Amego Inc Behavior Analyst Certification Exam Prep Module

Amego, Inc. Behavior Analyst Certification Exam Prep Module IV Behavior Change procedures: Differential Reinforcement; Discrimination Training; Reductive behavior procedures; Behavioral Cusps; Stimulus Control Approaches This Module is based on the BACB Task List 4: Section I D. Fundamental Elements of Behavior Change; I. E. Specific Behavior-Change Procedures; &II J. Intervention Prepared by : Michael Weinberg, Ph. D. , BCBA-D © 2018, All Rights Reserved. May not be reproduced without permission of Amego, Inc.

Module IV. Behavior Change procedures: Reductive behavior procedures; Behavioral Cusps; Stimulus Control Approaches 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. * Module IV Objectives Select and Arrange the implementation of reductive behavioral procedures Identify and describe, behavior reduction intervention procedures and how to arrange them (Differential Reinforcement methods, extinction, and punishment procedures)* Discuss and contrast risks and limitations of various reductive procedures, especially punishment, as well as use of extinction Define and describe “behavioral cusps” as well as how and when to apply this approach with children Define and describe use of imitation, and stimulus control methods Student assignment #3 on Differential Reinforcement due with this Module

Module IV. Behavior Change procedures: Reductive behavior procedures; Behavioral Cusps; Stimulus Control Approaches Schedules of “Differential Reinforcement” • There a number of different such schedules that are used to reduce the frequency of problem behavior, maintain behavior at a particular frequency or pace, or to teach and increase the frequency of desired behaviors • Differential Reinforcement approaches use IRTs to program the schedule to either increase, decrease, or maintain the behavior at a set rate or pace depending on the need and situation

Module IV. Behavior Change procedures: Reductive behavior procedures; Behavioral Cusps; Stimulus Control Approaches Schedules of Differential Reinforcement: • DRO – Differential Reinforcement of Other Behavior • DRI – Differential Reinforcement of Incompatible Behavior • DRA – Differential Reinforcement of Alternate Behavior • DRH – Differential Reinforcement of High Rates of Behavior • DRP- Differential Reinforcement of Paced Behavior • DRL – Differential Reinforcement of Low rates of Behavior • DRD – Differential Reinforcement of Diminishing Rates of Behavior

Differential Rft. • Lucy Show Chocolate Factory Scene • https: //www. youtube. com/watch? v=8 NPz. LBS Bz. PI

Module IV. Behavior Change procedures: Reductive behavior procedures; Behavioral Cusps; Stimulus Control Approaches Differential Reinforcement Exercise: • Differential Reinforcement Practice Exercise: • Select and arrange the appropriate Differential Reinforcement method to: 1. Increase the frequency of social interactions of a student during recess time at school 2. Increase and maintain the pace of performance of a factory worker installing engine parts on automobiles 3. Reduce the rate of classroom disruption by a student, which includes shouting out statements about the teacher or others, talking to other students who are doing their work, and passing along notes during class time. • Notes: You will need to create baseline data with an IRT for each, and also include in your plan the sequence of time frames, the target or desired rate and IRT, and the time frame sequence of your differential reinforcement system for each of these 3 conditions. Also plot sample data of the baseline and the progression of the behavior during intervention.

Module IV Teaching Skills-Discrimination • Discrimination training involves teaching a response or behavior when a specific prompt is provided, and then reinforcement is delivered contingent on the response in the presence of that prompt or cue • Reinforcement is not delivered when a different prompt or cue is given.

Module IV Teaching Skills-Discrimination Training, continued • For example, the teacher provides a prompt to stand in line to go out to the playground for recess. When the students get in line at the door, she provides enthusiastic praise and may also give students a point or sticker. • Conversely, when the teacher says to “please remain seated, ” getting in line at the door is not reinforced.

