A statement accurately describes implosive therapy?

• A. Implosive therapy is always conducted in the imagination.
• B. It uses real-life exposure with no imagination.
• C. It is identical to flooding.
• D. It excludes any imaginal exposure.

Answer: (A)

The main idea here is how implosive therapy delivers exposure. Implosive therapy relies on vivid imaginal exposure—the person is guided to imagine the feared situation in detail and with sustained intensity until the anxiety responds, then subsides. This imaginal approach is what makes the technique distinct: it uses imagination rather than real-life stimuli to provoke and then reduce fear.

That’s why the statement describing it as being conducted in the imagination is the best fit. Real-life exposure with no imagination describes flooding in vivo, which is different because it involves actual exposure to the real stimulus rather than an imagined one. Saying it’s identical to flooding ignores the crucial imaginal component, and claiming it excludes imaginal exposure contradicts the core method of implosive therapy.