1
Q
what should you do if individuals do not respond to the contingencies or respond only minimally?
A
look to see if there are things we can do to fix this.
2
Q
what are prompting antecedents?
A
- it is the increase of the use of prompts and the efforts to guide behavior to enhance performance
- kick-starts the behavior
3
Q
what happens if we use prompts alone as the sole or primary basis of an intervention?
A
they often generate weak, inconsistent, and short-lived effects.
4
Q
what should prompting antecedents not be?
A
- aversive or associated with other behaviors besides the ones we want to enforce
- ex: nagging someone to clean their room is not as helpful as modeling picking up a few items
5
Q
what should prompting antecedents do?
A
- should closely follow the behavior
- should be clear
- should be powerful and hard to ignore
- should reinforce promoted behavior
6
Q
how does tone relate to prompting antecedents?
A
say the prompt in a tone that is not demanding.
7
Q
how should consequences be used in prompting antecedents?
A
consequences should be specified within a prompt.
8
Q
what is important to remember when delivering prompting antecedents?
A
deliver prompts in setting conditions (unstressed, calm environment).
9
Q
what can be done with prompting antecedents when behavior is consistent?
A
they can be faded out.
10
Q
what are setting event antecedents?
A
looks at the context of behavior and its importance.
11
Q
what strength should motivating operations be in setting event antecedents?
A
should be good but not too stressful as it can cause a client to overthink and tense their body.
12
Q
why are novel stimuli or situations useful?
A
they can reduce unwanted habitual behavior and can make it easier to learn competing behavior.
13
Q
why is workload important to consider?
A
- if there is too much to learn it can be overwhelming
- reduce it as much as possible and try to reach the foundational skills so that it is easier to learn more complex tasks
14
Q
what are establishing operations (using challenges)?
A
- the use of challenges to motivate people
- often consist of the equivalent of a dare that focuses on engaging in the prosocial behavior in the context of interventions
- a useful way to make some target goal salient and to augment the incentives for engaging in the behavior
- ex: daring someone to use as little gas as possible is not only a challenge but is beneficial for the environment
15
Q
what can be helpful to use with establishing operations (using challenges)?
A
incentives, like with prizes.
16
Q
what is reinforced practice?
A
- allowing multiple opportunities to engage in the behavior followed by reinforcement
- a central feature for building the behaviors we wish
17
Q
what are the next places to look after antecedents?
A
shaping behaviors.
18
Q
why are baselines important for shaping behaviors?
A
require a level of the behavior that is only slightly above baseline levels
19
Q
what also should someone start with when shaping behaviors?
A
start with easy behaviors and ones that someone already knows (that occur at a reasonable frequency).
20
Q
what should be used for problem behaviors?
A
simulations.
21
Q
what should happen after someone learns a step in shaping behaviors?
A
gradually refine elements of each steps.
22
Q
why do program failures happen in shaping behaviors?
A
often result from not shaping behavior gradually and from not moving to more stringent demands only after behavior has become consistent at less stringent levels.
23
Q
what is the topography of behavior?
A
the shape or form of a behavior.
24
Q
what are simulations to increase opportunities to reinforce behavior?
A
using practice opportunities to engage in the behavior under nonnatural circumstances as in a game, role-play, or “pretend”-like format.
25
what are some of the reasons why behaviors are not likely to occur and consequences cannot be applied?
in situations that are dangerous or low-frequency/occurring.
26
the more practice opportunities and trials in which behavior can occur and be reinforced the *blank.*
better.
27
what does repeated reinforced practice in simulated circumstances tend to do?
increase the behaviors of interest and the likelihood of the desired response in “real” (non-simulated) situations.
28
what are response priming behaviors?
any procedure that initiates early steps in a sequence or chain of responses.
29
what does response priming do?
it increases the probability of performing the final behaviors in the sequence.
30
what do cues from the environment and from the sequences of behaviors in the chain tend to do?
increase the likelihood that the remaining behaviors will be completed.
31
what are reinforcer sampling consequences?
- the procedures that provide a brief or small sample of reinforcing events in order to promote greater utilization of those events
- has not been used a ton
- ex: in free samples, you are more likely to buy something after you try it
32
what are the first places someone looks when a program is weak or a failure?
consequences and their administration.
33
it is important that clients what?
utilize the available reinforcers.
34
reinforce sampling is a special case of what?
response priming.
35
what can reinforcer sampling provide?
familiarity with something.
36
what tends to happen after reinforcer sampling is terminated?
clients may continue to utilize the reinforcer to a greater extent than they did during baseline.
