Chapter 18 Positive Punishment Procedures and the Ethics of Punishment

Problems with punishment

-Emotional reactions/aggressive behavior -Escape and avoidance behaviors -Modeling the use of punishment -Negative reinforcement for the use of punishment(change agent) -Establishing the user as a conditioned punisher

Ethical issues and Acceptability of the Use of Aversive Activities and/or Stimulation

-Informed consent -Alternative treatments -Recipient safety -Problem severity -Implementation guidelines -Training Supervision -Peer review and accountability (misuse prevention)

Positive Punishment

-Punishment by application of aversive activities -Punishment by application of aversive stimulation

General Ethics Issues

-The issue of control -Power relationships and protecting clients rights -Qualifications of the behavior modifier -Social validity of goals, target behavior, and treatment

Cautions in the Application of Aversive Activities

1-Change agent must be physically capable of using the procedure (client may actively resit the procedure) 2-Must be certain the physical contact involved in the procedure is not reiforcing to the client. 3-Must be certain that the procedure can be implemented without harm

Before using Punishment

1-Conduct a functional assessment 2-identify the behavior deficits as well as excess 3-First use functional/nonaversive treatment -extinction -Differential reinforcement -Antecedent manipulations -Behavioral skills training procedures

Considerations in the use of Punishment by the application of Aversive Stimulation

1-Use of functional/nonaversive procedures first 2-Implement differential reinforcement with punishment 3-Consider the function of the problem behavior 4-Choose the aversive stimulus carefully 5-Collect data to make treatment decisions 6-Address ethical issues

Physical restraint:

Contingent of the problem behavior, the body part involved in the behavior is held immobile for a specified period of time

Guided compliance:

Contingent on the problem behavior following a request, the individual is physically guided to comply with a request. -Involves positive punishment to decrease the problem behavior because physical guidance is contingent on the problem behavior. -Involves negative reinforcement to increase compliance because removal of physical guidance is contingent on compliance

Contingent Exercise;

Contingent on the problem behavior, the individual engages in some effortful behavior for a specified period of time(effortful behavior is unrelated to the problem behavior)

A student from classs sneaks out the back door when the instructor is not looking two times per week. One day, at 8 am, the instructor locks the back door. Later in the day, the student tries to sneak out the door, but it does not open. Therefore, she tries to push against the door even harder. She then begrundgingly sits down and listens to the lecture. As a result of this the students rate of sneaking out the back door decreases to zero. What principle of behavior analysis is being illustrated in the example above.

Extinction

Which of the following is not considered a problem with punishment:

Modeling the use of punishment

Includes engagement in some effortful behavior for specified period of time, contingent on the problem behavior

Overcorrection

Application of Aversive Activities

Overcorrection: The individual has to engage in effortful behavior contingent on the problem behavior. Two Types: 1-Positive Practice: Contingent on the problem behavior, the individual has to engage in the correct froms of relevant behavior for a period of time 2-Restitution: Contingent on the problem behavior, the individual is required to fix the environment disrupted by the problem behavior

Application of Aversive Stimulation

Rarely used in behavior modification examples: lemon juice, spray mist, aromatic ammonia, auditory stimulation(noise)