About Behavioral Modification Plans
Sometimes people are not satisfied with certain aspects of their behavior, yet cannot find a way to stop repeating those actions. Maybe it's a smoking habit or a compulsive shopping habit. The bad behavior could be something as serious as drug addiction. Either way, a modification of one's behavior can help break the pattern of negative actions. The only way to break out of bad habits is to engage in behavioral modification.
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Function
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Behavioral modification plans have a fairly simple goal: get a person to discontinue or reduce a certain behavior according to his wants or needs. Behavioral modification starts with a person wanting to change the behavior, unless it must happen by law or if a parent deems that a child's behavior must change. Either way, behavioral modification plans typically rely on involving the thought process and adding or subtracting activities that surround the behavior.
Benefits
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The benefits to behavioral modification are that the unwanted behavior is reduced or stopped. Also, if the plan is cognitive-based, it can lead to the stopping of other behaviors and starting of wanted habits. Successful behavioral modification plans can boost a person's self-esteem and self-confidence, knowing that he is able to complete a set goal on his own merits and without medical intervention.
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Types
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The amount of behavioral modification plans and techniques may seem limitless, but they usually fall into a narrow group of categories. Positive reward plans are used to create new behaviors. For example, if you are teaching a child to say "please" and "thank you," you may give the child a hug or kiss after each successful use as an immediate, positive reward. Negative reinforcement is used to get rid of bad habits by attaching a punishment for every time the habit is used. One example of negative reinforcement is if a man decides that for every cigarette he smoke he gives his coworkers $1 as soon as it happens.
The operant conditioning behavioral modification plans often involve some sort of cue to signal that a certain behavior must happen or stop. A plan involving decreasing reinforcement requires a person to correctly do the behavior more and more in order to gain rewards, increasing the time or repetitions each time. Runners often face this process when trying to achieve a runner's high; they sometimes feel that they have to run more and more miles or cut their time in order to get that positive feeling.
Misconceptions
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One misconception is that behavioral modification is effectively brainwashing a person. This is a misconception because most of the time a person wants the behavior to increase if it is a positive one or decrease if it is a negative one. Since the idea is usually presented by the person, he must be a willing participant.
In the case of children, the thought of brainwashing can occur if a child is taught to reinforce behaviors that are generally considered negative to society, such as teaching a toddler to curse every time he drops an object. However, many good parents use behavioral modification techniques to increase positive actions or reduce negative ones.
Expert Insight
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Experts recommend trying not to change several behaviors at once. The mental commitment involved with behavioral modification plans can, at times, feel stressful and endless should there be a setback. Starting several behavioral changes at once can easily lead to an entire stoppage of all once the mental stress capacity is reached.
Also, for people who are doing behavioral modifications that affect health such as substance abuse or weight loss, they should consult a physician or specialized expert.
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