The Power of Positive Reinforcement: Strategies for Teaching … · The Power of Positive...

The Power of Positive Reinforcement: Strategies for

Teaching Young Children

Molly H. Bumpas, MEd, BCBA, CCC/SLP

SD Associates, LLC

Early Childhood Services Coordinator

What is ABA? Applied Behavior Analysis

A set of procedures that are used to teach new skills and reduce problem behaviors by replacing them with more socially acceptable behaviors.

What is ABA? Applied Behavior Analysis

ABA applies scientifically demonstrated principles and concepts of behavior analysis to make meaningful changes in the lives of individuals and groups.

It is important to remember…

ABA is a science and not one specific program or technique – it is a broad field that includes a range of tactics that have been shown to be effective across many different populations.

What do we mean by ‘behavior’?

Behavior is anything that an individual does.

This could be:

• Talking to another person

• Hitting someone on the arm

• Eating a piece of cake

• Crying

• Writing your name

Behavior serves a function!

Behavior analysts determine the function a behavior serves for a child – all behaviors occur for a reason.

Behavior Detective

Understanding WHY a challenging behavior is occurring is crucial in order to select more appropriate replacement behaviors to teach.

Communication and Challenging Behavior are connected….

Often if challenging behavior is present, the replacement behavior involves teaching a child to communicate something they want/need

Look at behaviors in two directions….

Behaviors to increase

Behaviors to decrease

The ABCs!

• Antecedents

• Behaviors

• Consequences

The ABCs!

ANTECEDENTS

Events that occurred immediately before the behavior began

BEHAVIOR

Anything a person says or does

CONSEQUENCES

Events that immediately followed the behavior

Talking on the phone

ANTECEDENT

Phone rings

BEHAVIOR

You answer phone and say ‘hello’

CONSEQUENCE

Friend talks to you

Johnny and the Bananas

Johnny’s mom wants him to eat bananas. Johnny does not like bananas. Mom gives him a bowl of bananas everyday at lunchtime. When she puts bowl on the table, Johnny picks it up and throws it on the floor. Mom then gives Johnny yogurt, which he quickly eats.

Johnny’s ABCs!

ANTECEDENT

Presentation of bananas

BEHAVIOR

Johnny dumps bowl of bananas

CONSEQUENCE

Mom gives Johnny bowl of yogurt

What is function?

Johnny has learned that if he throws bananas on the floor, he will not have to eat them. He will instead get to eat yogurt. So he will continue to throw his bananas on the floor!

By changing what we do immediately before or after a behavior, we can often change a behavior.

~ANTECEDENTS ~

MOTIVATION!

The chain of events starts with motivation – we are motivated ‘to do’ and ‘not to do’

SETTING EVENTS

Setting events include physical settings, activities and interactions that increase the likelihood that particular behaviors will occur

~CONSEQUENCES~

Like the term ‘behavior’, the term ‘consequence’ is value neutral.

Consequences are not bad things that happen.

Consequences are things that happen AFTER a behavior.

~CONSEQUENCES~

Five categorical types of consequences:

• Positive reinforcement

• Negative reinforcement

• Positive and negative punishment

• Extinction

~CONSEQUENCES~

Five categorical types of consequences:

• Positive reinforcement

• Negative reinforcement

• Positive and negative punishment

• Extinction

What is REINFORCEMENT and WHY is it important?

Reinforcement is a consequence that increases the future probability of a behavior. It can involve the presentation of items, activities, or attention (positive reinforcement). We use reinforcement to teach children a variety of important skills.

Positive reinforcement is the most Important and most widely applied principle of behavior analysis.

~Cooper, Heron and Heward

Reinforcement Affects Everyone!

Reinforcement occurs often throughout your life through natural consequences. For example, the consequence of going to work is receiving a paycheck. This reinforcement increases the likelihood that you will keep going to work!

Reinforcement Affects Everyone!

Challenging behaviors are learned through their relationship to reinforcement. A child will learn to engage in a problem behavior is he regularly receives reinforcement for doing so.

Is reinforcement bribery?

First, reinforcers are not the same as bribes; a bribe is something of value given to someone up front to coerce the person in to performing an illegal or immoral act.

Second, reinforcement, when used correctly, has been proven to be a critical component of the teaching process.

Positive Reinforcers: Examples:

Access to favorite foods Snacks or drinks

Access to favorite toys Toys, books, games

Access to preferred activities Playground time, biking, Hide & Seek

Social attention Verbal praise, tickles, hugs, etc.

Tokens, points (conditioned reinforcers)

Can be exchanged for back-up reinforcers (items/activities)

Personal satisfaction (automatic reinforcement)

Sense of accomplishment and sheer pleasure in doing a good job

Using Reinforcement Appropriately and Effectively

• Provide reinforcement immediately after your child engages in the desired behavior

• In the beginning, provide reinforcement each time the behavior occurs

Using Reinforcement Appropriately and Effectively

• Gradually decrease the frequency of reinforcement as child learns the new skill

• When possible, use naturally occurring reinforcers

Using Reinforcement Appropriately and Effectively

• Always pair social reinforcement with other types of reinforcers. The goal is to make social consequences sufficiently reinforcing so they maintain newly learned behavior.

REMEMBER!

It’s not positive reinforcement unless the behavior actually increases!

Don’t just ‘assume’ something may be a reinforcer for a child – ask questions, observe, do a preference assessment!

Using Positive Reinforcement to Shape Behavior

• If teaching a routine, such as putting on your coat, reinforce small steps toward the large goal.

• Break down the task into smaller steps: – Pick up coat – Put right arm in – Put left arm in – Connect zipper – Pull up zipper

• Reinforce successive steps toward the final sequence until the whole is mastered

Premack Principle “Grandma’s Rule”

• A principle that states that making the opportunity to engage in a high probability behavior contingent on the occurrence of a low probability behavior will function as reinforcement for the low frequency behavior

• In other words, “If you eat your green beans, you can have chocolate cake.”

First/Then

What About Punishment?

Punishment is a consequence that immediately follows a behavior, and as a result, decreases the probability of that behavior occurring in the future

Not as effective – doesn’t teach the child what

‘to do’

Unintended consequences – emotional, avoidance of the person providing punishment

Extinction

• Refers to process of decreasing behavior by removing reinforcement

• Should be used in conjunction with positive reinforcement of desired replacement behavior

Extinction

• Example: Your child screams each time you talk on the phone. You get off phone quickly and engage with child. Your child continues to scream each time you talk on the phone. To extinguish this behavior, you consistently ignore (withdraw reinforcement of social attention) your child when she screams when you are on the phone, while providing her with social attention (positive reinforcement) when she is asking appropriately for attention (“Mommy, I want to tell you something….)

Other Strategies

• Offer choices

• Follow child’s lead

• Keep it simple

• Pay lots of positive attention to child ~ (non-contingent positive reinforcement!)

• Provide plenty of access to preferred items

• Keep things interesting

Other Strategies

• Build appropriate communication skills

• Pick your battles

• Respect child’s right to be himself/herself

Thanks for listening!

Questions?

Comments?

Resources

Lockshin, Gillis, and Romanczyk. 2005. Helping your child with autism spectrum disorder. Oakland, Calif: New Harbinger Publications, Inc.

Glasberg, Beth. 2008. Stop that seemingly senseless behavior! Bethesda, MD: Woodbine House

https://www.care.com/c/stories/3467/6-positive-reinforcement-examples-to-try-with/

Molly H. Bumpas

molly.bumpas@sdplus.org