Children have many fears, but there is therapy that can handle them, and it involves the fears that bring the most disturbing emotional responses.

Kids have many fears, almost all of them irrational, and they may include animals, insects, places, and even foods, but a therapy originally devised in the 1920s can be the answer to a family's therapeutic prayers. What's the therapy?

It's called exposure therapy, and it involves bringing the child or adult face-to-face with the thing they fear most. In doing so, it strengthens the ability to resist the anxiety associated with these fears. Where did it come from, and what is its history?

Psychologist John Watson and his research associate, Rosalie Rayner, determined to disprove Freud's theory of unconscious conflict and devised an experiment with a small hospitalized child, Little Albert, whose mother worked at the hospital. It became known as the Little Albert experiment.

Allegedly, Watson was in a professional catfight with Freud, who had a similar instance of phobia in Little Hans. Freud insisted the Little Hans’ fear came from unconscious conflict with the father and castration anxiety. However, history shows that Little Hans had almost been trampled by a carriage horse, which brought on his fear.

Watson’s premise was that if he could induce a fear response in the child by exposing him to certain objects and a startling, fear-inducing sound at the same time, the child would exhibit a phobia related to that item. The experiment proved highly successful, and in the end, the child was terrified of anything that resembled the feared object, even if it wasn't the object originally presented.

Once this was established as an induced phobia in the child, Watson decided to proceed with a second phase of the experiment to show that he could extinguish the fear by coupling it with something that the child didn’t find fearful. Unfortunately for Watson, the child’s mother took Albert out of the hospital without notifying Watson. Little Albert became a much sought-after child as researchers wanted to test Watson’s hypothesis.

Supposedly, Watson mentioned that he envisioned little Albert growing up into a note and adult man who would be walking down the street and suddenly confront a woman with a white fur piece around her neck. At the side, little Albert would go into a panic; however, because Albert's mother had taken him away, this could never be tested.

A later psychologist, Joseph Wolpe, designed a series of step-wise progressions to extinguish fears, similar to what Watson was considering, and he became known as the implementer of behavioral psychology.

In fact, one researcher indicated he had found Little Albert and that the child had not grown to adulthood but had died at an early age from an illness. Therefore, no one could ever prove or disprove what Watson had demonstrated.

The Process of Exposure Therapy

Children generally have fears of specific objects, such as animals, insects, blood, injections, and even becoming sick to their stomachs and vomiting. But dogs play a major role in many children’s fears, and it is here that exposure therapy can be of great use.

In graded exposure therapy sessions, for example, if a child is afraid of dogs, they could first look at photos of dogs. Or, they could be in the vicinity of a dog facing away from them, with a handler and the child viewing this through a door or window.

When the child manages this step, the therapist will teach them how to open the door and get closer to the dog until the child is no longer afraid. Each step is advanced or continued at that stage until the child can handle the situation. The therapist does not rush through the steps, but evaluates each regarding the fear response that the child is exhibiting.

Notice that it is a series of steps that bring the child closer and closer to the feared object. The therapist designs a step-wise program that begins with little to no fear and graduates in the child being able to approach or touch the feared object. Obviously, an individualized program for each child must address that child's specific needs.

Sometimes, children and adults are taught the many ways to relax before introducing a feared object or situation. This gives them a sense of control over their reactions and enables them to proceed further with the exposure portion of the therapy. Relaxation procedures include progressive muscle relaxation, breathing techniques, and mindfulness techniques.

Throughout the entire procedure, the therapist and, possibly, the parent offer support and comfort to the child. They are never pushed to go further than they can at any step, and these procedures have proven to be highly successful with children and adults.

The success rate of this form of CBT is notable. A clinically significant drop in anxiety symptoms was seen in 71.1% of youth who finished both cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) and supportive therapy. It would seem, therefore, to be a therapy that is considered when a child has a serious anxiety disorder, such as a phobia. Some programs indicate they can be effective within several hours in one session, while others have sessions over a period of weeks.