Reinforcemen Increase the Likelihood of a Behavior Reoccurring Again in the Future
Reinforcement is the well-nigh important and widely applied principle of behaviour analysis and it shapes how we all behave on a daily basis.
Consider the following list of things that most of united states of america do in everyday life:
- Brush our teeth
- Use an umbrella when information technology'southward raining
- Accept an aspirin when we accept a headache
- Check our phone when information technology beeps
- Drink a coffee at break time
- Become to work to get paid
All of these behaviours occur because of reinforcement.
But what exactly is reinforcement?
Reinforcement involves consequences that strengthen behaviour. To strengthen a behaviour means to increase the likelihood that information technology will occur again in the hereafter. Let's take a look at a couple of examples from the list to a higher place to help explicate it farther.
You wake up with a headache and so you lot go upwards and take an aspirin. Soon afterwards your headache is gone. In the hereafter, when you get a headache you accept an aspirin straight away.
Your phone beeps and you see it's a bulletin from a friend. You tap to open up the message and it's a funny video that makes you laugh. In the future when the same friend contacts yous, you tap to open their message.
Both these examples demonstrate reinforcement equally they resulted in an increase of the behaviours reoccurring.
These examples also prove us two different types of reinforcement: positive and negative.
When it comes to behaviour, positive and negative do not mean good and bad. They simply mean to add and have abroad. The examples of the umbrella, aspirin and tooth brushing are all examples of negative reinforcement every bit they remove or stop something you don't like from happening. The examples of the phone, coffee and going to work are all examples of positive reinforcers as they add or present something that you like into your environment.
Both positive and negative reinforcement increase the likelihood of you giving the same response in the future. Through a combination of learning and contact with reinforcement, nosotros accept all learned to do things that let us to contact the things nosotros like and as well, to avert things we dislike.
Reinforcement shapes how we all behave and for this reason, it is at the cadre of all ABA programmes. It is used in all behaviour change programmes, including the didactics of new skills.
The following guidelines explain how to use reinforcement effectively when working to teach new behaviours.
- Reinforcers should be personalised and preferred. It may sound obvious but we do not all like the same things and so we cannot expect all learners to work for the same group of reinforcers eastward.g. sweets, toys, tickles etc. Notice the learner's interests and motivation to determine what reinforcers you employ. Retrieve not all preferences are reinforcers, so if the target behaviour is non increasing and so question if what you are using is actually a reinforcer.
- Reinforcement should be contingent. This means the reinforcer should exist delivered directly after you come across the desired behaviour. It is unlikely that you lot will see the desired behaviour increase if yous give a child bubbles 15 minutes later they independently request for them. Quick and immediate delivery of reinforcement is important.
- Reinforcement should exist matched to the behaviour. In other words, the size of the reinforcer needs to fit the behaviour. For example, if I prompt a child to say "hullo" when I see them, and they say "hello" in response, then I am going to praise this behaviour. All the same, if they spontaneously say "hi" when they see me, then I am going to give lots of praise and a tangible reinforcer. We should give more reinforcement for bigger behaviours.
- Pair tangible reinforcers with praise. Social attention and praise are powerful reinforcers for lots of people just for many children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), praise alone is not reinforcing. Tangible reinforcers e.grand. a preferred toy, or food, are often more effective reinforcers. Information technology is important to pair praise with tangible items. Over time the goal is to somewhen fade out the items and so the learner is just working for praise.
- Move from continuous reinforcement to intermittent, unpredictable reinforcement as the learner becomes more contained. It is important to steadily decrease the amount of reinforcers given over time. When you are pedagogy a kid how to eat independently, of course, you volition provide lots of praise and reinforcement when they practise it on their ain initially. One time the kid has mastered that skill you don't need to clap and give them a tangible reinforcer each time. The behaviour itself becomes its own reinforcer.
Reinforcement is an of import principle that brings most constructive modify in behaviour. Nosotros utilise it in all our ABA programmes but it is too something that happens naturally, all the time in your everyday life. Terminate and think how it is happening in your life today, and remember it is simply truly reinforcement if it increases the likelihood that the behaviour will reoccur.
If you would like to find out more nigh our services, ABA in general or would like to know how Beam can aid someone you know with autism, please go far touch on.
Catherine Browne, ABA Consultant, MA BCBA, Axle ABA Services
0203 886 0640
contact@beamaba.com
References
Cooper J.O, Heron T.E, Heward Westward.L. Applied Behavior Assay (2nd ed.) Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson; 2007
Source: https://beamaba.com/aba-what-is-reinforcement/
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