A study on the mechanism of anxiety reduction through training: A comparison and examination of the stress-model and the distraction-model

Abstract

This study was carried out on the basis of Wolpe's principle of reciprocal inhibition. The stress-model asserts that the essence of anxiety reduction is the shift from the ergotropic to the trophotropic state, while the distractionmodel asserts that distraction is the essence of anxiety reduction. The present experiment brings light to the following points not clarified in previous studies: (1) the effects of training vary with the symptoms of clients suffering from generalized anxiety disorders. The anxiety reducing effects of relaxation training is higher among those who complain of emotional syndromes than in those who complain of behavioral syndromes; (2) in both generalized anxiety disorders and social phobias, the mechanism of anxiety reduction matches the distraction model more than the stress model; (3) the effects of anxiety reduction by relaxation training and stress-relieving training carried out in the counseling room or in the client's home is higher in cases of generalized anxiety disorders than in social phobias.