Module IV Teaching Skills-Discrimination Training, Continued • Another example, demonstrating a teaching approach, is to reinforce pointing to the red block when the teacher says “show me red. ” • When the teacher says “show me green, ” the student would learn not to point to the red block, since this behavior would not be reinforced

Module IV Teaching Skills-Discrimination Training, continued • The diagram for this type of training is as follows: Sd R Sr+ S R Sr+ In this notation system, “S” = Stimulus “R” = Response “d” = discriminative

Module IV Teaching Skills-Discrimination Training, continued = delta r = reinforcer + = “positive” or “added” stimulus • The ability to form these discriminations at birth and perhaps during gestation, indicate an “innate” process based upon physiology and sensory organ development, as well as brain development and function

Module IV Teaching Skills-Discrimination • Thus, our ability to form these and many countless hundreds of thousands of discriminations we make every day is important for functioning, and for children to begin learning early on. This is a critical ability for learning and is seen as early as moments after birth. • Infant studies have shown that newborns are able to distinguish their mother’s voices from other female voices (e. g. De. Casper & Fifer, 1980). Other studies have shown that neonates form many discriminations • Habituation studies also demonstrates an infant’s ability to discriminate, and was even shown in fetuses during pregnancy (Madison et. al. , 1986)

Module IV Task Analysis • Task Analysis as a method or means of teaching a skill or set of skills that need to be completed in a particular sequence, known as a “behavior chain” • Examples of such skills include shoelace tying, tooth-brushing, hand-washing, buttoning a shirt or blouse, or assembly line tasks such as packaging, building an automobile, and so on • This is a method for breaking the skill down into small steps to teach the skill

Module IV Task Analysis, cont’d Example of a Task Analysis Brushing teeth Step/Behavior 16 Put items away 15 Rinses sink 14 Dries mouth 13 Turn off water 12 Rinse toothbrush 11 Expels water 10 Rinse mouth 9 Fill glass ½ full with water 8 Expel toothpaste (spit) 7 Brushes inside biting surfaces of teeth 6 Brushes biting surfaces of teeth 5 Brushes outside surfaces of teeth 4 Turns water on/ wets brush 3 Apply toothpaste to brush/replace cap 2 Remove cap from toothpaste 1 Locate items

Module IV Task Analysis, Continued • Chaining: This means that task analyses are steps of a complex task broken down for ease of learning and teaching • In a chain, the reinforcer comes at the end when the chain is completed • The sequence can be taught in forward order, known as “Forward Chaining” or reverse order, known as “Backward Chaining” • The research literature does not indicate that one method is superior to the other – which method to use depends on the skills and needs of the learner

Module IV Task Analysis, Continued • The steps of a task analysis are not pre-determined by someone else or a standardized program (although several such products are available for purchase) • The instructor conducts a baseline assessment of the skills of the learner on the given task then determines what the steps should be • The more difficult aspects of the task are usually broken down into smaller steps to assist the learner, and those the learner can perform or can readily learn can remain on the list, but in larger steps such as “gets the toothbrush wet” • The list is placed in a sequence of steps as in the sample tooth brushing task analysis list, above

Module IV Task Analysis, continued • The list is placed on a data sheet with columns for each day the task sequence is taught to allow for data collection pertaining to the level of prompting needed to complete the task, and when independence is achieved. • Some prefer to teach the sequence as a whole in forward or backward order • Performance of each of the steps needs to be reinforced to strengthen the behavior, until eventually, completing the sequence is the reinforcer – this involves gradually eliminating or “thinning “ reinforcement • Performance of the last item is most strongly reinforced since that is what is needed to complete the sequence successfully (i. e. to tie shoes, button the shirt, brush teeth, wash hands, and so on)

Module IV. Behavior Change procedures: Reductive behavior procedures; Behavioral Cusps; Stimulus Control Approaches • Extinction is to be used with caution and is typically not implemented by itself • Extinction tends to result in initial high rates of the behavior which is to be eliminated, known as an “extinction burst” • Also, on days following the initial implementation of extinction, the behavior may also persist but typically at lower rates or intensities, until it stops altogether. This phenomenon is referred to as “spontaneous recovery” • Extinction alone may result in harmful or dangerous situations for the individual and/or others in the vicinity

Module IV. Behavior Change procedures: Reductive behavior procedures; Behavioral Cusps; Stimulus Control Approaches Common Misconceptions About Extinction • The behavior gets worse, not better!!! – Extinction bursts will occur • The behavior comes back!!! – Spontaneous recovery will occur • These are indicators that extinction is working – so don’t get dismayed

Module IV. Behavior Change procedures: Reductive behavior procedures: Sample graph of an extinction burst

Module IV: Behavior Change Procedures Responding on different schedules of rft.

