Behavioral Approaches with Children

1
Behavioral Approaches with Children

• Dr. Marty Jencius

2
History

• Eysenck debated the usefulness of traditional
  psychotherapy
• 1969 Bandura wrote Principles of Behavior
  Modification
• Persons play an active role in constructing their
  reinforcement contingencies
• 1977 Bandura wrote Social Learning Theory
  including cognitive factors

3
Efficacy Research

• Casey and Berman (1985) meta analysis .96 size
  effect
• When therapy process outcome measures were
  excluded effect size drops to .55
• Two other meta studies support behavioral
  approaches, especially with children

4
Principles of BT

• Positive Reinforcement
• Negative reinforcement
• Punishment

5
Principles of CBT

• Modeling
• Behavioral Rehearsal
• Response Prevention
• Self Monitoring

6
Treatment

• A-B-C analysis
• Deficit behavior
• all CBT principles plus Shaping, contracting,
  token economies
• Positive practice
• Excess behavior
• Differential reinforcement of behavior
  reinforcing competing positive behavior to
  eliminate excessive behavior
• Time out 1 minute per year of age
• Overcorrection restitution and positive
  practice
• Punishment, response prevention and extinction
• Extinction burst

7
Key Points

• Before starting BT or CBT do an A-B-C analysis
• Determine if you want to increase a behavioral
  deficit or decrease a behavioral excess
• Focus on a few behaviors
• Reinforcement always increases behavior and
  punishment always decreases behavior
• Utilize self-monitoring and self-instruction when
  the client has cognitive capabilities
• Employ behavioral strategies of modeling and
  rehearsal whenever appropriate
• Utilize both BT and CBT

8
Praise vs. Encouragement

• Dr. Rainey gets on his Soap Box.