Read the passage and answer the questions:
Abby is very annoying by nature. He does not follow what his parents say and refuses to obey them. He constantly bothers his parents and classmates with his improper behavior and does not regularly complete the homework given by his teachers. After seeing Abby’s behavior, his parents take him to a psychotherapist in order to understand why he behaves the way he does. The psychotherapist planned to administer behavioural therapy for modifying his behaviour.
In which of the following disorders, aversive conditioning is most suitable technique for treatment?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 3
The correct answer is Option (3) → Alcohol Addiction
Option (1) Obsessive-compulsive disorder — Incorrect. OCD is driven by anxiety from unwanted thoughts; adding an unpleasant consequence would raise anxiety rather than treat it.
Option (2) Paraphilias disorder — Incorrect. Paraphilias involve sexual urges directed at unusual objects or situations; they are not the case for which the technique is described.
Option (3) Alcohol Addiction — Correct. Aversive conditioning is the repeated association of an undesired response with an aversive (painful) consequence. An alcoholic is given a mild electric shock and asked to smell alcohol; with repeated pairings, the smell of alcohol itself becomes unpleasant, and the person gives up alcohol.
Option (4) Mood disorder — Incorrect. Mood disorders such as depression involve disturbances of emotion, not an undesired habit to be broken by punishment.
Note: Aversive conditioning has also been used for some paraphilias, so one can argue that Option (2) is not wrong. The question, however, asks for the disorder for which the technique is most suitable, and the standard case is alcohol addiction, the example the technique is taught with. That is why Option (3) is the most appropriate answer.
NCERT (2025-26): “Behavioural Techniques … Aversive conditioning refers to repeated association of undesired response with an aversive consequence. For example, an alcoholic is given a mild electric shock and asked to smell the alcohol. With repeated pairings the smell of alcohol is aversive as the pain of the shock is associated with it and the person will give up alcohol.…” |