37
what are vicarious consequences?
- performance of a client can be altered by having the client observe the consequences that follow the behavior of other individuals (people are more likely to want to repeat positively rewarded behaviors than negative ones, this is known as vicarious reinforcement and vicarious punishment, respectively)
- effects have been weak or inconsistent
38
what is an everyday example of vicarious reinforcement?
slot machines as one invariably sees and hears other players win, i.e., their responses followed by money, they want to do it too.
39
how does the administration of reinforcement to the client may influence whether others show vicarious effects?
vicarious reinforcement effects are enhanced by delivering reinforcement in a conspicuous fashion and by providing individuals with many opportunities to see others receive reinforcing consequences.
40
what can vicarious reinforcement do?
may draw attention to the specific behaviors that are desired and serve a prompting function.
41
what are mirror neurons?
- cells in the brain that fire when we observe others engaging in behavior
- have been identified in centers for memory and emotion and in response to motor actions (e.g., watching someone lift something) as well as social cues
42
what is unique about mirror neurons?
the cells that are activated are very similar to those that would be activated if we performed the behaviors ourselves rather than merely observing others perform them.
43
how can modeling be helpful?
may serve as a prompting function (visual prompt) but actually does more by showing what to do and in some way affects the learning of behaviors directly.
44
why is "throwing rewards" not helpful?
because if it is a behavior that the individual does not have in their repertoire, is not likely to be effective.
45
what is the cause of most cases of weak or ineffective programs?
how the program is implemented.
46
when must one use FBA?
to find out what is maintaining a behavior.
47
what should one do if a program seems not to work or produce small effects?
- recheck contingencies and their implementation
- check that the program is being delivered with a high degree of integrity
- check that they address the function of the behavior
- check if the amount of reinforcement is adequate
- check with people implementing the program are doing additional things that weaken the program
48
what are some things to consider if the treatment program is not working?
- are consequences following desired behavior immediately?
- is the reinforcer contingent with behavior?
- is the reinforcer delivered everytime after the behavior?
- are the reinforcers highly preferred?
- if tokens are used, is the person buying backup reinforcers with them?
- are there reinforcers for engaging in the behavior that competes with the goals of the program?
- are there too many occasions to provide the reinforcer for the behavior?
49
what is a contingency contract?
a written agreement between individuals who wish behavior to change (parents, teachers, spouses, rehabilitation workers) and clients whose behavior is to be changed (students, children, partners, patients).
50
what do contingency contracts do?
- specifies the relationship between behaviors and their consequences
- this is translated into explicit and precise terms that denote precisely what behavior (how much behavior, when, how often) will earn what consequences (how much, when delivered)
51
what do contingency contracts mainly focus on?
“how” a program is developed.
52
what are many contingency contracts used for?
successfully alter a variety of problems, such as overeating, alcohol and drug abuse, cigarette smoking, problem behaviors of delinquents, and especially education.
53
what are the elements of a contingency contract?
- outlines what each party expects to gain
- behaviors of clients are expected to be observable
- should reinforcers and sanctions for not meeting contract goals (what will happen if one does not meet the contract terms, systematic and planned in advance (agreed to by all parties))
- bonus clause for consistent behavior that specifies the delivery of additional reinforcers for consistent compliance with the terms
- provide a means of monitoring the rate of positive reinforcement given and received
- provide a means of renegotiating the contract conditions
54
what is good about contingency contracts?
- client has input into program seen as fair so they may perform better if they are allowed to have some input into designing or implementing a program than if the program is imposed on them
- the contingencies specified in a contract are less likely to be aversive to the client
- they are flexible and can be renegotiated
- contingencies are explicit, which can increase effectiveness of reinforcement
- particularly useful in structuring relationships among persons whose interactions may be maladaptive
- may be especially useful with adolescents because they grant more autonomy than externally imposed contingencies
55
what is bad about contingency contracts?
- age (very young children) and serious impairment (e.g., severe mental retardation) may preclude the negotiation and discussion process that underlies development of a contract
- in many contracts, there is a difference in power and authority between the participants (e.g., parent vs. child), which can mean that stronger party will not negotiate or change conditions and abuse the position
- codifying a program (in a contract) is no substitute for implementing it well
56
why are many programs are imposed on clients with little or no input from the clients themselves?
often clients are not in a position to determine the goals and means through which they can be reached.
57
what are group contingencies?
the programs in which the criterion for reinforcement and/or earning of the reinforcers are based on the performance of the group as a whole.
