Classical and Operant Conditioning for Maladaptive Behaviour

Classical and Operant Conditioning for Maladaptive BehaviourApplying classical and operant t for each superstar therapiesto turn maladaptive world conductPsychologists who study the behavioristic psychology approach suggest that demeanours of a human are learnt through any classical or operant conditioning. These deportments can be stird through therapies. This appellative assesses the values of applying classical and operant conditioning therapies to convince maladaptive human behaviour.Operant conditioning is when behaviours are learnt through consequences doing something to get something. Operant conditioning creates a higher probability of tell behaviour through financial backing (Collin et al, 2012). A human would receive positive or detrimental sustenance or even punishment for their behaviour. Consequently this would lead to restate behaviour, changed behaviour or even revert the behaviour depending on the reinforcement certain. B.F skinner explained operan t conditioning by conducting experiments in a case that he designed called the Skinner box (1948, cited in Barker, 2002). For example a thirsty(p) sponsor was placed in a box, there was only a lever and a food dish indoors. The rat knocked the lever and currently learnt that he received food for his action and kept repeating the behaviour to gain more food. This is an example of positive reinforcement because the rat received food for its action. Skinner (1948, cited in Collin, 2012) later introduced electric grids to the Skinner box which would will the rat an electric shock when the lever was activated. The rats behaviour of pressing the lever decreased. This experiment readed that the receiving of negative reinforcement caused the rat to change its previous behaviour.There are several therapies that use operant conditioning, one is called detail economy. Behaviour is modified through reinforcement and to a fault punishment it has been used in many types of care units, suc h as mental hospitals, eating disorder clinics or even juveniles acting up (Barker, 2002). The long-sufferings involved in point economy would receive rewards in forms of tokens or time mensess for honorable behaviour, this is positive reinforcement. On the other hand if bad behaviour was shown by the patients tokens would be taken away, this is negative reinforcement. keepsakes can thusly be used for verbotenings, privileges, goods, food or even extended visits with their family (Allen, 2013). When patients demonstrate good behaviour and are therefore rewarded with tokens it is hoped that the positive behaviour would be repeated with the aim of gaining more rewards. Eventually their pattern of behaviour would consequently change and would happen naturally. However if tokens were taken away for bad behaviour this would be negative reinforcement. The patient would realise that if they behaved badly, negative consequences would follow such as less tokens to spend on privilege s or extra food. Eventually this would hopefully change the behaviour of the patient and their bad actions would decrease. wiz study that showed token economy was carried egress in an young service at capital of Massachusetts hospital by Kris and Schiff (1968, cited in doubting Thomas, 1974). They delivered the token economy therapy in the hospital for adolescents in the form of point nebs. Each point gained was worth one penny which then could be accumulated and spent on food, privileges and outings. Each patient had a small plastic point card with their name and identification number embossed. Each time a patient earned points they would be given a points know and their point card would be stamped. All points would be added up at the end of the week and the reward of money would be given. The adolescents could gain 30 points by carrying out room maintenance such as merchantman making and likewise 10 points for arriving on time for lessons. Points would be taken away for lat eness and untidy rooms.The study demonstrated positive and negative reinforcement. The adolescents learnt that the antiseptic their room and the quicker they went to class the more points they received, this is positive reinforcement. The behaviour would change and they would be better behaved and follow instructions. When points were taken away for lateness or no room maintenance being completed they would learn that these actions requested to be completed and they would change their behaviour and start showing up for lessons and also making their beds, this is negative reinforcement.This interesting study showed improvement in adolescents behaviour at the hospital however it should be state that in some cases the adolescents were reassuren to steal receipt books and point stamps to try and give themselves points. The disadvantages for this study was that it wasnt very follow affective, the printing of point separate and receipts was very expensive. in like manner there was over a nose candy supply members employed at this hospital and it was hard to train each staff member properly on the token economy point system and some staff would feel harassed and under hale if behaveing alone which meant they would give points out just so the adolescents would degree harassing them. (Thomas, 1974).Another research was completed by Allyon and Azrin (1968, cited in Allen, 2013) who used token economy therapy to control the behaviour of 45 people with schizophrenia who had been in an institution for roughly sixteen years. The patients were given tokens for combing their hair or even making their own beds. The results of the therapy showed patients chores each day rise from louvre a day to over forty. The patients that were receiving positive reinforcement by gaining tokens for finish more chores each day. figure economy has positive and negative points to change maladaptive human behaviour. Token economy whitethorn work inside clinics or institutions tho m ay not necessarily relate to sprightliness at home and living independently. Going