PSYC 338 Notes - Ch. 1 - Dr. David Polson PDF

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Dr. David Polson...

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PSYC 338 - Chapter 1: Introduction • antecedent: environmental event that comes before a behaviour - some aspect of the physical world, other than the person’s behaviour - involves stimuli that can be manipulated by someone else • behaviour: anything that a person says or does - (a.k.a. an “action”, “activity”, performance”, “response”, “reaction, etc.) - any muscular, glandular, or electrical activity of an organism - is not the outcome of something - overt behaviours: visible behaviours that can be observed & recorded by someone, other than the person performing the behaviour - covert behaviours: private, internal activities that cannot be readily observed by others • cognitive behaviours: imagining & private self-talk - dimensions of behaviour: measurable characteristics of behaviour (i) duration: length of time that the behaviour lasts (ii) frequency: # of instances that occur in a given period of time (iii) intensity/force: physical effort energy involved - an operational definition of behaviour defines it in terms of the procedure used to measure it (i) empirical: target behaviour is defined in observational terms ! (ex. we see Jessie pinch her brother) (ii) quantitative: the target behaviour is defined in physical units (frequency, duration, latency, intensity, distance, etc.) ! (ex. we count the number of times Jessie pinches her brother) (iii) reliable: target behaviour is defined so that 2 or more independent observers agree on its occurrence ! (ex. independent observers agree when Jessie has & has not pinched her brother) • specificity is essential (iv) valid: the target behaviour, as defined, measure what it purports to measure ! (ex. “pinching her brother” captures what we mean by “aggression”) (v) sensitive: changes in the level of our measure of the target behaviour reflect changes in the level of the problem ! (ex. consensus is that Jessie was more aggressive today than yesterday because we observed Jessie pinching her brother more often today than yesterday) • consequent: environmental events produced by behaviour - product of behaviour - some aspect of the physical world, other than the person’s behaviour Antecedent ⇒ Behaviour ⇒ Consequent the “ABC’s” of behaviour analysis • target behaviours: behaviours to be improved in BM programs • summary labels: general terms for human actions that do not refer to a specific behaviour - (include: autism-spectrum disorder, ADHD, anxiety, depression, low selfesteem, road rage, interpersonal difficulties, sexual dysfunction, etc.) - often a good indicator of how a person might perform - imply that a particular treatment program might be helpful - are very vague - can lead to pseudo-explanations (circular reasoning) - negatively affect the way a person is treated - focuses on a person’s problems rather than strengths - instead use behaviour deficits (too little of a particular behaviour) & behaviour excesses (too much of a particular type of behaviour) in order to avoid the problems of summary labels • allows to focus on the behaviour which is the cause for concern • depends on the context of the behaviour & the practices of the culture in which it is being performed

• behaviour modification: the systematic application of learning principles & techniques to assess & improve an individual’s overt & covert behaviours in order to enhance their daily functioning - emphasizes the definition of a problem in terms of a behaviour that can be measured in someway, & using changes in the behaviour measure is an indication of how much the problem is being helped - treatment procedures & techniques are ways of altering an individual’s current environment to help them function more fully • variables of a person’s environment include stimuli (the people, objects & events that are currently preset in one’s surroundings, or that impinge on one’s sense receptors and can affect behaviour) - methods & rationals are described precisely • allows people to read, replicate & teach behaviour modification - techniques of behaviour modification are applied by individuals in everyday life - techniques stem from basic (attempts to identify principles underlying behaviour change) & applied (attempts to identify effective ways of dealing with behaviour problems in various contexts) research in the science of learning in general, as well as the principles of operant & Pavlovian conditioning - emphasizes scientific demonstration that a particular intervention/ treatment was responsible for a particular behaviour change - places high value on accountability for everyone involved in behaviour modification programs - uses environmental manipulations to change behaviour - do not use drugs, psychosurgery, electric shock, etc. - physical punishment is seldom used, & only used as the last resort - also referred to as behaviour therapy & applied behaviour analysis • behaviour analysis: the scientific study of the laws that govern the behaviours of humans & other animals - coined by B.F. Skinner - studies behaviour as a subject matter in its own right, rather than the index of something happening at some other level - the science in which behaviour modification is based on - emphasizes how experiential factors influence behaviour • cognitive behaviour therapy: recognizing maladaptive thinking & replacing it with adaptive thinking - focuses on covert behaviours & Pavlovian procedures • behavioural assessment: collection & analysis of info & data in order to: (i) identify & describe target behaviours (ii) identify possible causes of the behaviour (iii) guide the selection of an appropriate behaviour treatment (iv) evaluate treatment outcome - functional analysis: isolating through experiment the cause of problem behaviour & removing or reversing them • issues with defining behaviour include: (i) wording can be deceiving — by saying that someone is “responding to…” you are implying that the behaviour is the result of whatever just preceded it - must also look at what historically follows the behaviour as being a possible “cause” - must have a clear operational definition (ii) Dead Person’s rule — if a dead person can do it, it isn’t a behaviour - behaviour is an activity on the part of the person - not the absence of a behaviour (iii) the same principles govern overt & covert behaviours - thinking & feeling are just as important as overt behaviours (iv) thinking & feelings qualify as behaviour, but present special problems • ethical issues that are prominent in behaviour modification include: (i) qualifications of the applied behaviour analyst/therapist — receive appropriate academic & practical training (ii) definition of the problem & selection of goals — must be of most importance to the individual & society (iii) selection of treatment — use the most effective, empirically validated intervention methods with the least discomfort & negative side effects (iv) record keeping & ongoing evaluation — perform thorough behavioural assessment before apply the intervention, include ongoing monitoring, & appropriate follow-up evaluation...