The environment, the human and the interrelationships, variations and infinite combinations that can occur make the applied analysis of relevant behaviors a very challenging task. Today we will try to summarize key concepts that help us understand why people behave the way we do and, at the same time, why it sometimes takes so long to achieve effective change in behavior.
Responsive behavior
There are behaviors that organisms emit without the need for prior learning. These behaviors fulfill different functions:
- Protect ourselves from harmful stimuli: For example, coughing to keep your throat and airways clear.
- Help regulate the internal balance and economy of the body: For example, sweating when it’s hot.
- Promote playback: For example, sexual arousal.
These responses are part of a repertoire of reflexes that intact members of a species are equipped with from birth. They are unconditioned responses, that is, they have not been learned, and we call them responsive behaviors. For the unconditioned response to appear, it is only necessary antecedent stimulus (Stimulus = pain in hand / Response = remove hand). If the body parts involved are intact, the response will occur every time the stimulus appears. However, if the stimulus is presented repeatedly in a short period of time, the magnitude of the response will decrease and, in some cases, the behavior may not occur. This process is called habituation.
Respondent conditioning
Stimuli that are neutral can acquire the ability to elicit responsive behavior through a learning process. This phenomenon is called respondent conditioning, classical conditioning or Pavlovian conditioning (after the experiments of Ivan Pavlov). If you want to go deeper into the topic, read this.
Respondent extinction
While doing his experiments, Pavlov also discovered that once a conditioned stimulus was established, it could weaken and even disappear if it was presented repeatedly in the absence of the unconditioned stimulus.
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Operant behavior
Although responsive behavior, which we talked about in the previous section, is of key importance in our survival, it cannot be the only way in which an organism interacts with its environment.
The ability to learn based on the effects of our behavior on the environment is what helps us adapt and learn to provide novel and increasingly complex responses in a world that is always changing.
What characterizes this type of response, which we call operant behavioris that they are determined largely by the history of consequences. This is the first difference with the responding behavior, which we had said is elicited by the antecedents.
The next difference is that responding behaviors have predetermined functions and topography. On the other hand, operant behaviors can take many forms. The operants are defined functionallythat is, by the effect they have on behavior:
- The same operant can contain responses from different topographies, for example, if we ask someone to tell us a joke.
- The same behavior can also encompass different operants under different conditions. For example, a child may cry to get attention from his parent or, on another occasion, he may cry to avoid eating something he doesn’t like.
Those behaviors that produce more favorable results are selected and remain in the person’s repertoire, making said repertoire more adaptive.
Operant conditioning
The is the processing and selective effects of consequences on behavior. Depending on the consequences of a behavior, it will be more (reinforcement) or less (punishment) probably the same be repeated in the future. I usually go to the drinking fountain upstairs to get water because I always get it (reinforcement); I no longer go to the drinking fountain that is closest to me because on many occasions I have not gotten water there (punishment).
The consequences only affect future behaviorthat is, the frequency of emission of a behavior when faced with similar stimuli will increase or decrease depending on the consequences that have followed in the past.
Another interesting aspect of operant conditioning is that slightly different responses are also reinforced, but they share some functional element with the previous responses (for example, saying “draft”, “pass me the eraser”, “give me the eraser”, “lend me the eraser”. ”, to get them to give us a draft). This is very beneficial since it would be a problem for our adaptation if only identical responses were reinforced. This is called since they are topographically different but functionally similar, and it is these that are reinforced or weakened by operant conditioning.
Additionally, the immediacy with which a behavior is reinforced has a great influence on the increase in its future frequency. If reinforcement occurs immediately or a few seconds later, the behavior is much more likely to be repeated in the future. An important point that we must understand is that any behavior that precedes reinforcement or punishment will increase or decrease respectively. It is the temporal relationship between the behavior and the consequence that will be functional (not logical or topographical relationships).
One last aspect that we can highlight is that operant conditioning occurs whether or not you realize that it is happening. A reinforcing connection need not be obvious to the individual. This feature is called automaticity of reinforcement. People do not have to understand or verbalize the relationship between our behavior and a consequence, or even know that a consequence has taken place, for reinforcement to occur.
Reinforcement
This is the most important principle of behavior and the main element of most behavior change programs designed by behavior analysts.
As explained above, when a behavior is followed by a certain consequence and that results in similar behaviors occurring more often, reinforcement is happening. Although sometimes one reinforcer is enough to see significant changes in behavior, it is generally necessary for many behaviors to be followed by the reinforcer for significant conditioning to occur.
Most stimulus changes that function as reinforcers can be described as:
- A new stimulus added to the environment (+)
- A stimulus that is already present and is removed from the environment (-)
Additionally, there are two forms of reinforcement:
- Positive reinforcement: A response (or behavior) is immediately followed by the presentation of a stimulus that results in the occurrence of more responses similar in the future. For example, a man wears pink clothes and receives compliments, so he starts wearing that color more often.
- Negative reinforcement: a behavior occurs more frequently because by behaving like this previously, some aversive stimulus was removed or eliminated. For example, I enter the kitchen and I smell an unpleasant smell, then I take out the trash and the smell in the kitchen disappears. This form of reinforcement is characterized by escape or avoidance contingencies.
The concept of negative reinforcement has confused many students and professionals, mostly because it is often thought of as the same as punishment. To better understand the difference, we must remember that the term “reinforcement” always means an increase in the frequency of a behavior. The modifiers “positive” and “negative” simply describe the type of stimulus change, that is, whether a stimulus is presented or removed.
One last aspect that we will highlight about reinforcement is that, once a behavior is established through it, it is not necessary to reinforce every time it occurs, but the response will be maintained for a long time. intermittent reinforcement. On the other hand, if reinforcement does not occur for the class of responses, the behavior will decrease until it reaches the levels it was at before reinforcement, due to a process based on the principle of extinction.
Punishment
The word ” has many negative connotations, but it is important to remember that the term has a specific definition in applied behavior analysis, which does not necessarily coincide with the concept that the general population has.
Like reinforcement, punishment is functionally defined. This means that when a response is immediately followed by a stimulus change and, consequently, happens less in the future, we say that the behavior was punished.
Punishments can also be positive or negative, but such modifiers only indicate that a stimulating change that serves as a punishment has been presented (positive punishment) or retired (negative punishment).
Many behavioral procedures incorporate the two basic punishment operations. For example, procedures that include the use of time out and response cost.
Likewise, most of the stimulus changes that function as punishments (as do reinforcers) can be described as:
- A new stimulus added to the environment (+)
- A stimulus that is already present and is removed from the environment (-)
About reinforcers and punishments
For a behavior to change, the consequences that follow must be relevant, but how do we know which stimulus will work well as a reinforcer and punishment?
Unconditional punishment and reinforcement
Some stimuli function as reinforcers or punishments even though the organism does not have a learning history linked to said stimulus.
- Unconditioned reinforcer: It is defined as a stimulus change that can increase the future occurrence of a behavior without having previously been associated with any other form of reinforcement. A very clear example is food, which usually functions as an unconditioned reinforcer and has to do with the biological maintenance of the organism. However, the effectiveness of an unconditioned reinforcer is momentary due to what we call motivating operations. To understand better, let’s think that the reinforcing effect of food will not be the same if we are full (satiation) as if we are hungry (deprivation).
- Unconditional punishment: It refers to a stimulating change that can reduce the occurrence of any behavior that precedes it without the need for an association with any other form of punishment. For example, painful stimulation that can cause tissue damage. Likewise, any stimulus to which an organism’s receptors are sensitive (temperature or sound, for example) can reach a certain level that makes it…