Behaviorism

John Watson

Conditioned emotional reaction

Examples Little Albert; fetishes;
emotions associated with
perfumes, favorite songs, or
favorite place.
Generalization, discrimination, and
extinction all apply.

Review

What are limitations of Classical

conditioning? re-pairing of
stimuli/ some stimuli cannot be
conditioned.
What is higher order or secondary
conditioning?

B.F. Skinner and Operant

Conditioning

Positive reinforcement
negative reinforcement
positive punishment
negative punishment

Important Definitions

Reinforcers are anything that

increases a behavior. According to
Operant conditioning, if a behavior
is increasing, it is being reinforced.
Punishers are anything that
decreases a behavior. Thus, if a
behavior is decreasing, it is being
punished.

Important Definitions,
cont.
"positive" means that something is
added
"negative" means that something
is taken away.

Reinforcer
Punisher
Positive
+ Reinf.
+ Punish.
Negative
- Reinf.
- Punish.

To Summarize

Positive reinforcement occurs when a

behavior increases because something is
added (given, applied). Usually what is
added is something liked, wanted, or
desired.
Negative reinforcement occurs when a
behavior increases because something is
taken away. Usually what is taken away is
something aversive (unpleasant or painful).

Summary, cont.

Positive punishment occurs when a

behavior decreases because something is
added (given, applied). Usually what is
added is something aversive (unpleasant
or painful).
Negative punishment occurs when a
behavior decreases because something is
taken away. Usually what is taken away is
something liked, wanted, or desired.

Examples

Common Positive Reinforcers giving

Candy, praise, hug, balloon, sticker,
or saying thanks
Common Negative Reinforcers - When
a behavior results in the stopping of
yelling or nagging, stopping the
electrical shock, or decreasing
anxiety.

Examples, cont.

Common positive punishmentsSpanking, hitting, yelling, applying

electric shocks, giving extra
homework, overcorrection
making them write 100 times.

Examples, Cont.

Common negative punishments Taking away of privileges,

grounding, taking away of
attention (Time Out).

3 Questions to ask

1. What is the behavior?

2. Is it increasing or decreasing
over time?
3. Is it increasing (or decreasing)
over time because something was
added, or because something was
taken away?

Tantruming Child Example

Positive Reinforcement

the tantruming child in the grocery

store is being positively reinforced
when the parent gives them the
candy/toy after they start tantruming.
They will tantrum faster and more
often if you give them something they
want after they tantrum. Positive
reinforcement = The child gets the
candy/toy for having the tantrum.

Negative Reinforcement

the parents' behavior of giving in or

of giving the candy is negatively
reinforced when the child stops
tantruming. The child stops the loud
screaming and the embarrassment
once the candy is given, so the
parents' behavior of giving in is
much more likely to increase in the
future.

Why does reinforcement

1.Punishment (ie corporal punishment)
work so much better than
teaches children that bigger, older, and
punishment?
stronger people have the right to hit

smaller, younger, weaker people.

2. punishment does not teach people
how to behave properly. It teaches
people to hide their improper behavior,
but not how to behave differently.

Reinforcement >
Punishment, cont.

3. To be effective, punishment
must be administered immediately
and every time the behavior
occurs.
4.To be effective, punishment must
be fairly intense each time it is
administered.

Reinforcement >
Punishment, cont.

5. Punishment can have side effects

of developing negative feelings and
withdrawal from more than the
specific instance (ie if punished for
throwing a book, you may avoid all
books vs the throwing). Also, you can
develop negative feelings towards the
punisher and want to avoid them.


Know what shaping or
successive
approximation is.

How do Behaviorists
explain
the
development
1.Classical conditioning + operant
ofconditioning
phobias?(avoidance =

negative reinforcement).
2.Operant conditioning +
avoidance

CHANGE: Classical
conditioning
therapies

1. Systematic Desensitization

2. Aversion therapy

Systematic Desensitization

Aversion Therapy

http://www.minddisorders.com/A-Br
/Aversion-therapy.html

Change: Operant
Conditioning
therapies

1. Behavior Management (for

individuals)
2.Token economy (for groups of
people)
3.Biofeedback

Change Behavioral
therapy

The teaching of a more appropriate

or more effective behavior, skill, or
strategy (ie problem solving skills,
progressive muscle relaxation, or
deep breathing)

ABA Design- Reducing a

Behavior

Baseline

Treatment

(A)

(B)

Withdrawal of treatment

(A)

ABA Design Increasing a

Behavior

Baseline

(A)

Treatment
(B)

Withdrawal of treatment
(A)

Potential Strengths of
Behaviorism
1. Committed to systematic research and
theory development

2. Recognizes the role of situational and

environmental variables in influencing
behavior

3. Provides a variety of therapy techniques

that have been found to be very reliable
and effective

Potential Strengths, cont.

4.uses experimental methodology
and Test Data, so it is easier to
establish reliabililty and validity
than other methodologies and type
of data.
5. Experimental design has the
potential to establish cause and
effect relationships.

Potential Weaknesses for

Behaviorism
1. Oversimplifies personality and neglects important
phenomenon (thoughts, feelings, genetics)

2. Lacks a single, unified theory

3. Requires further evidence to support claims for

certain problems of treatment effectiveness.
(Limitations of animal models; Do we know
exactly why behavioral therapies work?)
4. Deals with only simple behaviors

continuum

Psychodynamic-------------\
Humanist
Behavioral
<12----3\4567\----------------------------------->
Psychoanalytic\
nature
1= S. Freud; 2= A. Freud; 3= E.Erikson; 4=
Object Relations; 5 = NeoFreudians; 6= ego
psych.; 7=A.Adler

nurture