Module IV. Behavior Change procedures: Reductive behavior procedures Positive Punishment • A decrease in behavior because something is added to the environment following behavior – It describes the process – It does not equate to violence • For instance, just because you are against giving children spankings does not imply that you are against the use of punishment

Module IV. Behavior Change procedures: Reductive behavior procedures Positive Punishment: • Spanking or any other physical event following the behavior • Required work or exercise –such as when a basketball coach requires the team to take 5 laps when a player misses a foul shot • Over-correction – such as requiring a child to clean the entire room after throwing his own papers on the floor

Module IV. Behavior Change procedures: Reductive behavior procedures • Note: Restitution is restoring the disrupted environment, and could function as punishment • For example, a child is told to clean up the mess made after using finger-paints • Restitutional-overcorrection is being told to clean up what the child disrupted, and to clean the entire room including other children’s areas, or cleaning over and over again • Positive Practice Overcorrection – repeating the desired behavior that is opposite the problem or undesired behavior

Module IV. Behavior Change procedures: Reductive behavior procedures • Positive Practice Overcorrection – repeating the desired behavior that is opposite the problem or undesired behavior For example, a child who has toys strewn about after play must pick up and put the toys on shelves where they are stored over and over again. • Negative Practice Overcorrection – in this case, the undesired behavior is repeated over and over. For example a student who simply throws empty soda cans on the floor instead of putting them in the recycle bin must repeatedly throw the empty cans on the floor

Module IV. Behavior Change procedures: Reductive behavior procedures Negative Punishment: • Removing a stimulus following behavior which results in reduction of the behavior in the future. Types include • Response Cost – could be loss of tokens, getting a speeding ticket or other fine such as for littering • Time-out (technically “time out from positive reinforcement”). For the procedure to be time-out, the person must be removed from a reinforcing situation. Hence, escape maintained behavior that results in removal from the situation is not a time-out, but is a reinforcing consequence by definition • Temporary Loss or Removal of a reinforcing item or activity. For example, a child loses time to play computer games that evening after getting into a fight with a peer on the school bus

Module IV. Behavior Change procedures: Reductive behavior procedures • • Factors Involved in Punishment is not the “flip side” of reinforcement One can “shape” a non-existent behavior using reinforcement However, one cannot use punishment unless the behavior is occurring in the first place Why the behavior occurring? – Answer: Because it’s being reinforced

Module IV. Behavior Change procedures: Reductive behavior procedures • • Factors Involved in Punishment, cont’d Therefore, for punishment to be effective, it needs to overcome the reinforcement that is maintaining the behavior Skinner actually argued against the use of punishment for two reasons a) It teaches the organism what not to do, not what to do b) The behavior returns when the punishment is removed

Module IV. Behavior Change procedures: Reductive behavior procedures Punishment procedures The following are empirical findings on the effectiveness of punishment • Punishment is most effective when it is intense • Punishment is most effective when it is instituted at its maximum intensity - increasing the severity of the punishment across time simply doesn’t work as well - probably occurs because organisms habituate

Module IV. Behavior Change procedures: Reductive behavior procedures: Punishment • Punishment is most effective when it occurs immediately after the response to be punished - as with reinforcement, putting a delay between the behavior and its consequence decreases the effectiveness of the consequence to control behavior

Module IV. Behavior Change procedures: Reductive behavior procedures • Considerations for use of punishment Punishment is most effective when it is certain - the more frequently it occurs, the more quickly it will decrease behavior - how many of you would speed if you’d get a ticket every time?

Module IV. Behavior Change procedures: Reductive behavior procedures • Punishment is most effective when there is an alternative response - research has shown that behavior will continue, despite punishment, if there is no alternative response - in fact, it will be unchanged if the organism is highly motivated

Module IV. Behavior Change procedures: Reductive behavior procedures; Behavioral Cusps; Stimulus Control Approaches Choosing between extinction and punishment • Advantages of Extinction – It removes the reinforcement maintaining the behavior – It avoids using “aversive” events • Advantages of Punishment – It is quick – You don’t have to identify the underlying reinforcement for the behavior

Module IV. Behavior Change procedures: Reductive behavior procedures; Behavioral Cusps; Stimulus Control Approaches Choosing between extinction and punishment • Disadvantages of Extinction – Extinction burst – Spontaneous recovery • Disadvantages of Punishment – Leaves underlying reinforcement contingency in place – May condition aggression (although extinction is not free of this either)

