Behavioral and Related Therapies

1
Behavioral and Related Therapies

• 3 Kinds
• Classical Conditioning
• Operant Conditioning (and hybrid
  classical-operant methods)
• Cognitive/Cognitive-Behavioral

2
Classical Conditioning

• Unconditioned stimulus (UCS), leads to
• Response (R) (emotional, behavioral)
• Conditional stimulus (CS), paired with UCS
• Cognitive interpretation of learning process CS
  acquires information value about UCS, based on
  conditional probabilities

3
Classical Conditioning, contd

• As theory of etiology
• Frightening stimulus paired with neutral one,
  leads to phobic avoidance/emotional response to
  neutral stimulus, generalization thereof
• Little Albert as example (see http//psychclassics
  .yorku.ca/Watson/emotion.htm, http//www.cmer.org/
  class/articles/albert.html)
• Little evidence this is common cause of naturally
  occurring phobias no evidence its frequent
  cause of other problems

4
Classical Conditioning, contd

• As theory of therapy
• Pair presentation of phobic response-producing
  stimulus, with behavior inconsistent with anxiety
• Example systematic desensitization
• imagined public speaking situation stimulus
• behavior relaxation
• Probably works by extinction cognitive change,
  rather than by counterconditioning

5
Other Classical Techniques

• Rapid imaginal exposure (flooding)
• Straight exposure in vivo
• Satiation
• Aversive techniques for habit problems (hybrid
  classical-operant technique)
• Response prevention for OCD (hybrid)
• Dismantling studies show exposure is key

6
Operant Conditioning

• Discriminative stimulus (SD) evokes response (R)
  which is reinforced (SR)
• Theory of etiology
• Dysfunctional behavior was shaped and reinforced
  by environmental contingencies
• Example child tantrum behavior reinforced by
  attention
• Implausible explanation for depression, psychosis

7
Operant Conditioning, contd

• Theory of therapy
• Map behavior and contingencies
• Change contingencies to reinforce more adaptive
  behavior
• Example child tantrum behavior now
  non-reinforced (ignoring), plus social
  reinforcement (attention) for pro-social behaviors

8
Operant Conditioning, contd

• Baseline observation
• Set up schedules (various reinforcement schedules
  used, e.g., CRF or VR)
• Can use symbolic reinforcement token economy
• Also employ cognitive component information
• Try to get generalization (difficult)

9
Cognitive Theory

• What is important in learning is cognitive map
  schema, about probabilities of
  reward/nonreward, etc.
• Psychopathology related to erroneous schemas
• Change schemas changed behavior, less
  dysfunction

10
Cognitive Therapy

• How to change schemas?
• By behavioral-type manipulation, like operants
• By argument
• By hypothesis testing
• Behavioral confrontation with discrepant
  information often key to changing cognitions,
  hence behavioral component often part of
  cognitive therapy