Height phobia and biases in the interpretation of bodily sensations: some links between acrophobia and agoraphobia

Behaviour Research and Therapy
G C DaveyB Gallardo

Abstract

The present study was designed to investigate some of the factors that might underlie the commonly found association between agoraphobia and fear of heights (acrophobia). The results showed that measures of acrophobia are highly associated with the tendency to interpret ambiguous bodily sensations as threatening, and with an increased tendency to report bodily sensations of anxiety. These features of acrophobia did not appear to be characteristics found in phobic states in general, nor did measures of acrophobia show any significant relationship to the tendency to interpret external and social stimuli as threatening. These findings suggest that the frequently found co-morbidity between agoraphobia and acrophobia may be linked to cognitive biases in the discrimination and interpretation of bodily sensations that agoraphobia and acrophobia share in common. In addition, the present findings also generate testable hypotheses about the aetiology of acrophobia.

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Citations

Mar 28, 2009·Proceedings. Biological Sciences·Russell E Jackson
Mar 14, 2009·Journal of Anxiety Disorders·Carlos M CoelhoGuy Wallis
Jan 30, 2002·Behaviour Research and Therapy·Richie Poulton, Ross G Menzies
Dec 3, 2014·Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews·Carlos M Coelho, Carey D Balaban
Sep 11, 2019·Acta otorhinolaryngologica Italica : organo ufficiale della Società italiana di otorinolaringologia e chirurgia cervico-facciale·R TeggiE Mira

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