Incorporating the Judicious Use of Safety Behavior Into Exposure-Based Treatments for Anxiety Disorders: A Study of Treatment Acceptability

This analog study investigated treatment acceptability and preference as a function of safety behavior use (judicious vs. discouraged) and treatment rationale (cognitive vs. extinction). Thirty-two clinically anxious participants and 437 undergraduate students provided ratings of acceptability and adherence, as well as preference ranks for four written vignettes describing a course of cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) for fear or anxiety. …