Exploring the potential role of courage in promoting approach toward feared stimuli.

Behavioral approach toward feared stimuli is an important component of exposure therapy for anxiety and related disorders. Methods that increase approach behaviors may improve exposure therapy outcomes, yet few studies have investigated this possibility. The current study sought to examine the effect of recalling an act of personal courage on levels of behavioral approach in a behavioral approach task (BAT) that consisted of viewing pictures related to dental treatment. Sixty-one undergraduate students were randomly assigned to respond to one of three writing prompts before completing the BAT. The “courage included” (CI) prompt instructed participants to write about a time when they engaged in an act of personal courage. The control prompt instructed participants to write about something that causes them to experience fear or anxiety. The “courage omitted” (CO) prompt instructed participants to write about an action they engaged in that met the criteria for personal courage, but it did not label this action “personally courageous.” There were no significant differences in behavioral approach levels (i.e., number of pictures viewed) across conditions, and the effect sizes were small (CI-control Cliff’s δ = 0.22; CI-control Cohen’s d = 0.25; CI-CO Cliff’s δ = 0.28; CI-CO Cohen’s d = 0.31). An exploratory analysis showed that participants in the CI condition completed the BAT at a significantly higher rate (45.00%) than did participants in both the control (14.29%) and CO (10.00%) conditions. While the BAT evoked low levels of fear and the main hypothesis was not supported, the results suggest that recalling an act of personal courage may increase the probability of subsequent task completion. Additional research is needed to determine whether this effect holds true when the task involves behavioral approach toward feared stimuli.

Name thesis:degree_name

Psy.D.

Level thesis:degree_level

Doctoral

Grantor

Baylor University.

Year dc:date.issued

2025

Author dc:creator

• Sievers, Brad L., 1991-

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• Fergus, Thomas A.

• Courage.
• Fear.
• Anxiety.
• Exposure therapy.

Statement dc:rights

• Baylor University works are protected by copyright. They may be viewed from this source for any purpose, but reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without written permission. Contact libraryquestions@baylor.edu for inquiries about permission.

Language dc:language.iso

en

Handle dc:identifier.uri

https://hdl.handle.net/2104/13985

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:baylor-ir.tdl.org:2104/13985