BEHAVIOUR MODIFICATION
BEHAVIOUR MODIFICATION
QUESTION:
Choose one behavioral problem common
to adults in Tanzania, assume a person come to your professional help towards
modification of that particular behavior, suggest practical method and
procedures you world employ for the task.
Response
One among the common behavior in
Tanzania is alcoholism which seems to be the most problems in many adults,
after the age of 18 most of the boys and girls feel free to engage in excessive
drinking of alcohol and led them toward the addiction and later on led to a lot
of social, economic, and family problem
In professional and
research contexts, the term "alcoholism"
sometimes encompasses both alcohol abuse and alcohol dependence, and sometimes
is considered equivalent to alcohol dependence. (Farrell
1992) observes that alcoholism in the classical disease model follows a
progressive course: if a person continues to drink, their condition will
worsen. This will lead to harmful consequences in their life, physically,
mentally, emotionally and socially.
Baldwin (1981), explores
the emotional progression of the addict’s response to alcohol. He looks at this
in four phases. The first two are considered “normal” drinking and the last two
are viewed as "typical" alcoholic drinking.
Johnson's four phases
consist of, learning the mood swing.
A person is introduced to alcohol (in some cultures this can happen at a
relatively young age), and the person enjoys the happy feeling it produces. At
this stage there is no emotional cost.
Seeking the mood swing.
A person will drink to regain that feeling of euphoria experienced in phase 1;
the drinking will increase as more intoxication is required to achieve the same
effect. Again at this stage, there are no significant consequences.
At the third stage there are physical and social
consequences, i.e., hangovers, family problems, work problems, etc. A person
will continue to drink excessively, disregarding the problems.
The
fourth stage can be detrimental, as Johnson cites it as a risk for
premature death. As a person now drinks to feel normal, they block out the
feelings of overwhelming guilt, remorse, anxiety, and shame they experience
when sober. (Gladding 1988)
The prevailing theory today seems to be that
alcoholism is a disease, a biological affliction that can only be ameliorated
by abstinence or medication. However, there are those who believe alcoholism
has its roots in environmental influences and that the disorder is a maladaptive
pattern of behavior
Alcoholism is characterized by a physical
dependence on the substance. Alcoholics crave a drink regardless of the
physical, financial, emotional and legal consequences. They cannot stop. Unlike
a person who abuses alcohol, an alcoholic has no control over when or how much
h/she drinks.
Behavior can be
defined as the way in which an individual behaves or acts. It is the way an individual conducts herself
/himself. Behavior should be viewed in reference to a phenomenon, an object or
person. It can be seen in reference to society norms, or the way in which one
treats others or handles objects.( Baldwin 1981)
Behavior, therefore, is
the way an individual acts towards people, society or objects. It can be either bad or good. It can be normal or abnormal according to
society norms. Society will always try
to correct bad behavior and try to bring abnormal behavior back to normal.(ibid
1981)
Behavior
modification is a term used in behavioral therapies to denote methods for
conditioning behavior. It has its roots in classical conditioning, which
involves the pairing of a behavior with a reinforcement. The main idea is to
reward a person if they implement a desired behavior or if they stop undesired
behavior. Behavior modification can also involve incurring an unpleasant
consequence for undesired behavior. (Carlson 2010)
Behaviour
modification is based on a simple idea of learning. It is based on the idea that behavior
followed by reward is more likely to be repeated, or retained, than not. On the
other hand, behaviour which results in an unpleasant outcome tends to be
quickly dropped or disappear.
Behaviour modification is
based on the idea that behavior is, in part, controlled by its
consequences. The idea has been
demonstrated in both humans and animals. (ibid 2010)
Alcoholism is a broad
term for problems with alcohol, and is generally used to mean compulsive and
uncontrolled consumption of alcoholic beverages, usually to the detriment of
the drinker's health, personal relationships, and social standing. It is
medically considered a disease, specifically a neurological disorder, and in
medicine several other terms are used, specifically "alcohol abuse"
and "alcohol dependence," which have more specific definitions.
