Implications of a new theory of disuse for the treatment of emotional disorders

In this review, we conceptualize exposure-based treatment as a learning exp erience. With this approach, optimizing treatment is a matter of optimizing memory for new learning. Given that perspective, we discuss the implicatio ns of a "new theory of disuse," proposed by Bjork and Bjork (1992) to captu re the storage and retrieval dynamics that characterize human memory. The t heory distinguishes between the storage strength and retrieval strength of learned representations and provides a framework from which we derive a num ber of manipulations that have the potential to improve the long-term effec tiveness of cognitive behavioral therapy. Implications for treatment of spe cific fears are described in detail, with additional discussion regarding t reatment for other emotional disorders.