Module IV. Behavior Change procedures: Reductive behavior procedures; Behavioral Cusps; Stimulus Control Approaches Which do Behavior Analysts choose? • Often times, they don’t choose either – Differential Reinforcement schedules are often seen as a better alternative which as mentioned: • avoids extinction burst, spontaneous recovery, and aggression • uses positive reinforcement • Teaches the person what to do instead

Behavioral Cusps • “Behavioral Cusps” was introduced by Rosales and Baer (1994; 1997; & 1998) and addresses personenvironment interactions that enable multiple new interactions. • Cusps are behaviors that have significant implications for further developmental changes and result in “explosive” development of many new interactions, including social behaviors, exploratory behaviors, and many others. • Cusps may enhance rule-governed behavior

Pivotal Response Training • Pivotal Response Training (e. gs. Koegel & Koegel, 1988; & Koegel et. al. , 2003) has similarities to Cusps in that it promotes new and expanded skills or behaviors for an individual in various areas. • For instance, teaching imitative skills for a child with autism can result in learning new and varied repertoires that can be useful in a variety of situations and environments, as well as new skills such as self-care, academics, social skills and so on.

Self-Management • Self-management strategies have been shown to be effective for behavior change and maintaining desired behaviors. (e. gs. Skinner, 1953; Kazdin, 2001) • The approach is considered “self-management” when someone arranges for contingencies to change her or his own behavior • Self-monitoring such as keeping logs or data on one’s undesired and desired behavior has been shown in studies to be effective in itself as a self-management strategy • This approach has been applied to many types of behaviors and with different populations, and includes cigarette smoking, substance abuse, weight control, exercise, etc.

Self-Management • Self-management plans are used to teach students to independently complete tasks and take an active role in monitoring and reinforcing their own behavior. • An important goal in education is to foster selfreliance and independence. In fact, self-management strategies can be implemented before any problem behaviors occur. • Research shows that self-management strategies can be used to improve academic performance, productivity, time on-task, and to decrease problem behavior.

Self-Management • The ability to use self management strategies effectively is a skill that becomes very important for success as children grow into adulthood. • The critical elements of self-management include setting goals, monitoring behavior, and evaluating progress. • Examples of self management include self monitoring, self evaluation, and self reinforcement.

Self-Management • When a student engages in self-monitoring, she observes her own behavior, records its occurrence on a data collection form, and graphs the data to evaluate progress. • Self-evaluation strategies encourage students to set their own goals and compare their current performance as they work towards those goals.

Self-Management • Both self-monitoring and self-evaluation are often used with self-reinforcement strategies. • A student takes an active role in selfreinforcement strategies by determining how he will evaluate progress towards a goal and delivering a reinforcer to himself when he achieves the goal.

Self-Management • As a strategy to reduce frequency of problem behavior: • Many different types of behaviors can have the same effect or outcome. • A student who is trying to tell you what he wants may point to a toy, grab your hand lead you to the toy, ask for the toy verbally, or scream loudly and pinch others when the toy is nearby.

Self-Management • Although these behaviors look different, they can result in the same outcome. • Some self management plans are created to replace a student's problem behavior with a more appropriate skill.

Self-Management Planning Steps • Conduct a functional assessment to identify the function maintaining the problem behavior • Encourage the student to list possible reinforcers that can be used and assist the team in creating the self management plan • Develop a recording form that is easy to use and will not create a lot of extra work for either the teacher or student

Self-management plan steps • Initial training sessions may be necessary to assure the student understands how to use the recording form and implement the self-management plan • Designate a small amount of time to confirm that the student understands the self-management plan and evaluate the accuracy of the student's recording • Some self-management studies have included incentives to the student for high levels of accuracy in self-recording • Review progress with the student on a regular basis and celebrate success

Module IV - Summary • • • Use of Differential Reinforcement methods to increase, decrease, or maintain rates of behavior Extinction and Punishment, basic facts, how to implement these and their potential harmful effects , and other treatment options Task Analysis Behavioral Cusps Pivotal Response Training Self-Management Strategies This Module corresponds to Amego, Inc. Probes 7, 10 & 12