Transcript Overview of
Overview of Conditioning Need to Examine Behavior • Look at the behavior of an organism’s interaction with its environment • Displacements in space through time • Temporal locus • Temporal extent • Repeatability • Results in a measurable change in some aspect of the environment Response Class • Are a group of responses with the same function • Each response in the group produces the same effect on the environment Repertoire of Responses • Are all behaviors a person can do in a situation • Usually are knowledge and skills an organism has learned that are relevant to a particular setting or tasks • Are very relevant to ABA Environment • Behavior occurs within an environmental context • Cannot be emitted in an environmental void or vacuum Stimulus events • Formal • Are the physical features of the stimulus • Temporal • Occur with respect to a behavior of interest • Functionally • What are the stimulus effects on behavior Stimulus Class • Groups of stimuli sharing a predetermined set of common elements • Occur in one of more of these dimensions • Formal dimensions • Temporal locus • Behavioral functions of stimulus changes Formal Dimensions of Stimuli • Are descriptions, measurements, or manipulations of the stimulus • Can be based on size, color, intensity, etc. • Stimuli can be • Social • Nonsocial Temporal Locus of Stimuli • Behavior is affected by stimulus changes that: • Occur prior to (Antecedent) • Are provided after the behavior (Consequent) Antecedent Stimuli • Conditions or stimulus changes that exist or occur prior to the behavior • Learners do not need to be aware of them to effect behavior • Play a critical part in learning and motivation Consequent Stimuli • Are stimuli that follow a behavior of interest • Immediate consequent stimuli are very important • Influence motivational states • Influence future behavior • Usually have greater impact than later larger consequent stimuli • Relate to self-management issues Functions of Stimulus Changes • Impacts behavior • Are best understood through a functional analysis • Immediate control • Delayed control • No apparent effect Behavior from Stimulus Changes • Can be immediate but are temporary • Increases or decreases the current behavior • Can be delayed and become relatively permanent Examples Types of Behavior 1. Respondent Behavior • Behavior that is elicited by antecedent stimuli • Occurs because of the stimulus that precedes it • Something in your eye - blink Tap on the knee – Jerk knee • Often are designed to protect against harmful stimuli • Are often reflexive in nature • Habituation • Gradually diminishing response strength Example • Pavlov • Digestive systems of dogs • Animals salivated every time lab assistant opened the cage door to feed them 2. Operant Behavior • Behavior whose frequency is determined primarily by consequent stimuli • Stimuli are selected • Behavior can be shaped • Behavior is maintained by consequence stimuli and schedule of reinforcement or punishment • Can occur with any organism and in any environment. Points to Note • Consequences only affect future behavior • Consequences select response classes, no individual responses • Can narrow the response class • Immediate consequences have the greatest impact vs. delayed consequences • Self-management issue Consequences Select Any Behavior • Reinforcement and punishment are equal opportunity selectors • Importance of temporal relations • Operant conditioning occurs automatically and in all environments • Occurs constantly What is Reinforcement and Punishment • Are procedures • Can be used to increase or decrease a behavior • Uses reinforcers and punishers • Are things – STIMULI • Use results in changes in behavior • Four types Reinforcement and Punishment • Reinforcement • Is the most important principle of behavior • Is the key element to most behavior change programs • Punishment • Can be very effective if used correctly • Often is not used correctly • Often creates numerous ethical concerns • Can have side effects • Reason Reinforcement is used more often Reinforcement • Positive • Add a stimulus following a response and beh. Increases • Good behavior followed by CCC, more good beh. • Negative • Remove a stimulus following a response and the beh. increases • Take oxycodone to stop pain, next time, take oxycodone again. Result, cycle increases use PUNISHMENT • Positive • Give a stimulus following a response and beh. Decrease • Stick finger in light socket – get zapped, don’t repeat • Negative • Remove a positive stimulus following a response and beh. decreases • Speeding down road – cop gives you a ticket, don’t speed anymore Motivation to Behave • Motivation can alter the current value of stimulus changes as reinforcement or punishment • Results from • Satiation • Deprivation Discriminated Operants • Behavior occurs more frequently under some antecedent conditions than other conditions • Relates to Stimulus Control • Are differential rates of operant responding observed in the presence or absence of antecedent stimuli • Occurs due to pairings from the past • Ultimately, antecedents acquire the ability to control operant behavior Principles of Behavior • Describes functional relations between behavior and one or more of its controlling variables (b = fx) • Occurs through: • Thorough generality across individual organisms, species, settings, behaviors • Empirical generalization inferred from many experiments • Describe how behavior works • Reinforcement, punishment, extinction Behavior Change Tactics • Are research-based • Are consistent methods for changing behavior • Are derived from basic principles of behavior • Are general across subjects, settings, and or behaviors • Ultimately warrant codification & dissemination • Are the technological aspects of ABA Points to Note • Principles • Describe how behavior works • Are lawful relationships • Behavior change tactics • Are how ABA professionals use the principles • Used to help people learn and use socially significant behaviors Three-Term Contingency • Antecedent (A) – Behavior (B) – Consequence (C) • Is the basic unit of analysis in the analysis of operant behavior • All ABA procedures involve the manipulation of one or more components Human Behavior • Is highly complex • Use large repertoires of response chains, verbal behavior • Analysis of control complicated by • Individual differences in histories of reinforcement • Practical, ethical, logistical, etc. issues Summary and Conclusions • Lots of variables are related to conditioning • Need to understand the principles of conditioning to modify behavior in any environment. • Techniques are very powerful • Must use ethical principles