Chapter 28 Generalization and Maintenance of Behavior Change

Chapter 28: Generalization and Maintenance of Behavior Change Cooper, Heron, and Heward Applied Behavior Analysis, Second Edition 1

Generalized Behavior Change: Definitions and Key Concepts • Generality of behavior change as one of the seven defining characteristics of ABA (Baer, Wolf, & Risley, 1968) • Generalization again defined and stressed three important facets (i. e. time, settings, & behaviors) (Stokes & Baer, 1977) Cooper, Heron, and Heward Applied Behavior Analysis, Second Edition 2

Generalized Behavior Change: Definitions and Key Concepts • Response maintenance – Extent to which a learner continues to perform the target behavior after a portion or all of the intervention responsible for the behavior’s initial appearance in the learner’s repertoire has been terminated Cooper, Heron, and Heward Applied Behavior Analysis, Second Edition 3

Generalized Behavior Change: Definitions and Key Concepts • Setting/situation generalization – Extent to which a learner emits the target behavior in a setting or stimulus situation that is different from the instructional setting Cooper, Heron, and Heward Applied Behavior Analysis, Second Edition 4

Generalized Behavior Change: Definitions and Key Concepts • Instructional setting – Total environment where instruction occurs, including any aspects of the environment, planned or unplanned, that may influence the learner’s acquisition and generalization of the target behavior • Generalization setting – Any place or stimulus that differs in some meaningful way from the instructional setting and in which performance of the target behavior is desired Cooper, Heron, and Heward Applied Behavior Analysis, Second Edition 5

Generalized Behavior Change: Definitions and Key Concepts • Response generalization – Extent to which a learner emits untrained responses that are functionally equivalent to the trained target behavior Cooper, Heron, and Heward Applied Behavior Analysis, Second Edition 6

Generalized Behavior Change: Definitions and Key Concepts • Generalized behavior change is a relative concept – Exist along a continuum • Some interventions produce a great deal of generalized behavior change • Some interventions produce a small amount of generalized behavior change Cooper, Heron, and Heward Applied Behavior Analysis, Second Edition 7

Generalized Behavior Change: Definitions and Key Concepts • The three forms of generalized behavior change can occur: – Isolation of one another – In combination with each other Cooper, Heron, and Heward Applied Behavior Analysis, Second Edition 8

Generalized Behavior Change: Definitions and Key Concepts • Overgeneralization – Outcome in which the behavior has come under the control of a stimulus class that is too broad (descriptive term) – Learner emits the target behavior in the presence of stimuli that, although similar in some way to the instructional examples or situation, are inappropriate occasions for the behavior Cooper, Heron, and Heward Applied Behavior Analysis, Second Edition 9

Generalized Behavior Change: Definitions and Key Concepts • Faulty stimulus control – Target behavior comes under the restricted control of an irrelevant antecedent stimulus Cooper, Heron, and Heward Applied Behavior Analysis, Second Edition 10

Other Types of Generalized Outcomes • Stimulus equivalence – Emergence of accurate responding to untrained and nonreinforced stimulus-stimulus relations following the reinforcement of responses to some stimulus-stimulus relations • Contingency adduction – Process by which a behavior that was initially selected and shaped under one set of conditions is recruited by a different set of contingencies and takes on a new function in a person’s repertoire Cooper, Heron, and Heward Applied Behavior Analysis, Second Edition 11

Other Types of Generalized Outcomes • Generalization across subjects – Changes in the behavior of people not directly treated by an intervention as a function of treatment contingencies applied to other people – Also called vicarious reinforcement, ripple effect, & spillover effect Cooper, Heron, and Heward Applied Behavior Analysis, Second Edition 12

Other Types of Generalized Outcomes • Generalization map – Combination of four basic types of generalized treatment effects • Across time (i. e. response maintenance) • Across settings (i. e. setting/situation generalization) • Across behaviors (i. e. response generalization) • Across subjects Cooper, Heron, and Heward Applied Behavior Analysis, Second Edition 13