58
what is a variation of group contingencies?
a certain percentage of individuals must achieve a specific standard (e.g., turn in homework) for the reinforcer to be provided to the group (e.g., special activity).
59
what is the most common use for group contingencies?
the members of a group must perform in a particular way for the consequences to be provided (the consequence is one earned by the group as a whole).
60
what are term-based contingencies?
group is divided into two or more subgroups (or teams) where each subgroup functions on a separate group contingency but there is competition between the groups to earn reinforcers.
61
what is good behavior game (GBG?)
- developed for classroom use
- the class is divided into two (or more) teams
- classroom rules are posted that identify the target behaviors and reinforcers and when one of the rules is violated (e.g., talking out, hitting another person) the student is noted by name and the violation is stated specifically
- rule infraction leads to a loss of points from the team’s total points and this loss can be noted by some public way of designating or tracking the number of infractions
- the team with fewer infractions earns a prize
- used as a strategy to help the teacher manage classroom behavior and promote academic behavior
- has been shown to decrease behaviors such as aggression and classroom disruption and apparently interrupt the path to which these can lead for many children in terms of substance use and abuse and the other outcomes
62
what is consequence sharing/dependent group contingency?
- the client’s peers share in the reinforcing consequences earned by the client
- group members receive the reinforcers not for their behavior but for the behavior the client performs
63
where is consequence sharing/dependent group contingency useful for?
in situations that need to focus on the behavior of one or a few persons.
64
why is consequence sharing/dependent group contingency unique?
it provides a convenient way to include persons in a program who might otherwise not be included (e.g., classmates, siblings, other family members).
65
what is important to remember with consequence sharing/dependent group contingency unique?
- ought to use new incentives that will be available to the class rather than a loss of a privilege
- ex: add more recess time if the behavior happens, do not take it away
66
what is a lottery?
- a way of arranging reinforcement contingencies to develop specific behaviors in a group of persons
- it is a token economy in which behaviors earn tokens (tickets) that are exchangeable for the backup reinforcer (the prize)
67
what is important to remember about lotteries?
each person’s behavior is unrelated to that of others in the group.
68
why are lotteries useful?
they are convenient ways to administer reinforcers in group settings (they can dispense relatively large rewards (e.g., large sums of money, appliances, vacation trips) because few rewards are actually provided
69
what is the downside of lotteries?
they may not affect the individuals whose behavior needs to change most (some individuals may not enter the lottery, not earn tickets for the drawing, or not receive the rewarding consequences when they do).
70
how can lotteries be altered?
they can be adapted to individuals by combining them with other procedures.
71
what is good about group-based contingencies?
they provide an extremely convenient way to implement intervention programs in applied settings
they help bring to bear peer sources of reinforcement for behavior.
72
what is bad about group-based contingencies?
aversive peer interactions may be more likely to result if available reinforcers in the setting (e.g., recess) are lost when the group does not meet the criterion for performance.
73
what are peer-administered contingencies?
- the peers serve as the behavior-change agents and provide direct consequences to the target client
- this may look like providing prompts for behavior, checking to see if performance criteria have been met, encouraging repeated practice, and delivering consequences (e.g., praise, tokens) for performance
74
where have most peer-based programs been used?
in school settings on a small scale of usually one to two clients.
75
what are the steps of peer-based programs?
- the peer (e.g., child, sibling, spouse) undergoes a brief instruction and training period to learn how to conduct the program (e.g., administer the task, provide feedback, praise, or points)
- then the peer directly administers consequences to the target individual, i.e., person whose behavior is to be changed
- someone (parent, teacher) provides oversight and monitors the peer who administers the consequences
then the peer who administers the program receives consequences for how well he or she does this job
76
what are the benefits of peer-administered contingencies?
- having the opportunity to work with one’s peers often is a positive reinforcer
- peers who serve as trainers often improve in the target behaviors they are changing in the trainees
- can improve social interaction among clients
utilizing peers enables clients to receive more individualized attention and training than can be provided by the staff in the setting
- may facilitate maintenance and transfer of the positive behavior to other settings and occasions beyond those in which parents, teachers, or others are present
77
what is bad about peer-administered contingencies?
peers may not monitor others as well as external agents (teachers, parents) do.
behavioral analysis
flashcards
Decks in class (14)
# Cards
-
introduction65
-
principles of operant conditioning47
-
assess behavior49
-
quality of assessments23
-
evaluating interventions84
-
functional behavioral assessment51
-
positive and negative reinforcers61
-
extinction39
-
technique variations77
-
generalization53
-
self-control47
-
clinical applications91
-
social, ethical, and legal contexts57
-
quiz questions50
