Does Distraction Interfere With Fear Reduction During Exposure? A Test Among Animal-Fearful Subjects

Theoretical conceptualizations of distraction as an inhibitor of fear reduction during exposure were tested among 60 subjects with marked animal fears. Subjects underwent high or low intensity in vivo exposure in the presence of highly affective slides (high distraction), neutral slides (low distraction), or no slides. Self-reported attention did not differ between the high and low distraction groups; thus, data from these groups were combined in the analyses. The combination of distraction and high exposure intensity was found to interfere both with self-reported fear reduction during exposure and with the preto post-exposure behavioral approach tasks; improvement in preto post-exposure behavioral approach was impeded also. Distraction had no impact under low intensity exposure conditions. Counter to prediction, return of fear was not evident across groups. Heart rate increased in all groups during exposure, suggesting a possible sensitizaUon effect. Theoretical and clinical implications are discussed, and recommendations for future research are provided.