In modifying the alcoholism behavior the
following are the suggested practical methods and procedures to be employed.
Cognitive-behavior therapy, CBT, is one of the most commonly
used therapeutic models for treating addiction. In CBT, a therapist will help
their client to change their behaviors and attitudes towards drinking. Cognitive-behavioral
therapy (CBT) uses a structured teaching approach as a method of modifying
abnormal behavior and may be better than Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) for
people with severe alcoholism. Patients are given instruction and homework
assignments intended to improve their ability to cope with basic living
situations, control their behavior, and change the way they think about
drinking. (Kazdin
2001).
The following are examples of procedures, Patients
might write a history of their drinking experiences and describe what they
consider to be risky situations, they are then assigned activities to help them
cope when exposed to "cues" (places or circumstances that trigger
their desire to drink), and Patients may also be given tasks that are designed
to replace drinking. An interesting and successful example of such a program
was one that enlisted patients in a softball team. This gave them the
opportunity to practice coping skills, develop supportive relationships, and
engage in healthy alternative activities.(ibid 2001)
The
client is helped to associate the thought and feeling in order to identify
typical actions that proceed as a reaction to the thoughts and feelings
experienced. Once a client is able to pair thought to feeling to action, then
learning techniques to redirect the maladaptive thoughts begin the process of
change. As CBT continues, the client is introduced to cue exposure to further
teach a form of extinguishing cravings via repeated exposure to the alcohol. As
this process continues, the goal is to have weaker alcohol cravings despite the
alcohol being present and directing the alcohol-related thoughts toward
recovery vs. relapse. The work required during CBT is then extended into
homework to solidify the skills learned. (Baldwin 1981)
Rational Emotive Behavioral Therapy. Rational emotive behavioral therapy (REBT) is a behavioral
approach that attempts to help a person explore emotional and behavioral
problems to find resolution and create fulfillment in life. The premise is an
ABC model, which concludes that an activating event (A), contributes to
disturbed beliefs (B) and emotional and behavior consequences (C). Rational and
irrational tendencies are explored through REBT and ultimately lead to
empowering a person to realize personal choice can prevent unhealthy behavior.
REBT is also a shorter-term therapeutic approach and emphasizes active
participation of the client throughout the process. (Laurence 1999).
Rational
emotive behavior therapy is one among the well known treatment in modifying
alcoholism behavior .most of the alcoholism posses a certain kind of believes
about alcohol that was activated by event, example family problem, financial,
personality or certain disability which make them to drink and cause
undesirable consequences .The procedures is to enable client think rational and
positive by showing them that drinking alcohol does not help a person toward
solving difficult problems.
Behavior Modification Therapy The contract would specify limits toward alcohol use per
day, self-monitoring of behavior, practicing refusals to alcohol, having a
reward system when goals are achieved, learning what precedes drinking
behavior, learning what to do instead of drinking and building coping skills
for ongoing recovery. The client is in control of his choices, and this is
emphasized through conditioning techniques. Behavioral therapy does not
emphasize motivation for change, merely accountability and choices toward
sobriety. (Baldwin
1981)
Behaviorist also uses Family
therapy, as another effective treatment approach. In family and couples
therapy, loved ones are educated about addiction. Also, they can work on damage
their drinking behavior that causes the family disunity (Kazdin 2001)
Aversion therapy is a form of psychological
behavioral modification in which the patient is exposed to a stimulus while simultaneously being subjected
to some form of discomfort. (Cautela 1967) This conditioning is intended to cause the
patient to associate the stimulus with unpleasant sensations in order
to stop the specific behavior. Aversion therapies in alcoholism can take many
forms, for example placing unpleasant-tasting substances on the alcohol to
discourage drinking habit (Maguire 1964)
Group Therapy Group
therapy can be extraordinarily helpful in achieving sobriety. With other
recovering peers, the client may have the opportunity to share information
about how to stay sober, including changing friends and avoiding places that
cause craving. (Cutter 1985) .
