This information handout describes the essential features of safety-seeking behaviors.
Offers theory, guidance, and prompts for mental health professionals. Downloads are in Fillable PDF format where appropriate.
Includes client-friendly guidance. Downloads are in Fillable PDF format where appropriate.
An editable Microsoft PowerPoint version of the resource.
Safety-seeking behaviors develop in response to a perceived threat. In situations viewed as dangerous, people instinctively act to protect themselves, which can include automatic responses like the "fight or flight" reaction. While safety behaviors may provide short-term relief and thus be reinforced, they can also have negative effects. These behaviors may reinforce beliefs about the presence of danger, prevent these beliefs from being challenged, or lead to other unintended consequences.
The Safety Behaviors handout is a cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) tool that offers a clear and thorough explanation of safety behaviors. For clients to effectively experiment with and ultimately let go of these behaviors, it's crucial they understand their causes and consequences.
Understanding and addressing safety behaviors is an important part of many therapies, especially CBT:
Where safety behaviors perpetuate fear and anxiety.
Where safety behaviors maintain concerns about shape, weight, and eating.
Where safety behaviors reinforce a sense of current threat.
Use the resource to educate clients about safety behaviors.
Reflect on the short-term and long-term consequences of safety behaviors.
Distinguish between unhelpful safety behaviors and adaptive coping strategies.
Identify and explore the client's safety behaviors and their impacts.
Encourage the client to experiment with reducing their safety behaviors to see the effect this has.
Safety-seeking behaviors, also known as "safety behaviors," are actions that individuals take in response to a real or perceived threat. When a threat is genuine, these behaviors can be helpful and adaptive. However, if someone misinterprets a situation and perceives a threat where none exists, safety-seeking behaviors can prevent that person from learning about the true absence of danger. Additionally, safety behaviors often provide a sense of relief in the short term, which reinforces their use.
Understanding safety-seeking behaviors has important treatment implications. Instead of relying solely on exposure therapy - where safety behaviors might diminish its effectiveness - therapists can design behavioral experiments that directly disprove the individual's threat beliefs. For instance, someone who fears choking on a train can be encouraged to take a trip without their bottle of water to see if their throat will close up.
