Borkovec's As Good As It Gets

A study presented by Borkovec (1995) concluded similarities and distinctions made between anxious and non-anxious subjects. The study shows that worry produces motivation to get things accomplished, prepare for future events and/or avoid/prevent that future event from happening. The motivation is a potentially adaptive behavior created by the worry that subjects feel. Preparation and avoidance are only adaptive behavior if realistically the negative events that may occur are realistic. Worry has a useful purpose in anxious and non-anxious subjects. Although there is no empirical evidence of if fear is realistic or if the feared events do not happen. The theory only suggests that the feared events do not happen. One main distinction for anxious people was that they use their worry as a distraction from emotional responses. This theorizes that the worry may be a maladaptive coping mechanism to avoid or suppress emotions or it could be a function that underlies that suppression. The theory would be that anxious people have an increase of traumatic life events can provide evidence that world is dangerous, or unhappy memories that did not have secure base from which to explore the world and learn
Comparing Melvin with the research article by Borkovec (1995), it seems as though he may be using his rituals as a way to suppress his feelings and his rudeness to keep people at a distance so he will not have to build relationships that will stir up unresolved issues or emotions. This movie also brings up the idea that pets/animals are therapeutic and are beneficial for people that struggle with making a connection with other people. A first step a therapist may want to take with a client like Melvin is pet therapy. Introducing a pet and building a relationship with a pet as a tool to help a client graduate to building relationships with other