Planning for Generalized Behavior Change • Generalized outcomes requires planning – Selecting target behaviors that will meet natural contingencies of reinforcement – Specifying all desired variations of the target behavior and the settings/situations in which it should (and should not) occur after instruction has ended Cooper, Heron, and Heward Applied Behavior Analysis, Second Edition 14

Planning for Generalized Behavior Change • Target behaviors should be selected carefully – Numerous criteria have been suggested • Example: age appropriateness of a skills & degree to which it represents normalization – Most important criterion • A behavior is only functional to the extent that it produces reinforcement for the learner • Behaviors that are not followed by reinforcers on at least some occasions will not be maintained Cooper, Heron, and Heward Applied Behavior Analysis, Second Edition 15

Planning for Generalized Behavior Change • Relevance-of-behavior rule (Ayllon & Azrin, 1968) – Choose only those behaviors to change that will produce reinforcers in the postintervention environment • Baer (1999) rule for practitioners: – A good rule is to not make any deliberate behavior changes that will not meet natural communities of reinforcement… Cooper, Heron, and Heward Applied Behavior Analysis, Second Edition 16

Planning for Generalized Behavior Change • Naturally existing contingency – Any contingency of reinforcement (or punishment) that operates independent of the behavior analyst’s or practitioner’s efforts – Includes contingencies that operate without social mediation and socially mediated contingencies contrived and implemented by other people in the generalization setting Cooper, Heron, and Heward Applied Behavior Analysis, Second Edition 17

Planning for Generalized Behavior Change • Contrived Contingency – Any contingency of reinforcement (or punishment) designed and implemented by a behavior analyst or practitioner to achieve acquisition, maintenance, and/or generalization of a targeted behavior change Cooper, Heron, and Heward Applied Behavior Analysis, Second Edition 18

Planning for Generalized Behavior Change • List all the behaviors that need to be changed • List all the settings & situations in which the target behavior should (or should not) occur • Pre-intervention planning – Six stated possible benefits (Baer, 1999) Cooper, Heron, and Heward Applied Behavior Analysis, Second Edition 19

Strategies and Tactics for Promoting Generalized Behavior Change • Teach the full range of relevant stimulus conditions & response requirements • Make the instructional setting similar to the generalization setting • Maximize the target behavior’s contact with reinforcement in the generalization setting • Mediate generalization • Train to generalize Cooper, Heron, and Heward Applied Behavior Analysis, Second Edition 20

Teach the Full Range of Relevant Stimulus Conditions and Response Requirements • • Teach sufficient stimulus examples Teach sufficient response examples General case analysis Negative teaching examples Cooper, Heron, and Heward Applied Behavior Analysis, Second Edition 21

Teach the Full Range of Relevant Stimulus Conditions and Response Requirements • Teach every desired form of a target behavior in every setting/situation in which it may be needed – Would eliminate need to program for response generalization & setting/situation generalization – Seldom possible & never practical Cooper, Heron, and Heward Applied Behavior Analysis, Second Edition 22

Teach the Full Range of Relevant Stimulus Conditions and Response Requirements • Teaching sufficient examples – Teaching the learner to respond to a subset of all of the possible stimulus & response examples then assessing the learner’s performance on untrained examples (referred to as a generalization probe) Cooper, Heron, and Heward Applied Behavior Analysis, Second Edition 23

Teach Sufficient Stimulus Examples • General rule: more examples used during instruction, more likely the learner will respond correctly to untrained examples or situation • Actual number of examples needed varies as a function of: – Complexity of the target behavior – Teaching procedures employed – Learner’s opportunities to emit the target behavior under various conditions – Naturally existing contingencies of reinforcement – Learner’s history of reinforcement for generalized responding Cooper, Heron, and Heward Applied Behavior Analysis, Second Edition 24

Teach Sufficient Response Examples • Practice with a variety of response topographies helps to ensure that acquisition of desired response forms & promotes response generalization in the form of untrained topographies • Multiple exemplar training – Usually incorporates both stimulus & response variations Cooper, Heron, and Heward Applied Behavior Analysis, Second Edition 25

General Case Analysis • A systematic method for selecting teaching examples that represent the full range of stimulus variations & response requirements in the generalization setting • Also referred to as general case strategy Cooper, Heron, and Heward Applied Behavior Analysis, Second Edition 26

