Behavior Modification
Case Study 1
Behavioral modification starts with identifying the relationship between the environment and the target behavior to determine the cause of the behavior. The analysis of this relationship is critical in the implementation of procedures that influence behavior change. Researchers determine that behaviors follow some basic rules that can be altered to influence change.Behavioral modification focuses on programs that change the subject’s environment to either increase or reduce certain behaviors.
Functional Assessment
The target behavior in this case study is the behavior that has been identified for change. The target behavior in the case study is the barking of the dog when taken for a walk. Antecedent refers to actions that immediately precede the occurrence of the behavior (Tuyen and Gunawan, 2018). In this case study, the antecedent is the sighting of another dog while outdoors. The behavior refers to the action taken as a direct response to the antecedent. In this case, thebarking and pulling on the leash. The consequence refers to the action that immediately follows the behavior. The owners pet Max after the incident to calm him down, and the barking stops.
Both operant conditioning and classical conditioning are maintaining behavior modification. Classical conditioning refers to the responses that result from events that occur before the response (Huang, 2017). Max was bitten by another dog when he was a puppy, and thus, he reacted to the sight of other dogs as a conditioned response that he would get bit again. Operant conditioning involves the association of behavior and consequences by focusing on either reinforcements or punishment of the acts. Operant conditioning is observed when the owners pet the dog as a sign of achievement in chasing the dog.
Intervention
Behavior modification focuses on changing the behavior not to understand the reason for a particular behavior happening. The functional assessment analysis identifies the target behavior while intervention uses modification techniques to effect change to the behavior. The techniques viable include; negative reinforcement, shaping, and positive reinforcement (Reisner, 2016). Negative reinforcement involves the pairing of behavior with negative repercussions. If the dog is taken out for a walk and starts barking at other dogs, the owner should deploy negative rewards towards Max by withdrawing the walk sessions.
Shaping modification strategy involves the use of a system for rewarding approximate target behavior (Browning, 2017). Max is first rewarded when he barks once or twice rather than continuous barking. The reward system is based on specialized food such as meat. The reward system is gradually changed by reinforcing only the incidents that are closer to target behavior until the desired change is accomplished.Positive reinforcement will involve the use of rewards when the target behavior is achieved the walk. The owner enforces this principle by taking the dog for a walk and rewards itwith specialized food for not barking or tugging the leash. This goes on for a specified period until the behavior is reversed. Dogs like humans react positively to rewards and negatively towards punishment, thus influencing their behavior to align with the rewards system (Cozzi, Mariti, Ogi, Sighieri and Gazzano, 2016).The use of positive and negative reinforcement systems is crucial in the modification.
Experiment
The experiment to test the modification of the behavior can be conducted within the homestead’s environs by importing another dog for experimentation. The use of another dog in the experiment was due to the preexisting conditions that Max was exposed to, that is, being bitten by a dog, that resulted in his behavior. The set up for the environment will be a one-week indoor stay for Max in the company of a dog, different each time to observe all the variables. The purpose of having a dog of different ages each time is to set the scene as would be in the park: the limited space and specified period act as the parameters of the experiment. The proximity of the dog would gauge the intensity of other dogs’ stimuli to barking behavior. The reward system will be in terms of food where positive reinforcement is rewarded by extra chunks of meat, while negative reinforcement is enforced by way of retracting the meat from the meals. The safety measures taken would be to have both of the dogs on a leash. This also serves the purpose of recreating the scene in a park environment.
By retracting the meat and pet time every time Max barks at the other dogs continuously and adding a slice of extra meat and more pet time when he barks once or twice, the process of behavior modification starts. The stimuli gradually develop where Max associates silence with meat and barking with retraction of meat and privileges. Animals are attracted to positive reinforcement(Vijayalakshmi, 2019). The barking will gradually fade away by the end of the experiment due to the compulsion of getting the reward. After the experiment, the assessment involves a walk in the park where there is a high probability of different ages of dogs converging.
The walk in the park presents Max with an opportunity to demonstrate his changed behavior. The assessment of the experiment incorporates the frequency of barking as a measure of success. The results can be analyzed as follows; for the frequency of barking for one minute and below as low, three minutes as a medium, and five minutes as high. The higher the frequency, the lower the success of the experiment, while the lower the frequency, the higher the odds of success. The lower frequency is rewarded by petting the dog to reinforce the instilled behavior change.
References
Browning, R. M. (2017). Behavior modification in child treatment: An experimental and clinical approach. Routledge.
Cozzi, A., Mariti, C., Ogi, A., Sighieri, C., & Gazzano, A. (2016). Behavioral modification in sheltered dogs. Dog Behav, 2, 1-12.
Huang, A. X. (2017). Behavioral Modification System. The Encyclopedia of Juvenile Delinquency and Justice, 1-4.
Reisner, I. (2016). The learning dog: a discussion of training methods. The Domestic Dog: Its Evolution, Behavior and Interactions with People, 2, 211-26.
Tuyen, L. T. T., & Gunawan, J. (2018, October). Behavior management in the field of nursing: A concept analysis. In Nursing Forum (Vol. 53, No. 4, pp. 481-488).
Vijayalakshmi, N. (2019). Behavior Modification Techniques-An Awareness Study. Shanlax International Journal of Education, 7(2), 20-24.
