Specific Phobia Types - OmniMedicalSearch.com

Conditions & Diseases: Psychological & Mental Health

Specific Phobia

Specific Phobia Types

There are five types of specific phobia:

I. Animal Type

Animal phobia is one of the most common forms of specific phobia. Individuals with animal phobia fear animals, insects, reptiles, or birds. This type of phobia usually develops during childhood.

II. Natural Environment Type

This type of specific phobia is triggered by objects or phenomenons in the natural environment, such as water, heights, or storms. In most cases, this phobia develops during childhood, but there are cases when it can develop in early adulthood (such as height phobia). Natural environment type is the second most common form of specific phobia.

III. Situational Type

Individuals with this type of phobia fear specific situations such as public transportation, tunnels, bridges, elevators, flying, driving, enclosed places. This type has "a bimodal age-at-onset distribution, with one peak in childhood and another peak in the mid-20s".(2)

IV. Blood-Injection-Injury Type

Individuals with this type of phobia fear seeing blood or injuries, receiving injections or other invasive medical procedures. It usually develop during childhood. Characteristic for this type of phobia is the vasovagal response (fainting), which can lead to detrimental effects on the individual's health.

V. Other Type

In this category are included phobias triggered by other stimuli (that do not belong to the other types) such as: the fear of choking, vomiting, falling down ("space phobia"), fear of loud noises and fear of costumed characters (common among children), or fear of contracting an illness.

Article by Alina Morrow
MS Psychology
Medical Writer
OmniMedicalSearch.com