A therapist asks a patient with OCD to hold a contaminated object for 45 minutes without washing his hands, despite his intense anxiety. This technique most specifically exemplifies:

• A Systematic desensitization
• B Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP) ✓
• C Flooding (implosion therapy)
• D Aversion therapy

Explanation

Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP) is the gold-standard behavioural technique for OCD. It involves deliberate exposure to the feared stimulus (contaminated object) while preventing the compulsive response (hand-washing). The prolonged, graded exposure allows habituation and disconfirms feared consequences. Systematic desensitization uses a graded hierarchy with relaxation responses and is used primarily for phobias. Flooding involves maximal, sudden, prolonged exposure without the specific 'response prevention' component. Aversion therapy pairs an undesired behaviour with an unpleasant stimulus.

Reference: Kaplan & Sadock's Synopsis of Psychiatry, 11th ed.

High-yield for: NEET PGINI-CETNExTFMGEUSMLEPLABMRCP

Written and medically reviewed by the StethoPrep medical team.