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Content: Furthermore, someone suffering from
zoophobia has an irrational fear of animals. All of the above
described anxiety states are based on erroneous beliefs, or a
belief system that is not consistent with reality. The two major
questions that the cognitive explanation attempts to answer are
firstly, how are these erroneous beliefs developed, and secondly,
how are they maintained in the face of evidence to the contrary? Cognitive theorists currently believe that the erroneous beliefs
that result in fear and anxiety states, are produced as a result of
an individual's earlier life experiences, which can be the result
of one's actual experiences, the observation of other's life
experiences, or even just hearing about a fearful event. Cognitive
scientists also believe that once established, erroneous beliefs
are maintained because the presence of that belief has a direct
influence on a person's current and future cognitive functioning. In other words, our erroneous beliefs allow for a distorted
interpretation of the events that occur around us, and it is this
distorted view of things that maintains our erroneous belief
system. As an example, an individual suffering from generalized
anxiety disorder might see the world as a really scary and
dangerous place, where trouble can occur at any moment. Whereas a
person who suffers from panic disorder might be walking down the
street at a fast pace (e.g., to be on time for an appointment) and
start to think that the shortness of breath he or she is
experiencing is a prelude to a massive heart attack which will lead
to certain death. People who suffer from fear and anxiety could be
said, according to the cognitive perspective, to have a problem
with selective attention, in that they focus excessive amounts of
attention on perceived threats in the environment, and thus are
more aware of these threats than are normal individuals. In
addition, these individuals could also have a problem with
selective recall, in that they are more likely to recall
threatening and scary experiences than are individuals who are not
anxious, and that recalling these experiences will lead to the
maintenance of fear and anxiety states.