The use of Medication on modifying alcoholism behavior.
Medications especially when combined with
therapy, is an important part of alcohol dependence treatment. There are a
number of medical treatment methods available to treat alcoholism. Ant-abuse,
or disulfiram, has long been used as a deterrent to drinking. The Mayo Clinic
reports that Ant-abuse produces a violent physical reaction if anyone drinks
while taking the drug. Although it doesn't prevent cravings or treat any of the
underlying causes of the excessive drinking problem, it can provide alcoholics
with a reason to pause before taking a drink and getting sick. Revia, or
naltrexone, can block the high that comes from drinking, removing one of the
reasons an alcoholic drink. Another drug that does help to reduce cravings is
called Campral, or acamprosate. An injectable drug called Vivitrol works
similarly to naltrexone by blocking cravings in the brain. It's administered
monthly and is only available to those who abstain from alcohol for a week and
are receiving ongoing therapy. (Harvey 2011).
Another procedure used is sensitization,
in which drinking is repeatedly paired with something aversive until the
alcoholic loses all desire to drink,(Cautela 1967),Despite the reputed evidence
of a biological etiology of alcoholism, there are some schools of thought that
believe alcoholism has its roots in the environment. These theories claim that
alcoholism is a behavior built on the learned contingency between drinking and
relief from unpleasant affect. Some treatments in cognitive-behavioral therapy
are aimed at breaking that contingency. One frequently employed method is
exposing the alcoholic to the cues which they have previously associated with
drinking, such as a specific place, a thought, or a feeling. The alcoholic is
then prevented from drinking, thus destroying the association they have made
between the stimulus and the need to drink. (Kraft 2005)
.An alcoholic's behavior and mental impairment,
while drunk, can profoundly affect those surrounding them and lead to isolation
from family and friends. This isolation can lead to marital conflict and
divorce, or contribute to domestic violence. Alcoholism can also lead to child
neglect, with subsequent lasting damage to the emotional development of the
alcoholic's children. For this reason, children of alcoholic parents can
develop a number of emotional problems. For example, they can become afraid of
their parents, because of their unstable mood behaviors. In addition, they can
develop considerable amount of shame over their inadequacy to liberate their
parents from alcoholism. As a result of this failure, they develop wretched
self-images, which can lead to depression.
REFERENCES
Harvey
S, (2011),Physician, Massachusetts
General Hospital,Reviewed by David Zieve,
MD,
Farrell .T ,(1992),Behavior
marital therapy for male alcoholics, Behavior Therapy, 23, 529
Cutter, H.G. & Floyd, F.J. (1985), Evaluating behavioral marital therapy for
male alcoholics. Behavior Therapy,
16, 147–67.
Cautela.
J.R. (1967), Covert Sensitization,Psychological Reports 20:
259–468.
Kraft .T
& Kraft D. (2005), Covert Sensitization Revisited,Six Case Studies'
Contemporary Hypnosis, 22: 202–9.
Maguire,
R.J. & Valance, M. (1964), Aversion
therapy by electric shock, a simple technique.
British Medical Journal, 1: 151–3.
Baldwin, D. (1981), Behavior Principles in Everyday Life,
Prentice Hall Inc. London
Carlson N.R (2010), Psychology the Science of Behavior 7TH
Edition, Pearson Education Inc. Publishing
Gladding .S T, (1988) ,Counseling: A Comprehensive Profession;
Merrill Pub.Co: Columbus.
Kazdin .N, (2001), Behavior Modification in applied setting 6th
edition, Belmont C.A Wadswoth.
Laurence .M, (1999) International Journal of Emergency Mental
Health Format :Paperback
Prepared by Reward
Gerald Kihedu-Bachelor of Education in Guidance and Counseling
Phone
+255757260116
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