Believed that people learn through observing others
Theoretical Concepts
Goal: Assist and strengthen a person's self-regulatory process. Modeling
Learning and behavior change occurs through the observation of other people's behavior
Children can learn from modeling their parent's behaviors
Can have a positive or a negative impact
Bobo doll experiments shows one example of modeling
Our actions also have an impact on our environment through reciprocal determinism
Cognitions, behaviors, and environment are interlaced
When someone we admire models taking on a challenge, our anxieties and fears associated with challenges are reduced (self-efficacy)
The process of self-observation, self-judgement, and how we attribute success or failure plays a part in our self-regulatory process
Rewarding a person for maladaptive behavior reinforces that behavior
(Seligman & Reichenberg, 2014)
Treatment
Goals: Helping people learn skills like decision making, problem solving, time management, assertiveness, and relaxation.
Remove maladaptive behaviors and replace them with adaptive ones
Reduction or absence in use of drugs and alcohol
Reducing undesirable behaviors
Improving assertiveness and social skills
Decrease fears and phobias
Improve concentration and organization
Extinguish undesirable behaviors in children (tantrums, disobedience, acting out, aggressiveness)
Working on health and fitness habits (healthy eating, exercise, and regular sleep patterns)
(Seligman & Reichenberg, 2014, p. 333)
Strategies and interventions
Acting as if
People act as if they are someone they think is capable of handling a challenging situation
Empowers people to handle their problems
Activity scheduling
Planning activities that establish a sense of accomplishment and are considered to be rewarding
Provides focus and direction and increases optimism
Exercise can help clients' increase endorphin levels (Ratey & Hagerman, 2008)
Aversion therapy
Rewards are favored over negative punishment because they create more optimism, better relationships, and increase self-esteem
Linking negative behaviors with negative experiences can be effective from time to time
Can be risky and should be carefully planned
Clients' can quit therapy if aversion therapy makes them feel traumatized
Antabuse aversion therapy discourages people from behaviors
An example of antabuse is using a time-out for a child
Using visual imagery to imagine the consequences of behaviors
A person who wants to stop smoking imagines having difficulty breathing
Satiation is when a person is exposed to an excessive negative stimulus
A person smokes many cigarettes at once until they feel ill
(Seligman & Reichenberg, 2014, p. 334)
Behavior rehearsal
Practicing challenging situations through role-play
Allows opportunity for feedback and improvement
Biofeedback
Monitors bodily functions such as, heart rate, sweat gland activity, skin temperature, and pulse rate
Can be used to reduce anxiety and promote relaxation
Neurofeedback is a subdivision of biofeedback and monitors brain wave patterns resulting in changed behavior
Contracting
Clinician and client agree upon goals of treatment and the roles of each person
Completed in the early stages of treatment
Can be modified if additional issues become present and goals need to be changed
Provides a focus and direction for the treatment process
Diaphragmatic breathing
Focus is placed on breathing, creating a sense of calmness
Supplies body with oxygen and promotes mindfulness
Breathing in through the nose and releasing air through the mouth
Exposure
Reoccurring exposure to stimulus that causes fear
Each repeated contact with feared stimulus reduces fear
Avoiding feared stimulus reinforces fears
Expressive and creative activities
People are able to channel their emotions into activities like art therapy, dance therapy, and music therapy
Can be successful for people with verbal difficulties
Extinction
Eliminating payoff of reward associated with an undesirable behavior
Example: Ignoring a child who wants attention and is throwing a temper tantrum and instead paying attention to their positive behaviors, thus positive behaviors are reinforced
Flooding
People are exposed to high doses of the feared stimulus
Goal is to desensitize
Risky intervention and must be used appropriately by a trained clinician
Modeling
People are more influenced by models who they can relate to and who are considered competent and warm (age, race, and beliefs)
Modeling types
Clinicians can be models who demonstrate desired behaviors
Clients observe others in behaviors they would like to master
Using imaginal modeling to help client visualize situation
Symbolic modeling uses books, movies, and television to help children learn appropriate behaviors
Self-modeling is when a client becomes their own model by creating audio or video recording of themselves engaging in positive behaviors
(Bandura, 1969)
Reasonable (natural) consequences
Logical consequences that are outcomes of undesirable behaviors (typically unpleasant)
Logical connection paired with the undesirable behavior supports messages about the implications of negative behaviors
Reinforcements
Rewards that motivate changed behavior
Must be realistic and meaningful rewards
Does not have to be materialistic, can be verbal praise or social reinforcements
More effective if reward is given shortly after success so that the reward is paired with the changed behavior
Relaxation
Teach clients' strategies like abdominal breathing, visual imagery, progressive muscle relaxation, body scans, and stretches that relax the body
Shaping
People map out their desired behaviors and create steps to enact gradual change
Token economies
Useful in schools, hospitals, and prisons
Rules must be established and understood by all participants
System is put in place to identify and measure behaviors that are desired
Reward system is developed
Verbal praise should be paired with material rewards to boost motivation and internalization of desired behaviors