Negative Teaching Examples • Explicit teaching of where and when not to use the target behavior may also be necessary • “Don’t do it” teaching examples provides practice for discriminating stimulus situations in which the target behavior should not be emitted • Sharpens stimulus control Cooper, Heron, and Heward Applied Behavior Analysis, Second Edition 27

Instructional Setting Similar to the Generalization Setting • Program common stimuli – Including typical features of the generalization setting into the instructional setting • Teach loosely – Randomly varying noncritical aspects of the instructional setting within and across teaching sessions Cooper, Heron, and Heward Applied Behavior Analysis, Second Edition 28

Programming Common Stimuli • Benefits/advantages: – Conducting instruction in natural settings is not always possible or practical – Community-based training may not expose learners to the full range of examples they are likely to encounter later in the same setting – Instruction in natural settings may be less effective & efficient than classroom instruction because the trainer cannot halt natural flow of events to contrive variety of training trials – Instruction in simulated settings can be safer Cooper, Heron, and Heward Applied Behavior Analysis, Second Edition 29

Programming Common Stimuli • Two step process – Identify salient stimuli that characterize the generalization setting(s) – Incorporating those stimuli into the instructional setting Cooper, Heron, and Heward Applied Behavior Analysis, Second Edition 30

Teaching Loosely • Benefits/advantages: – Reduces the likelihood that a single or small group of noncritical stimuli will acquire exclusive control over the target behavior – Including a wide variety of noncritical stimuli during instruction increases the probability that the generalization setting will include at least some of the stimuli that were present during instruction Cooper, Heron, and Heward Applied Behavior Analysis, Second Edition 31

Teaching Loosely • Suggestions (Baer, 1999): – Use two or more teachers – Teach in two or more places – Teach from a variety of positions – Vary your tone of voice – Vary your choice of words – Show stimuli from a variety of angles – Have others present sometimes – Vary the reinforcers Cooper, Heron, and Heward Applied Behavior Analysis, Second Edition 32

Teaching Loosely • Suggestions continued (Baer, 1999): – Teach in varying lighting conditions – Teach in varying noise level conditions – Vary decorations, furniture, & their locations – Vary times of day for training sessions – Vary the temperature of the training settings – Vary the smells in the training settings – Vary the content of what’s being taught (within limits possible) Cooper, Heron, and Heward Applied Behavior Analysis, Second Edition 33

Maximize Contact with Reinforcement • Teach behavior to levels required by natural contingencies • Program indiscriminable contingencies – Intermittent schedules of reinforcement – Delayed rewards • Set behavior traps • Ask people in the generalization setting to reinforce the behavior • Teach the learner to recruit reinforcement Cooper, Heron, and Heward Applied Behavior Analysis, Second Edition 34

Maximize Contact with Reinforcement • Indiscriminable contingency – A contingency in which the learner cannot discriminate whether the next response will produce reinforcement • Reinforcement is contingent on some, but not all, occurrences of the target behavior in the generalization setting • The learner is unable to predict which responses will produce reinforcement Cooper, Heron, and Heward Applied Behavior Analysis, Second Edition 35

Maximize Contact with Reinforcement • Intermittent schedules of reinforcement – Behaviors that have a history of intermittent schedules of reinforcement often continue to be emitted for relatively long periods of time after reinforcement is no longer available – All indiscriminable contingencies of reinforcement involve intermittent schedules, but not all schedules of intermittent reinforcement are indiscriminable Cooper, Heron, and Heward Applied Behavior Analysis, Second Edition 36

Maximize Contact with Reinforcement • Intermittent schedules and delayed reward are similar in that – Reinforcement is not delivered each time the target behavior is emitted – There is no clear stimuli to signal the learner which current responses will produce reinforcement Cooper, Heron, and Heward Applied Behavior Analysis, Second Edition 37

Maximize Contact with Reinforcement • Classroom applications of indiscriminable contingencies involving delayed rewards (also features interdependent group contingency) – Spinners and dice – Story fact recall game – Numbered heads work together – Intermittent grading Cooper, Heron, and Heward Applied Behavior Analysis, Second Edition 38

