Transcript There are a number of advantages to using positive

There are a number of
advantages to using positive
programming as a strategy for
the reduction of behavior
problems in applied settings.
Together these advantages
make programming the most
preferable alternative to the
use of punishment.
Lavigna & Donnellen, 1986
Two main beliefs…
 Teachers can make a difference in student
behavior
 What happens in the classroom can help any
student learn to be more independent and
responsible
Two criteria for dealing with
behaviors
 Ensure that that the student (s) are treated
with dignity and respect
 Provides a reasonable chance of helping
student (s) learn to behave more
responsibly.
Four situations
 Behavior needs to be:
– Reduced or eliminated
– Increased
– Taught
– Maintained
Two approaches to increasing
1. Occurs before the behavior (an
antecedent), you change the environment
to make the behavior more likely to occur.
2. Occurs after the behavior ( a
consequence), you reinforce the behavior
to make it more likely to occur in the
future.
Solutions
 Rather than searching for complex
solutions, behaviors frequently do not occur
often enough simply because the
environment interferes with them.
Environmental conditions
 Student conditions
 Teacher conditions
 Specific environmental conditions
Simple solutions
 Move student to quiet corner of the regular
classroom
 Move student within 10 feet of their regular
desk
 Return the student to their regular desk.
Competing stimulus
 Hunger
 Lack of sleep
 Medication
 Organization of the classroom
?
You may expect the student to know what to
do, when in fact he/she does not know. The
student needs to know what you want and
what they will get for doing it.
For example….
 The teacher says “Joe, get to work”
 The aide says “ Joe, get busy”
 The volunteer says “Joe, time to start”
 The student may not understand what is
expected. A standard cue must be chosen
and used consistently (at least in the
beginning) for each student.
If a student exhibits a behavior, but not often
enough, and the environmental changes
either don’t work or weren’t possible, what
can you do?
Reinforcer
 A reinforcer is a thing or activity (stimulus)
that FOLLOWS a response and increases
the occurrence of that response in the
future.
S R +
 Good job. Reinforce that behavior.
Reinforcement is most effective
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Individualized for a particular child
Presented contingent on target behavior
Immediacy of the reinforcement
Combining with verbal praise
Appropriate reinforcement schedule
Appropriate type of reinforcement
Quality and quantity of reinforcement
Reinforcers given by significant others or from
people the student likes and admires
 consistently
Positive reinforcement
 The contingent provision of a stimulus
(such as treat , object, or activity) following
a target behavior, which results in an
increase or maintenance of the frequency,
duration, and /or intensity of the target
behavior (Skinner, 1938, 1969).
Positive reinforcement
 Is recommended as the intervention of first
choice when trying to teach new behaviors
 Increase appropriate behaviors
 Or decrease inappropriate behaviors.
Negative reinforcement
 Is the contingent removal of a stimulus
following a target behavior, which results in
an increase or maintenance of the
frequency, duration, and/or intensity of the
target behavior. Typically the removed
stimulus stimulus.
 Negative reinforcement is NOT
punishment.
Negative reinforcement
 Student focus their attention on avoiding an
aversive event
 Produces escape and avoidance behavior
 ( students behavior appropriately only to avoid
their teacher’s aversive behavior)
– Typically not motivated except by fear and anxiety
– Higher absenteeism or drop out to escape situation (vs
teacher who use positive reinforcement for appropriate
behaviors.
Types of reinforcers
 Primary reinforcers – naturally reinforcing to
individuals – food, liquids, warmth, etc.
 Secondary reinforcers – stimuli that is not
naturally reinforcing – these are learned or
conditioned through association or pairing, with
primary reinforcers.
 The purpose is to fade the primary reinforcer and
fade in, or increase the value of verbal praise
which will become a secondary reinforcer capable
of maintaining or increasing the target behavior.
Socially valid reinforcers
 A reinforcer is considered socially valid
when its provision is congruent with the
norms of the student’s social setting.
 Variables include: culture, setting,age of the
student, the specific situation, and
relationship between the teacher and the
student.
The TRICK….
 Is to basically find out for a student what is
reinforcing to THEM (since different things
are reinforcing to different students.
 For example, I like…….
Strategies for finding reinforcers
(preference assessments)
 As the student
 Ask someone who knows the student
 Observe what the student chooses when
given options
 Try some things and see what happens. A
stimulus (activity or thing) is only
reinforcing if the behavior increases.
NO matter how much
 You like chocolate or praise, if it doesn’t
increase your student’s behavior, it is not a
reinforcer.
 Your student says he/she wants to do a
particular activity, if access to that activity
doesn’t increase his/her behavior, it is not a
reinforcer in that particular situation.
Many times teachers will say that
reinforcement doesn’t work…..
If you try a potential reinforcer and it doesn’t
increase the behavior that does not mean
reinforcement does not work. It simply
means you haven’t found the reinforcer that
is reinforcing for that student in that setting.
Types of reinforcers
 Activities (extra free time, listening to a cd,
being alone or with a particular person,
going to the library)
 Activities are usually easy to use and most
require little effort on the part of the teacher
effort.
Tangible objects as reinforcers
 If tangible objects are already available, it is
a simple matter to rearrange the situation so
the student gets what they want after the
student does what you want.
Social reinforcers
 Cheapest and easiest to deliver, most
normal, and least intrusive reinforcer
available AND for many students the most
powerful.
 Attention is a reinforcer if it increases a
behavior.
 Attention can be verbal, physical, or more
subtle. BE SPECIFIC
Biggest problem
 Reinforcement is often any type of
attention. This negative attention maybe just
as effective at increasing a behavior as
positive attention.