from being praised for good behaviour and then having no one at home praising them may let the person slip back into their old way of behaving. Token economy may hide the implicit in(p) agent for someones behaviour. It may make the behaviours and actions go away for a short period due to the person wanting to receive tokens to use for food and privileges but the underlying sympathy why they are behaving in the first reason will still be there. Using this therapy in institutions and clinics would require a lot of commitment and training from staff. It may not be cost efficient to put every staff member through training. Also some staff may not be as committed as others and give out tokens to favoured patients or give out tokens to dot feeling harassed or under pressure. It would be important for staff to be consistent in their actions. Corrigan (1995, cited in Allen, 2013) claims that the therapy is humiliating and abusive to patients and is unethical. Token economy does change behaviour quickly and is good at changing unwanted behaviour which shows in the study completed by Allyon and Azrin (1968, cited in Allen, 2013).Classical conditioning is learning through association. Behaviours are learnt by associating one thing with another. Pavlov (1902, cited in Collin, 2012) showed classical conditioning by experimenting on dogs and their responses to food. He carried out several tests which involved dogs and the salivation glands. He used dogs and put them in restraints, when the dog dribbled at different times he measured the enumerate of saliva produced. An unconditioned stimulation such as food was presented to the dogs which then provoked an unconditioned response salivation. Pavlov then introduced a neutral stimulus such as a bell with the unconditioned stimulus the food. The dogs started to salivate at the noise of the bell which was accompanied by food. After repeat ed tests the dogs started to salivate at the sound of the bell without any food which was a conditioned response salivation without no food presented. This means the dog had learnt to have-to doe with the bell with food and would salivate before the food was given.Systematic desensitization (SD) therapy uses the principle of classical conditioning to reduce peoples business organizations and phobias. by dint of several sessions a client would go through relaxation method and becomes awake(predicate) of the bodily cues interrelated with relaxation. The client then has more sessions to be trained note by step on how to relax in the presence of their caution. (Barker, 2002)One study which was carried out was by Lang and Lazovik (1963, cited in Banyard and Grayson, 2000) which was called Fear today, gone tomorrow. The study was a simple experiment which used xx cardinal students who had a strong phobia of snakes. The students were given a list of twenty situations, including holding a snake to seeing a picture of a snake and were told to list them from least feared to most feared in a fear hierarchy. The students then started there SD, which included eleven forty quint thin sessions which started with hypnosis and deep muscle relaxation and then sulkyly they worked through their fear hierarchy by imagining them. They were allowed to conk out onto the next fear once they could show they were relaxed during and after the previous one. Once all the sessions were completed the students had to carry out the snake avoidance test. A snake was placed in a glass box 15 feet away and the students got marked out of 19 on how close they could get to the snake or to see if they could touch it. The results were compared to students that hadnt received SD therapy and they showed that the students that had completed the sessions could stand much next to the snake and even some students could hold or touch the snake.The musical theme of SD therapy is to associate the fear with relaxation. In the above study it shows that the students that went through SD could associate the deep relaxation with the snakes and in some cases even hold them. The students stay calm meant they associated there calmness with a fear, which in turn the students could move on to their next fear and keep moving through them. SD is effective where the behaviour is a learned phobia or anxiety of a specific thing, McGrath et al (1990, cited in Allen, 2013) claims that SD works for around seventy five percent of people with phobias that are specific. However it only treats symptoms of the phobia or anxiety and doesnt help the underlying issue or reason and other therapies would need to be used to look into these reasons. It doesnt work well with depression or schizophrenic clients. SD is a very slow process due to the amount of sessions needed to work through the relaxation process and then the fear its self but the longer the therapy and proficiency take the more effecti ve it is.Overall token economy and opinionated desensitisation therapies do work but do have their negative points. Both therapies only resolve the symptoms and dont resolve the underlying reasons why the persons behaviour happened originally. This means eventually they could stop working especially if their environment changes and the treatment stops. Other therapies for other approaches would need to be considered to really understand and change the maladaptive behaviours of a person. quality ListAllen C. (2013). Psychopathology and Treatment Workbook. Northampton College. Northampton.Banyard P and Grayson A. (2000). Introducing Psychological Research. Second Edition. Palgrove Publishers. newly YorkBarker L. Psychology. (2002). Pearson Education Inc. modernistic JerseyCollin C. (2012). The psychology book. New York. DK Pub.Thomas E. J. 1974. Behavior modification procedure. Chicago. Aldine Pub. Co. Online. Accessed fromhttp//books.google.co.uk20/3/14Bibliography ListCardwell M and Flanagan C. (2012). Psychology AS The Complete Companion Student Book. 3rd Edition. Oxford University Press. Oxford.Comer R. J. (1992). Abnormal psychology. New York. FreemanRebecca Sharp