Behavior modification 9th Class Application – changing individual behavior

Stimulus discrimination Cat jumping out of the window Stimulus discrimination ▫SD and SΔ Date example Discrimination training ▫Cognitive abilities? ▫Simultaneous DT ▫Successive DT Stimulus control

Maintenance How to get the effects of your treatment to endure after the treatment?

Maintenance schedules Fixed Ratio ▫FR–1 = CRF (continuous reinforcement) ▫FR-2 = every 2 nd occurrence to reinforce Variable ratio (VR) Interval schedules (IR) ▫delay between reinforcement Duration schedules ▫reinforcement only after behavior for specified time without interruption

Maintenance Stretching the ratio ▫Gradually increasing the number of times behavior must occur before reinforcement Ratio strain ▫Increase of emotional behavior resulting from increase in the ratio of reinforcement

Maintenance training Intervention procedures increasing the likelihood that change in the behavior will persists after the intervention Continue intervention well after te target behavior has changed Expose the target behavior to its natural reinforcers Teach the person to obtain reinforcement for target behavior Shape tolerance for delayed and uncertain reinforcement Fade the intervention program

Round up.... and lets apply..

Techniques for behavioral change Science Popular Literature Therapy techniques Popular sience Self- mngmnt

Behavioral therapy Approach to psychotherapy based on learning theory which aims to treat psychopathology through techniques designed to reinforce desired and extinguish undesired behaviours. Pioneers: Skinner, Wolpe, Eysenck

Classical conditioning Ivan Pavlov Neutral stimuli – e.g. bell ringing Unconditioned stimuli - e.g. food This evokes Unconditioned response - salivation If bell ringing and salivation are repeatedly paired, bell ringing starts to produce salivation even when the food is not there – Conditioned response (CR)

Systematic desensitization Joseph Wolpe Helps effectively overcome phobias and other anxiety disorders Escaping from the phobic object reduces their anxiety, patients’ behavior to reduce fear is reinforced through negative reinforcement Overcoming avoidance pattern by gradually exposing patients to the phobic object until it can be tolerated

Flooding Thomas Stampfl Method for overcoming phobias In order to demonstrate the irrationality of the fear a psychologist would put a person in a situation where they would face their phobia at its worst.

Aversion therapy Avoiding inappropriate positive response The desirable stimuli is paired with an unpleasant one Emetic (antabus), electric shocks Mostly used for reatment of sexual deviations and drug(alcohol) addiction

Behavior activation For depression treatment Theory: not enough environmental reinforcement or too much environmental punishment can contribute to depression. Clients are asked to create a hierarchy of reinforcing activities that are rank-ordered by difficulty They track their own goals along with clinicians who reinforce their success in moving through the hierarchy of activities

Acceptance and Commitment therapy - ACT Cognitive defusion: Learning to perceive thoughts, images, emotions, and memories as what they are, not what they appear to be. Acceptance: Allowing them to come and go without struggling with them. Contact with the present moment: Awareness of the here and now, experienced with openness, interest, and receptiveness. Observing the self: Accessing a transcendent sense of self, a continuity of consciousness which is changing. Values: Discovering what is most important to one's true self. Committed action: Setting goals according to values and carrying them out responsibly

Popular sience How to get oriented in all these wanna- be behavior modification methods? We will show you the way :)

Exercises 13 Things to Avoid When Changing Habits The Habit Change Cheatsheet: 29 Ways to Successfully Ingrain a Behavior

Discussion [The end of the today's class]