Psychologist: Airplane Accident Is Not the Main Cause of Flying Phobia

News24xx.com -  Airplane accidents like the Lion Air JT 610 can make people anxious and afraid to fly. But to be called the cause of the phobia on a plane, a psychologist notes.

"It needs to be understood first what is phobia. Phobias are one type of anxiety disorder," said Bona Sardo, MPsi, a psychologist from the University of Indonesia, when contacted by detikHealth, Monday (10/29/2018).

Specific phobia means excessive fear of an object that is very specific and usually this fear is irrational, "he continued.

According to Bona, someone who has a phobia on a plane can have a different background. But usually the main cause is not because of the fear of the plane crashing, as is widely suspected.

"The incident of a crashed plane could have been one of the 'reasons' made by phobia aircraft so that they did not board a plane. In fact there are other risk factors that have greater influence," he added.

The main factor in this kind of phobia, according to Bona, is caused more by direct traumatic experiences. It could also be because of excessive imagination.

"Phobias can arise from traumatic experiences, or false and excessive thinking beliefs even though no traumatic experience begins," he concluded.