February 24 Notes

February 24, 2009 PSYC 240 Behaviorism Summarized 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 3 questions to ask See notes from last week, dammit. Why does reinforcement work so much better than punishment? Punishment (i.e. corporal punishment) teaches children that bigger, older, and stronger people have the right to hit smaller, younger, and weaker people Punishment does not teach people how to behave properly. It teaches people to hide their improper behavior, but not how to behave differently. Punishment can have side effects of developing negative feelings and withdrawal from more than the specific instance. Also you can develop negative feelings towards the punisher and want to avoid them Know what shaping or successive approximation is! (pg. 383) How do behaviorists explain the development of phobias? Classical conditioning + operant conditioning (avoidance = negative reinforcement) Operant conditioning + avoidance CHANGE: Classical conditioning therapies 1. Systematic Desensitization 2. Aversion Therapy 3. Biofeedback See ABA design Baseline, treatment then take away treatment to see if it causes behavior Can be for both increasing and decreasing a behavior Potential strengths of behaviorism 1. Committed to systematic research and theory development 2. Recognizes the role of situation als environmental variables in influencing behavior 3. Provides a variety of therapy techniques that have been found to be very reliable and effective 4. Uses experimental methodology and test data so it is easier to establish reliablility and validity than other methodologies and type data Weaknesses Oversimplifies personality and neglects important phenomenon Lacks a single, unified theory Requires further evidence to support claims for certain problems of treatment effectiveness Do we know why behavioral therapies work? Deals only with simple behaviors