Principles of Behavior Management (PSY333): Gary L. Cates, Ph.D., N.C.S.P

My Behavior Management Project Gary L. Cates

Decreasing dinning-out General reason why I want to quit dinning out. Research supported reason1 why I should quit dinning out. Research supported reason 2 why I should quit dinning out.

Research on Target Behavior Study 1 looked at ____ and found ___ Study 2 investigated _____ and the data suggested that _____. The research has not investigated the extent to which keeping a log may impact dinning out.

Purpose of the study Purpose of the study was to determine extent to which a log would be helpful in the decreasing dining out behavior.

Method Participant/setting Procedures Design and Dependent variables Inter-observer Reliability (if applicable)

Results Should have at least one graph for each behavior targeted. No statistics are needed.

Discussion Summarize purpose and results What were the strengths of the projects What were the weaknesses What would you do differently Tips for others considering doing a similar behavior modification project. Ask for questions and provide answers

Questions?

Stimulus Discrimination and Stimulus Generalization

3 Types of Stimuli Discriminative Stimulus: Reinforcement is available (SD) Neutral Stimulus: No reinforcement or punishment is available (SΔ ) Warning Stimulus: Punishments is available

Discrimination Training Learning when to behave and when not to behave Reinforcing a response in presence of one stimulus but not another e. g. Colors

Color Discrimination

What about you? When have you engaged in stimulus discrimination today?

Stimulus Control Degree of correlation between stimulus and response Degree to which a behavior occurs in presence of a specific stimulus e.g. Traffic light

Color Discrimination Revisited

What about you? What behaviors do you have that are under stimulus control?

Let’s discriminate Learning an Alien Language

Effective discrimination training Choose distinct signals Minimize opportunities for error –Minimize stimulus array Maximize Number of learning trials Make use of rules

Stimulus Generalization Responding similarly across two or more stimuli √ The more the stimuli are alike the more likely the response to take place e.g. finding your car

What about you? What behaviors/responses do you generalize across settings? Can that response always be generalized? Should that response always be generalized?

Classes of Stimuli Stimulus Class: Set of stimuli with similar characteristics in common AKA: Concept Equivalence Class: Set of stimuli with different characteristics, but represent the same thing e.g. Written name, verbal name, picture of person

Inducing Stimuli Classes √ Explicit training is not necessarily needed to induce stimulus control across stimuli Symmetry: A = B Reflexivity: A = A Transivity: A = B; B = C; A = C

Discriminating discrimination among other discriminative stimuli Stimulus discrimination and escape e.g. hailing a taxi out in the cold: Must have no patrons in it. Stimulus discrimination and punishment e.g. Boiling pan: Do not touch or you get burned.

Stimulus Discrimination and Differential Reinforcement DR- 2 responses (right way and wrong way)and 1 stimulus e.g. Asking mom for money SD- Two stimuli (Right signal wrong Signal) and 1 response e.g. Asking mom OR dad for money?

Requirements for stimulus control Attention of the subject Sensory capabilities of the subject The stimulus must stand out relative to other stimuli.

Shaping, Chaining, Prompting & Fading

Shaping Reinforcing successive approximations to the target response while extinguishing preceding approximations. √ Does not have to be done in an exact way This concept requires understanding of Reinforcement, extinction, and Differential Reinforcement.

Terms Terminal Behavior: The final goal of an intervention Operant Level: Frequency of responding before reinforcement Initial Behavior: Some behavior that resembles the terminal behavior in some way. Intermediate behaviors: Those behaviors that more closely approximate the target responses.

Lookin’ for a volunteer Who wants to shape up their behavior?

Chaining √ Must be done in a general stepwise format e. g. making a sandwich √ Each response serves a dual function –Signal for next response –Reinforcer for completion of the previous response.

Task Analysis Breaking a behavioral chain into its smaller responses. Extent to which you are successful with teaching new behaviors from a chaining perspective is directly related to your ability to do a good task analysis.

2 Types of chaining Forward Chaining (total task presentation) Presenting each link in a forward format - Example: Putting on a pair of pants Backward Chaining: Presenting each link of a chain in a backward format. - Example: Putting on a pair of pants.

Time to make a chain Do a task analysis for making an omelet Do a task analysis for a chain of responses that you consider yourself an expert in that perhaps no one else in the class is.

Respondent Conditioning Do not say Classical Conditioning - Eliciting of behavior not evoking behavior - Automatic Physiological responses not controlled free willed or operant responses

General Pavlov: Russian Physiologist US  UR US + CS  CR CS  CR

Examples Example 1: Salivating Dogs and Bells Example 2: Little Albert & White Rats Example 3: Chemo Therapy & Favorite foods Example 4: Mammalary Effusion: Leaking Breasts Example 5: Coke Classic vs Caffeine Free Coke Example 6: Phobias Example 7: Bedwetting Example 8: Aversion Therapy

Factors That influence Respondent Conditioning Number of pairings inter-stimulus interval:.5 sec Continuous Pairing > Intermittent Pairing Intense Stimuli (CS US)

Respondent Extinction Stop pairing the CS with the UCS Q. How is this different than escape extinction?

Compound Stimulus Two stimuli together is your CS Generalized Conditioning –Second order conditioning, third order and so on –Generally it gets weaker and easier to extinguish √ Difficult due to respondent extinction

Drug Overdoses Most are due to taking too much poison. However, they often occur in novel environment but no more drug than they took before. –Drugs not only produce a high, but also counter effects to reduce the high. –The drug, Room, Needle Prick

Operant-Respondent Interactions Emotions: Rewards and Punishers are associated with internal events Thinking: Words are associated with senses

Systematic Self-Desenstization Construct a Fear Hierarchy (0-100; least to most fearful) - SUD : Subjective Unit of Discomfort Deep Muscle Relaxation: Implement Program

Flooding Putting person in fearful situation with positive outcome. Not allowing the CS to be paired with UCS

Systematic Desensitization You should seek help if you: –are uncomfortable during the creation of the hierarchy –Contradictory SUDS Ratings –Can’t produce visual imagery –Inability to control the beginning or ending of image –Inability to meet goals