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Institutional Affiliation
Case Study 1
Behavioral modification starts with identifying the relationship between the environment and the target behavior to determine the cause of the behavior. The analysis of this relationship is critical in the implementation of procedures that influence behavior change. Researchers determine that behaviors follow some basic rules that can be altered to influence change.Behavioral modification focuses on programs that change the subject’s environment to either increase or reduce certain behaviors.
Functional Assessment
The target behavior in this case study is the behavior that has been identified for change. The target behavior in the case study is the barking of the dog when taken for a walk. Antecedent refers to actions that immediately precede the occurrence of the behavior (Tuyen and Gunawan, 2018). In this case study, the antecedent is the sighting of another dog while outdoors. The behavior refers to the action taken as a direct response to the antecedent. In this case, thebarking and pulling on the leash. The consequence refers to the action that immediately follows the behavior. The owners pet Max after the incident to calm him down, and the barking stops.
Both operant conditioning and classical conditioning are maintaining behavior modification. Classical conditioning refers to the responses that result from events that occur before the response (Huang, 2017). Max was bitten by another dog when he was a puppy, and thus, he reacted to the sight of other dogs as a conditioned response that he would get bit again. Operant conditioning involves the association of behavior and consequences by focusing on either reinforcements or punishment of the acts. Operant conditioning is observed when the owners pet the dog as a sign of achievement in chasing the dog.
Intervention
Behavior modification focuses on changing the behavior not to understand the reason for a particular behavior happening. The functional assessment analysis identifies the target behavior while intervention uses modification techniques to effect change to the behavior. The techniques viable include; negative reinforcement, shaping, and positive reinforcement (Reisner, 2016). Negative reinforcement involves the pairing of behavior with negative repercussions. If the dog is taken out for a walk and starts barking at other dogs, the owner should deploy negative rewards towards Max by withdrawing the walk sessions.
Shaping modification strategy involves the use of a system for rewarding approximate target behavior (Browning, 2017). Max is first rewarded when he barks once or twice rather than continuous barking. The reward system is based on specialized food such as meat. The reward system is gradually changed by reinforcing only the incidents that are closer to target behavior until the desired change is accomplished.Positive reinforcement will involve the use of rewards when the target behavior is achieved the walk. The owner enforces this principle by taking the dog for a walk and rewards itwith specialized food for not barking or tugging the leash. This goes on for a specified period until the behavior is reversed. Dogs like humans react positively to rewards and negatively towards punishment, thus influencing their behavior to align with the rewards system (Cozzi, Mariti, Ogi, Sighieri and Gazzano, 2016).The use of positive and negative reinforcement systems is crucial in the modification.
Experiment
The experiment to test the modification of the behavior can be conducted within the homestead’s environs by importing another dog for experimentation. The use of another dog in the experiment was due to the preexisting conditions that Max was exposed to, that is, being bitten by a dog, that resulted in his behavior. The set up for the environment will be a one-week indoor stay for Max in the company of a dog, different each time to observe all the variables. The purpose of having a dog of different ages each time is to set the scene as would be in the park: the limited space and specified period act as the parameters of the experiment. The proximity of the dog would gauge the intensity of other dogs’ stimuli to barking behavior. The reward system will be in terms of food where positive reinforcement is rewarded by extra chunks of meat, while negative reinforcement is enforced by way of retracting the meat from the meals. The safety measures taken would be to have both of the dogs on a leash. This also serves the purpose of recreating the scene in a park environment.
By retracting the meat and pet time every time Max barks at the other dogs continuously and adding a slice of extra meat and more pet time when he barks once or twice, the process of behavior modification starts. The stimuli gradually develop where Max associates silence with meat and barking with retraction of meat and privileges. Animals are attracted to positive reinforcement(Vijayalakshmi, 2019). The barking will gradually fade away by the end of the experiment due to the compulsion of getting the reward. After the experiment, the assessment involves a walk in the park where there is a high probability of different ages of dogs converging.
The walk in the park presents Max with an opportunity to demonstrate his changed behavior. The assessment of the experiment incorporates the frequency of barking as a measure of success. The results can be analyzed as follows; for the frequency of barking for one minute and below as low, three minutes as a medium, and five minutes as high. The higher the frequency, the lower the success of the experiment, while the lower the frequency, the higher the odds of success. The lower frequency is rewarded by petting the dog to reinforce the instilled behavior change.
References
Browning, R. M. (2017). Behavior modification in child treatment: An experimental and clinical approach. Routledge.
Cozzi, A., Mariti, C., Ogi, A., Sighieri, C., & Gazzano, A. (2016). Behavioral modification in sheltered dogs. Dog Behav, 2, 1-12.
Huang, A. X. (2017). Behavioral Modification System. The Encyclopedia of Juvenile Delinquency and Justice, 1-4.
Reisner, I. (2016). The learning dog: a discussion of training methods. The Domestic Dog: Its Evolution, Behavior and Interactions with People, 2, 211-26.
Tuyen, L. T. T., & Gunawan, J. (2018, October). Behavior management in the field of nursing: A concept analysis. In Nursing Forum (Vol. 53, No. 4, pp. 481-488).
Vijayalakshmi, N. (2019). Behavior Modification Techniques-An Awareness Study. Shanlax International Journal of Education, 7(2), 20-24.
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