Summary: Journey to Recovery: Behavior Modification Basics Presented by: Dr. Dawn-Elise Snipes Executive Director, AllCEUs Host: Counselor Toolbox Objectives ~ Define behavior modification ~ Explore how behavior modification can be useful in practice ~ Learn basic behavior modification terms: ~ Unconditioned stimulus and response ~ Conditioned stimulus and response ~ Discriminitive stimuli ~ Learned helplessness ~ Reinforcement ~ Punishment ~ Extinction Burst ~ Premack Principle Why Do I Care ~ Behavior modification principles will help you understand some of the reasons people act/react the way they do ~ By understanding what rewards(causes and motivates) people’s behavior or discourages (punishes/Strains) their behavior, we can better address their issues ~ The focus on observable, measurable conditions to the exclusion of cognitive interpretation underscores the mind-body connection How can this be useful in practice ~ Traditional (strict) behavior modification can be quite useful in simplifying stimulus/reaction ~ Integrating the cognitive interpretations (labels) can help people in identifying and addressing what is causing their “distress” (Behaviorists would refer to excitatory response) ~ Understanding what causes feelings can also give people a greater sense of empowerment. Example ~ Organisms learn behavior through direct and observational reinforcement and correction ~ Puppy 1 tackles puppy 2 threat ~ Puppy 2 responds by tackling puppy 1 counter threat ~ Both puppies get a surge of adrenaline ~ The puppy that dominates receives a dopamine surge that reinforces the prior behaviors — do that again. ~ If Puppy 1 plays too rough, then puppy 2 will either become more aggressive or leave. ~ Either way, puppy 1s behavior is punished. Example 2 ~ In addition to direct and observational learning, humans learn to label certain internal experiences with feeling words (angry, scared, happy) ~ Sally goes to a pet store. ~ A puppy comes out, sits in her lap and puts is head on her leg. This contact (we know from studies) usually causes the release of dopamine and oxytocin –both reward chemicals. Sally calls this “happy” ~ If Sally had previously had a threatening experience with a dog, when she saw it, her body would likely respond by secreting adrenaline, kicking off the fight or flight reaction. Sally would label this as “fear” Points ~ People with dysphoria or unhelpful behaviors may need to: ~ Recondition X is not actually a threat (anymore) ~ Relabel the state ~ Stressed vs. hungry vs. bored vs. tired ~ Explore the dialectics: Excitement/Fear ~ Unhook– X is causing me to have the feeling that… Basic Terms ~ Unconditioned stimulus and response ~ Something that evokes an unconditioned/automatic response in an infant and adult ~ Loud noises ~ Pain ~ Excessive cold/heat ~ Contact Basic Terms ~ Conditioned Stimulus ~ Something that in itself has no meaning to the person (yellow light) ~ Conditioned Response ~ The person’s reaction to the stimulus (slow down or floor it) ~ Stimuli and responses can be traced back to survival: Fight-Flee-Forget-Repeat Basic Terms ~ Discriminitive stimulus ~ The stimulus which triggers the reaction. (Includes vulnerabilities) ~ Going to work ~ Good day ~ Bad day ~ Learned Helplessness “Damned if I do, damned if I don’t” ~ A response which occurs when people have tried and failed. Giving up. Fight or Flee ~ Stimuli that present a threat of pain or death can trigger the excitatory fight or flight response ~ A useful intervention is to identify ~ The threat ~ If it is actually a threat ~ Break down parts of the situation into controllable and uncontrollable Conditioning ~ Mindfulness can help people identify ~ Positive stimuli dopamine “happy” ~ Negative stimuli adrenaline fight or flee ~ Little things build up and lead to a big reaction. (Pressure cooker) ~ Stimuli that trigger a negative reaction can be reconditioned as neutral by ~ Embracing the dialectics: Find the positive (snowy d