Maximize Contact with Reinforcement • Success of using delayed rewards depends on – The indiscriminability of the contingency – The learner understanding the relation between emitting the target behavior at an earlier time and receiving a reward later Cooper, Heron, and Heward Applied Behavior Analysis, Second Edition 39

Maximize Contact with Reinforcement • Guidelines for programming indiscriminable contingencies – Use CRF during initial acquisition or when strengthening little-used behaviors – Systematically thin the schedule of reinforcement based on the learner’s performance – Gradually increase the response-to-reinforcement delay when using delayed rewards – Explain what the reward is for when using delayed rewards Cooper, Heron, and Heward Applied Behavior Analysis, Second Edition 40

Maximize Contact with Reinforcement • Behavior traps – Interrelated community of contingencies of reinforcement that can be especially powerful, producing substantial and long-lasting behavior changes – Relatively simple response is necessary to enter the trap, yet once entered, the trap cannot be resisted in creating general behavior change Cooper, Heron, and Heward Applied Behavior Analysis, Second Edition 41

Maximize Contact with Reinforcement • Effective behavior traps share four features – “Baited” with virtually irresistible reinforcers that “lure” the learner to the trap – Only a low effort response already in the learner’s repertoire is necessary to enter the trap – Once inside the trap, interrelated contingencies of reinforcement motivate the learner to acquire, extend, & maintain targeted academic and/or social skills – Remains effective for a long time because learners show few, if any, satiation effects Cooper, Heron, and Heward Applied Behavior Analysis, Second Edition 42

Mediate Generalization • Arranging for some thing or person to act as a medium that ensures the transfer of the target behavior from instructional setting to the generalization setting – Contrive a mediating stimulus – Teach self-management skills Cooper, Heron, and Heward Applied Behavior Analysis, Second Edition 43

Mediate Generalization • Contrive a mediating stimulus – Must be made functional for the target behavior during instruction • Functional if it reliable prompts of aids the learner in performing the target behavior – Must be transported easily to the generalization setting • Transportable if it easily goes with the learner to all important generalization settings Cooper, Heron, and Heward Applied Behavior Analysis, Second Edition 44

Mediate Generalization • Teach self-management skills – The learner is one element that is always present in every instructional and generalization setting – If the learner is taught a behavior (in this case a controlling response) that serves to prompt or reinforce the target behavior in all the relevant settings, at all appropriate times, and in all of its relevant forms, then the generalization of the target behavior is ensured Cooper, Heron, and Heward Applied Behavior Analysis, Second Edition 45

Train to Generalize • Reinforce response variability – Emitting a variety of responses; valued behavior, viewed as novel or creative – Lag reinforcement schedule: reinforcement contingent on a response different in some defined way from the previous response • Instruct the learner to generalize – Tell the learner about the possibility of generalization – Ask the learner to perform the behavior Cooper, Heron, and Heward Applied Behavior Analysis, Second Edition 46

Modifying and Terminating Successful Interventions • Withdrawal of a successful intervention should be carried out in a systematic & careful fashion • When deciding how soon or how swiftly to withdraw intervention components consider – Complexity of the intervention – Ease or speed with which the behavior changed – Availability of naturally existing contingencies of reinforcement for the new behavior Cooper, Heron, and Heward Applied Behavior Analysis, Second Edition 47

Modifying and Terminating Successful Interventions • Shifting from intervention conditions to postintervention can be accomplished by modifying one or more parts of the threeterm contingency – Antecedents, prompts, or cue-related stimuli – Task requirements and criteria – Consequences or reinforcement variables Cooper, Heron, and Heward Applied Behavior Analysis, Second Edition 48

Guiding Principles for Promoting Generalized Outcomes • Minimize the need for generalization as much as possible • Conduct generalization probes before, during, and after instruction • Involve significant others whenever possible • Promote generalization with the least intrusive, least costly tactics possible • Contrive intervention tactics as needed to achieve important generalized outcomes Cooper, Heron, and Heward Applied Behavior Analysis, Second Edition 49