Cf mentalism and radical behaviorism Mi Kaela Le Vells PDF

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Summary

Talking about ASEBA...

Description

Mentalism and Radical Behaviorism

Phrases

Mentalistic or behavioristic

Explanation

Bobby dropped his pencil and got out of his seat to retrieve it each time the teacher asked him to write his name.

Behavioristic

Ava was very happy at school today. Her teacher stated that she loved playing with other children at school.

Mentalistic

Stacy calls to make an appointment at her doctor’s office, because she thinks she has the flu.

Mentalistic

This is behavioristic because it goes in depth to describe why Bobby dropped his pencil. We would be able to observe and measure the number of times he dropped his pencil, while also knowing the cause of it. This is mentalistic because it does not describe her emotion of being happy. It is based off her observable emotions and what the teacher observed. However, it does not go in depth to what her happiness looks like or what they played. This is mentalistic because it does not give enough information stating why she believes she has the flu. It does not describe what she was feeling.

Dana ate cake after having a long day to uplift her emotions.

Mentalistic

This is mentalistic because we cannot observe what made her emotional. It tells her emotions, but not what lead to them.

If mentalistic, provide an alternative

Ava was smiling and laughing throughout the day. Her teacher stated she enjoyed playing tag, jumping rope, and swinging with her friends at school.

Stacy has an upset stomach, fever, chills and is nauseous. These symptoms and being in contact with someone who had the flu, she calls the doctor because she assumed she has the flu. Dana ate a piece of chocolate cake after working a 12-hour shift.

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Behavioristic Every time the instructor asks Johnny to wash his hands, he walks to the sink, turns the water on, and washes his hands. Elizabeth follows her mother’s directions, because she knows she will be rewarded for appropriate behavior when she does.

Mentalistic

Kevin broke his pencil, because he was frustrated with the questions on his math test.

Mentalistic

Each time the buzzer sounds, the rat approaches the lever and presses it. When this occurs, a food pellet is produced.

Behavioristic

It is observed that each time the light is on, the rat presses the lever and a food pellet is delivered.

Behavioristic

Alicia got a 100% on her exam, because she is smart.

Mentalistic

This is behavioristic because we can observe Johnny washing his hands and why he is washing them. It describes why he is washing his hands. This is mentalistic because it does not give enough detail. What were the directions she followed and what would be rewarded for following them, this is the information that is missing. This is mentalistic because it captures what Kevin did at the time but does not describe what his frustration looked like.

It is behavioristic because the rat has observed every time the buzzer sounds and approaches the lever and pushes it a food pellet is released. It is behavioristic because it is observable. The rat has noticed when the light is on and he presses the lever a pellet is given. This is mentalistic because it does not describe what can be observed. It does not tell us what she did to receive the 100.

Elizabeth cleans her room and washes the dishes because she knows her mom will give her $10 for doing her chores.

Kevin was shaking his head, tapping his pencil on the desk, and turning red in the face while taking his math test. This resulted in him breaking his pencil.

Alice studied hard the week before her exam and went over everything that would be on the exam. This resulted in Alice getting 100% on her exam.

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Analyze how the behavioristic approach is different from most other psychology fields: (be sure to include references.) Analyze how the behavioristic approach is different from most other psychology fields. o How would a mentalistic approach inform one’s practice? o How would a behavior analytic approach inform one’s practice? Psychology as the behaviorist views it is a purely objective experimental branch of natural science (Watson, J., 1994). The behavioristic approach is different from other psychology fields because it focuses on the interaction and history within the environment, which does not include the mental process. Their approach is based off one’s behavior being influenced by the factors that surround them. A behavior analysis would approach their practice by focusing on the behaviors and how they are seen, instead of what it feels like internally. For them to provide the proper treatment to their clients, it is necessary to observe and see the behaviors to know what needs to be worked on. By observing the behaviors in the environment, it allows the analyst to observe what effected the behavior, and how did the environment act as a stimulus control. Behaviorists believe for a client’s theories to be considered the behavioralist needs to be supported by observable and measurable data. This approach allows the behaviorist to have a clear prediction to why a person’s behaviors are occurring. Take for instance a BCBA, to come up with a behavior plan for a child they must observe the child’s behavior in different settings along with what triggered their behavior. Once they have this information, they are then able to come up with different plans which will help decrease the behaviors. For example, Board Certified Behavioral Analysts (BCBA)

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Rachel observed every time Kingston wanted attention from his parents, he would drop to the floor kicking and screaming. She observed this behavior a total of two days before gathering enough evidence into why this was occurring. She also measured how long his behavior lasted, and once it was specified, Rachel came up with a plan. Without the observation of seeing Kingston’s behaviors and being able to measure his behaviors, she would not had been able to come up with a plan to decrease his behaviors for attention. The behavioristic approach is the approach that is mostly used in the applied behavior analysts (ABA) field because we can use the scientific method of observing and measuring behaviors. Mentalism is defined as an approach to the study of behavior which deals with the existent of mental dimension rather than from behavioral dimension like psychic, spiritual, hypothetical, and neural to name a few (Moore, J., 2003). When I think about the idea of someone predicting an individuals feelings based off by what they interpret, think, and feel it puts me in the mind of a therapist. Therapist have been known to help patients by bringing forth sessions to discuss internal and external feelings/emotions. They try to pull those feelings out, so they can help heal their clients from inner pain that could be seen as untreatable; this is something that cannot be observed or measured, instead it is what one sees on the surface or shares with another. Mentalism in the field of applied behavior analysts (ABA) would not be able to work because not all children on the spectrum are able to express how they feel, so their approach would look completely different. Instead, they will use an approach which allows them to see a client’s behavior face value without observing or knowing what triggered the behavior. The mentalist approach is managed by the way the human mind has adapted to the responding of circumstances whether good or bad, unlike behaviorism which needs to observe a person’s conduct (Moore, J., 2003).

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References Moore, J. (2003). Behavior analysis, mentalism, and the path to social justice. The Behavior Analyst, 26(2), 181-193. doi: 10.1007/bf03392075 Watson, J. (1994). Psychology as the behaviorist views it. Psychological Review, 101(2), 248-253. doi: 10.1037/0033-295x.101.2.248

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