child and adolescent counseling chapter 8

Chapter 8

Behavioral Counseling

W hen all else fails, I become a behaviorist.
How ard Gardner

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Chapter Objectives
After reading this chapter, you should be able to: 
•Outline the development of behavioral theory
•Explain the theory of behavioral counseling
•Discuss the counseling relationship and goals in behavioral
counseling
•Describe assessment, process, and techniques
•Demonstrate some therapeutic techniques
•Clarify the effectiveness of behavioral counseling
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B.F. Skinner
Academic background:
•

studied literature at Hamilton College
(considered himself a failure)

•

entered Harvard to study psychology

•

master’s in 1930 and PhD in experimental
psychology in 1931

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B.F. Skinner
• Professor at Harvard from 1948 until his
death
• Contributed in the laboratory and in solving
educational problems
• He developed and advanced concepts of
programmed instruction, operant condition,
and the teaching machine (first developed
by Pressey 1923)
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B.F. Skinner
He summed his work by saying that
the point he tried to make is that it
can be demonstrated that people
choose behavior based on
anticipated consequences.

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Nature of People
• People are essentially born neutral with
equal potential for good or evil and for
rationality or irrationality
• Behaviorists view people as responders
and products of conditioning
• Things that happen to children influence
and change them as biological beings

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Nature of People
Stimulus-response paradigm:
• people react in predictable ways to any
given stimulus according to what they have
learned through experience
• Behavior is learned and can be unlearned
• Behavioral counselor concerned with this
unlearning or re-education process.
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Theory of Counseling
• Action therapy
• Clients do something, rather than just
talking about behavior
• Clients learn to monitor their behavior,

practice coping skills, and complete
counseling homework to help reach
their goals.
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Theory of Counseling
Positive stimuli
Praise
Tangible rewards

Negative stimuli
Criticism
Unpleasant
consequences
and tasks

Positive
reinforcement

Extinction

Punishment

Negative
reinforcement

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Definitions
• Operant behavior – behavior that operates on and
changes the environment
• Positive reinforcement – a rewarding reinforcement
• Negative reinforcement – reinforcing by stopping
an aversive stimulus
• Punishment – a negative stimuli decreasing
behavior
• Extinction – process of eliminating a behavior by
ignoring it or withholding reward.
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Counseling
In short, help clients determine ways to modify
problems in living.
• Focus is on the present and the future.
• Complaints translated into goals of behavioral
changes
• Behavior is broken into its parts
• Treatment tailored to the problem of this
individual.
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Behavior Analysis
A - Antecedent (stimulus)
B - Behavior (what is said or done)
C - Consequence (result of behavior)

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Behavior Analysis
1. Identify problem category
•

Performing a task or dealing with people

2. Identify problem type
•

Being unable or being unwilling

3. Determine cause of problem
•

Lack of knowledge, obstacle or refusal

4. Select appropriate solution
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Schedules of Reinforcement
Continuous reinforcement
• Reinforce each successful response
• Best when first learning a new behavior
• Switch to one of four intermittent schedules

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Schedules of Reinforcement
• Fixed ratio schedule
o

Reinforcement rate is fixed at the same rate

o

Piecework in a factory an example

• Variable ratio schedule
o

Schedule of reinforcement varies

o

Playing slot machines an example

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Schedules of Reinforcement
• Fixed interval
o

reinforce after first response and fixed time
elapsed

• Variable interval
o

reinforce after first response after an average
time period

o

example: pop quiz

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Counseling Goals
• Ultimate goal is to teach clients to be own
counselors by changing their behavior to
better meet their needs
• After the problem has been identified and
change agreed on, variety of procedures
help client acquire the behaviors necessary
to solve the problem
• Goal = overt change
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Counseling Methods
• Match reinforcement to development
and reward preference
• Set up a contract with child

• Contract language must be simplified
for understanding and the goals
should be clear with few steps

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Counseling Methods
Contingency Contract
1. Counselor and client identify
problem
2. Counselor collects baseline data
3. Counselor and client set mutually
acceptable goals
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Counseling Methods
Contingency Contract
4. Counselor develops plan for target
behavior and reinforcement
5. Counselor evaluates plan for
changes in behavior
6. If plan is not effective, repeat #4
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Counseling Methods
Self-Management
• Take responsibility for own behavior

• Follow step-by-step process: define
problem, collect data, introduce
treatment, evaluate effectiveness,
change program if not working

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Counseling Methods
Shaping
• Induce new behaviors by reinforcing
behaviors that are approximations of
the desired behavior
• Counselor looks for desired behavior,
waits until it occurs, and reinforces it
when it does occur
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Counseling Methods
Behavioral Momentum
• Make easy requests with high
compliance possibility
• Work up to more difficult, lowcompliance tasks

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Counseling Methods
Biofeedback

• A machine reads body temperature,
brain waves, heart rate, blood
pressure, etc.
• Machine: looks-waits-reinforces
• Small changes in behavior (like
tension decrease) can be fed back to
the client by auditory and visual means
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Counseling Methods
Modeling
• Expose client to individuals exhibiting the
target behavior
• Teaching children voluntary behaviors
through observation and replication of
desired behaviors
• Modeling and shaping could be done in
combination for younger children
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