Fear of flight: behavior therapy versus a systems approach

Systematic desensitization is re-examined as a treatment for flight fear from the perspective of family-systems theory. The problem of the person who avoids flight is considered first from the viewpoint of behavior therapy, and behavioral treatment is briefly described. This problem is next described in terms of the patients's to society, family, and the therapist. From this perspective, the flight-avoidant person is seen to be an "identified patient"-someone defined as ill by the system in which he or she is enmeshed. The problem is then redefined, not as flight fear, but as the pressure to fly, and implications for treatment are discussed.