safety behavior
a behavior performed by an anxious individual in an attempt to minimize or prevent a feared catastrophe. For example, a person with panic disorder might only go out when accompanied, and a person with social phobia might wear sunglasses indoors to avoid eye contact. Safety behaviors may also include internal mental processes: A person with social phobia might memorize what he or she plans to say at a social gathering. Safety behavior contributes to the maintenance of anxiety disorders when people believe that the behavior, rather than the lack of actual danger, is what prevents the feared catastrophe. Also called safety cues; safety-seeking behavior; safety signals. [first defined in 1991 by British psychologist Paul M. Salkovskis]