The Effects of Safety Behavior Directed Towards a Safety Cue on Perceptions of Threat.

Safety behavior involves precautions to prevent or minimize a feared outcome, and is involved in the maintenance of anxiety disorders. Earlier research has shown that safety behavior prevents the extinction of conditioned fear and maintains threat expectations. This study tested whether safety behavior directed towards an objectively safe stimulus increases the perceived threat of that stimulus when it is subsequently experienced in the absence of the safety measure.