Carlos has an intense fear of public speaking, which hinders his advancement in his job. He is an assistant professor of economics and must speak regularly to large classes of students. He must also present his research to his peers within the university and at large academic conferences

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Using principles of classical conditioning, develop a plan to help Carlos reduce his fear of public speaking. Be specific as to which principle(s) you are applying and how they work.

What will be an ideal response?

ANSWER:
?The text describes the following methods based on classical conditioning that may be used to overcome fears: flooding?extinction, counterconditioning (positive or aversive), and systematic desensitization. Students might combine some of these possibilities or raise other possibilities.
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Flooding?extinction. As the text notes, a conditioned response will extinguish if the conditioned stimulus is presented alone, without the unconditioned stimulus. Treating phobias by exposing people to fear-producing stimuli in a manner that is safe until they no longer respond (i.e., extinction) is known as flooding. Although flooding works, it can be stressful or traumatic. Students might develop a plan based on presenting many speeches in lower-risk academic settings, or in supportive settings such as public speaking classes or groups, or in nonacademic settings, such as within a child’s school or a neighborhood association.
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Counterconditioning (positive or aversive). Counterconditioning involves the substitution of one conditioned response for another, opposite response. Students might develop a plan that pairs giving a public talk with more pleasant experiences before and/or after the talk, in order to develop more benign associations with the act of public speaking. Talks might be preceded by 10 minutes of meditation or followed by a very good cup of coffee or a game of racquetball with a good friend, and so forth, depending on Carlos’s preferences.
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Systematic desensitization. As the text notes, this is a variation of counterconditioning in which associations between a phobic stimulus and fear are replaced by associations between the phobic stimulus and relaxation. The person undergoing treatment is first trained to achieve a state of physical and mental relaxation, usually by tensing and relaxing muscle groups from head to toe. Once relaxation is achieved, the fear stimulus is gradually introduced, either in physical form or through guided imagery in which the person is asked to imagine the stimulus. If relaxation falters at any point, the person retreats to an earlier stage of exposure to the fear stimulus until he or she can relax again. Students might recommend that Carlos work with an appropriate person or program to reduce his fears associated with public speaking through systematic desensitization, and might recommend combining it with other approaches.