1. Getting a New Behavior to Occur: An Application of Shaping
Chapter 10

2. Definition Shaping Five aspects of behavior that can be shaped
Development of a new behavior by successive reinforcement of closer approximations and extinguishing of preceding approximations of behavior
Five aspects of behavior that can be shaped
Topography – specific movements involved
Frequency – number of instances that occur in a given period of time
Duration – length of time a response lasts
Latency – time between occurrence of a stimulus and the response evoked by that stimulus
Intensity – force of a response; physical effect the response has on the environment

3. Factors Influencing the Effectiveness of Shaping
Specifying the final desired behavior
Terminal behavior – final desired behavior
Specify precise behavior and conditions under which it is to occur
Choosing a starting behavior
Should be a behavior that occurs often enough to reinforce within session time
Should be a behavior that approximates the final desired behavior

4. Factors Influencing the Effectiveness of Shaping
Choosing the shaping steps
Helpful to outline the approximations that will be reinforced
Moving along at the correct pace
Reinforce an approximation at least several times before proceeding to the next step
Avoid reinforcing too many times at any shaping step
If behavior is lost because the program was moving too fast, or the steps were too big, return to an earlier approximation

5. Pitfalls of Shaping
Shaping can be accidentally applied with unfortunate results
Harmful behaviors may be accidentally shaped
Undesirable behaviors can be eliminated by combination of extinction of undesirable behavior and reinforcement of desirable behavior
May be difficult because:
Behavior is sometimes too harmful
Inexperienced individuals may unknowingly foil the efforts of those who are conscientiously attempting to apply these principles
Children may not get the necessary shaping to develop basic behaviors
i.e. developing speech

6. Guidelines for the Effective Application of Shaping
Set the terminal behavior
Select an appropriate reinforcer
Develop the initial plan
Implement the plan
Tell learner about plan before starting
Begin reinforcing immediately following each occurrence of the starting behavior
Never move to new approximation until the previous one is mastered
If learner stops working, may have moved up the steps too quickly, steps may not be the right size, or the reinforcer may be ineffective