Question at position 3 Which of the following is most accurate regarding arachnophobia?Fear of losing control is the biggest problem for arachnophobics.Fear of spiders is the defining feature of arachnophobia.Arachnophobia is diagnosed 3 times more frequently in men than in women.Approximately 30% of the population will suffer from arachnophobia at some point in their life.Anti-anxiety drugs are successful at treating approximately 30% of people with arachnophobia.

Question

Question at position 3 Which of the following is most accurate regarding arachnophobia?Fear of losing control is the biggest problem for arachnophobics.Fear of spiders is the defining feature of arachnophobia.Arachnophobia is diagnosed 3 times more frequently in men than in women.Approximately 30% of the population will suffer from arachnophobia at some point in their life.Anti-anxiety drugs are successful at treating approximately 30% of people with arachnophobia.

BlackTom AI · Accepted Answer

Arachnophobia is defined as a specific phobia characterized by a marked, excessive, or irrational fear of spiders. Diagnostic criteria (DSM-5) for a specific phobia require: (1) a marked fear or anxiety about a specific object or situation (here, spiders), (2) immediate fear response on exposure, (3) active avoidance or distress interfering with functioning, and (4) the fear is out of proportion to actual danger. Thus the defining feature is the fear of spiders itself.

Step-by-step reasoning:
1. Core concept: specific phobia (animal type) centers on an intense, persistent fear of a particular object—in arachnophobia that object is spiders. That directly matches the second option.
2. Compare each distractor to the diagnostic picture:
   - “Fear of losing control is the biggest problem”: fear of losing control is a hallmark concern in panic disorder and some anxiety disorders, not the central issue in specific phobia; arachnophobics mainly fear the spider and its consequences, not loss of control per se.
   - “Diagnosed 3 times more frequently in men than in women”: epidemiological data show specific phobias are more common in females (often substantially more), so this statement is reversed and incorrect.
   - “Approximately 30% of the population will suffer from arachnophobia”: prevalence estimates for spider (animal-type) phobia are much lower; specific phobias overall have higher lifetime rates but animal-type phobias are typically in the single-digit percentage range, not 30%.
   - “Anti-anxiety drugs are successful at treating approximately 30%”: the most effective treatments for specific phobia are behavioral (exposure-based CBT). Pharmacotherapy is not clearly established as producing that specific success rate and is not the primary evidence-based treatment.

Why the correct answer is correct: it precisely restates the diagnostic essence—arachnophobia is the (excessive/irrational) fear of spiders. Other options either describe features of different disorders, incorrect epidemiology, or inaccurate treatment efficacy claims.

Conclusion: The correct choice is “Fear of spiders is the defining feature of arachnophobia,” which matches the provided answer.

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