tolerance, and the stimulus loses its power to create anxiety.

A person is very afraid of lifts and always uses the stairs. In flooding, the therapist makes the person ride the lift repeatedly without escaping. After some time, the anxiety reduces, and the person can use the lift normally.

• Flooding is a technique where the person is exposed to a very intense anxiety-provoking situation until the anxiety gradually reduces.
• It helps the client face fear directly instead of avoiding it, building tolerance to stress.
• It works by reducing autonomic (physical) anxiety responses, so the stimulus no longer creates fear.
• It is based on the idea that neurotic behaviour develops due to conditioned avoidance of fearful situations.
• It is used to treat phobias (e.g., fear of animals, water) and is often more effective than just imagining the feared situation.