Behavioural
Activation
Notes from Don’t shoot the dog by Karen Piper
This book is a fascinating one, Karen Piper
is basically an animal trainer who stated to try her dolphin training tips on
people. It worked. This book is great if you want to modify
someone’s behavior without them knowing
you are doing it.
There is a wonderful episode of the Big Bang theory where Sheldon
uses Behaviour modification with Penny by giving her a sweet every time she
does something right.
Positive reinforcement
·
Positive reinforcement is
better than reward, so encourage when a behavior is attempted or achieved.
Negative reinforcement
·
Reinforcers that are stopped as
soon as behavior changes
·
Not punishment as it is the
loss of something desirable. Punishment
does not result in predictable change!
Timing
·
Reinforcer must be in
conjunction with the act it is meant to modify.
Jackpots
·
Every now and then a treat 10
times the normal reinforce.
Conditional reinforcer
·
Initially pair something else
with the reinforcer a sound or a movement.
For example a clicker when the dogs food is being given him.
“One can and should lavish
children and spouces with love and attention, unrelated to any particular
behavior, but one should reserve praise, specifically, as a conditional
reinforce related to something real.” (p. 15)
“Deprevation of
reinforcement is one factor, I think, in states of anxiety and depression.”
(P.34)
Shaping
·
Using intentional goals to get
to the desired behavior
·
Shaping depends on persistence
Shaping methods and principles
·
Method to teach skills,
breaking them down into their separate elements.
Principles
1.
Raise criteria in increments
small enough that the subject always has a realistic chance for reinforcement.
2.
Train one aspect of any
behavior at a time, don’t try to shape for two criteria simultaneously.
3.
During shaping, put the current
level of response onto a variable schedule of reinforcement before adding or
raising the criteria.
4.
When introducing a new
behavioural skill temporarily relax the old ones. Focus on the new shaping behavior.
5.
Stay ahead of your subject:
plan your shaping program completely so that if your subject makes sudden
progress you are aware of what to reinforce next.
6.
Don’t change trainers in
midstream; you can have several trainers per trainee, but stick to one shaper
per behavior.
7.
If one shaping procedure is not
eliciting progress, find another; there are as many ways to change behavior as
there are trainers to think them up.
8.
Don’t interrupt the training
session gratuitously, that may be seen as punishment.
9.
If behavior deteriorates go
back to the beginning and quickly review the whole shaping process with a
series of early earned reinforcers .
10.
End each session on a high
note, if possible, but in anycase quit while you are ahead.
“Removal of attention is a powerful tool,
so don’t use it carelessly or unfairly” (p.149)
Shaping without words
“The
reinforce can be verbal, tactile, or whatever you think the room mate
would be likely to respond to or accept. People are not dumb; they modify their
behavior on just a handful of reinforcers. (p.65)
When the signal is ignored
Stand ground and repeat. Don’t agree, don’t explain, don’t deliberate.
Reinforcement
Method 1:
Shoot the dog
Method 2:
Punishment
·
“Evasiveness increases rapidly
under a punishment regime – a sad situation in the family setting and not so
great in society at large either.” (p.106)
·
“Punishing is also reinforcing
for the punisher because it demonstrates and helps to maintain dominance”
(p.108)
Method 3: Negative reinforcement
·
“Guilt and shame are forms of
self-inflicted punishment” (p.108)
·
“Naggers for example, may
eventually get results, and this reinforcement to the nagger” (p.110)
Method 4: Extinction
·
“Extinction in human
interactions best applies, it seems to me, to verbal behavior – whining,
bullying, quarreling, teasing etc. (p.177)
Method 6: Put the behavior on cue
·
“identify the cues and this
will enable change to start.”
Method 7: Shape the absence
Method 8: Change the motivation
To change behavior 7 of the methods are
good to use. As many as possible will
facilitate change quicker.