 If you attend to a behavior that you really
want to decrease, and instead it increases,
then you have reinforced that behavior in
spite of what you set out to do.
You must consider
 Which to use
 When and how often
 Cost
 Ease of delivery
 Intrusiveness
 Normalization
Only one reason to select a reinforcer that is
intrusive, expensive, difficult to deliver or
not typical--- it is the ONLY thing that
works. This is acceptable as long as it is a
intermediate step and not the final solution.
You must plan to phase (fade) it out ASAP.
Five things to remember
1. Deliver it fast
2. Fade reinforcement gradually
3. Pair it with praise
4. Watch for satiation
5. Be consistent across time, environment
and teachers/parents.
Schedules of reinforcement
 The pattern or frequency with which the reinforcer
is presented in response to the target behavior.
 The specific schedule has been found to have
significant effects on the target behavior.
 The most common types of reinforcement
schedules are : continuous, fixed ratio, variable
ratio, fixed interval, and variable interval.
Continuous and Intermittent
 Continuous-each and every time the target
behavior is exhibited (especially recommended for
working with young children or for a new
behavior)
 Intermittent- reinforcement occurs after some
occurrences, but not each and every one of the
specific target behaviors (when there is an
association between the target behavior and the
reinforcer and the teacher wants to fade or thin the
reinforcer).
Ratio schedules
 Fixed ratio
– Reinforcing a student each
and every time a target
behavior occurs (fixed ratio
of one FR1).
– Every second time (FR2)
every third time (FR3)
– Advantage – systematic
schedule of reinforcement,
teachers know when to
reinforce the target
behaviors based on a fixed
number of behaviors
 Variable ratio schedules
– Reinforcement is delivered
following an average
number of behavior
occurrences.
– On the average of every
third (variable ratio of three
VR3)
– Harder to implement for the
teacher, less systematic and
consistent.
Interval reinforcement schedules
 Fixed interval
 Variable interval
A reinforcement is used
following a specific
interval of time ( for
every 10 consecutive
minutes of appropriate
behavior)
A fixed interval of 10
FI10
Fixed interval of five FI5
Average interval time –
student for staying on
task for an average of
every 10 minutes
would be considered a
variable interval of 10
VI10
Shaping
 Successive approximations of a terminal
behaviors
 Used for new behaviors and skills
Chaining
 Refers to a performance of a series or a
sequence of behaviors rather than just one
independent behavior
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1. Walk into the classroom
2. Hang up their coats
3. Put their lunch boxes in locker
4. Sit at their desks
Forward chaining
 Teaching each behavior link, starting with
the first link and moving down to the next
link in the chain, until all the behaviors in
the chain have been learned and can be
performed in the appropriate sequence.
Backward chaining
 Teaching each link in the behavior link
starting with the last and moving up to the
behavior chain.
 Different learners do better with procedures.
Token economy reinforcement
 Symbolic reinforcement system
 Student receive tokens for specific appropriate
behaviors which they may exchange for objects or
activities that have been identified as reinforcing.
 Advantages –can be used with large groups of
children with minimum effort, simple but effective
method of displaying positive attention to
appropriate behaviors, let teachers offer a single
reinforcer to many student who may have different
reinforcer preferences.
 Tokens are seldom subject to satiation and can be
given without interrupting teaching and other
activities.
Tokens
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Should be something students can see, touch, and count
Not too small or too large for storage, counting or handling
Able to exchange for actual reinforcers
Should not be able to obtain tokens except from teacher –
no trading or stealing
 Understand that tokens are to be exchanged
Teachers need to understand differences in children’s
spending habits – some like to spend some like to save
Opportunity to earn at least one token per exchange period
and no maximum on how many a student can earn.
Student who only earn a small number should be able to
exchange for small reinforcers.
Contingency contracting
 Establishment of a written behavioral
contract between a student and a teacher
regarding the performance of specific target
behaviors and the exchange of specific
consequences.
 This provides a means for behavioral
expectations, reinforcers, and other
consequences in writing.
CONTRACT
I, _________________________________________
will__________________________________________
_____________________________________________
_____________________________________________
I, __________________________________________
will__________________________________________
_____________________________________________
_____________________________________________
Date____________________
Student signature_________________
Teacher signature_________________
Contract
Contract between _____________ and _______________
If I do_________________________________________
_______________________________________________
_______________________________________________
Then I can _____________________________________
_______________________________________________
_______________________________________________
Student signature_______________
Teacher signature_______________
Date______________________
Generalization
 Refers to the degree to which a behavior
change program influences other behaviors
in addition to the target behavior
 A reinforcement program to get a child to
say please and the child also increases the
use of thank you – then this a response
generalization.
Promoting generalization of
behavior
 Teach in natural settings where behavior is most
likely to occur (sharing behavior for example)
 Select natural antecedents for stimulus control
 Select natural consequences as reinforcers (good
grades, hang assignments on bulletin boards)
 Reinforce generalization – target behaviors
exhibited outside the setting or situation
Maintenance
 Behavior is maintained after the behavior
change program has been completed
Techniques for generalization and
maintenance
 Teach in a variety of settings, variety of teachers,
where behavior is like to occur
 Identify common elements between environments
 Gradually shift from artificial stimulus controls to
natural stimulus controls
 Shift from continuous to intermittent schedules of
reinforcement ASAP
 Pair artificial reinforcers with natural reinforcers
and consequences
 Phase out artificial reinforcers that would not
naturally occur
 Reinforce generalization and maintenance.
Reinforcers…..
 Find potential reinforcers.
 Make a HUGE list.