title: Imagery ability and exposure in vivo in spider phobia.
abstract: The present study deals with the effect of imagery ability on treatment outcome in spider phobias. Thirty-eight spider phobics completed the Questionnaire on Mental Imagery (QMI) and the Spider Questionnaire (SPQ). Subjects also went through a behavioral approach task (BAT) during which heart rate and avoidance behavior were measured. Each subject was then given one-session treatment as described by Ost. Immediately after treatment, SPQ and BAT data were again obtained. On the basis of their QMI scores, subjects were assigned to a 'good', 'moderate', or 'poor' imagers group. Neither pre-treatment nor post-treatment measures were found to vary as a function of imagery ability. Thus it appears that, at least for specific phobias such as spider fear, imagery ability is not a relevant variable for predicting the effects of in vivo exposure.
authors.affiliation: Department of Mental Health Sciences/Medical Psychology, University of Limburg, Maastricht, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Merckelbach
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: de Jong
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Arntz
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000818:Animals; D001348:Aversive Therapy; D001521:Behavior Therapy; D005239:Fear; D005260:Female; D006339:Heart Rate; D006801:Humans; D007092:Imagination; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010698:Phobic Disorders / Q000628:therapy*; D013112:Spiders