Describe two behavior therapy techniques that are based on operant conditioning principles

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

ANSWER:
Positive reinforcement
is used to encourage or maintain a behavior. For example, every time a child complies with a parental request, verbal praise follows. After the child’s compliance increases, verbal praise need not occur every single time.
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To discourage unwanted behavior, any reinforcers of the behavior are removed. For instance, to discourage a child from throwing tantrums at home, the child’s parent ignores the behavior so that no attention (even negative attention, such as a reprimand) reinforces the behavior. If a reinforcer does not follow a behavior, the behavior will occur less frequently. Eventually the behavior will be eliminated or extinguished. However, keep in mind that often the unwanted behavior will increase before it goes away because a person is expecting the reinforcer.
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Sometimes punishment is used to decrease undesirable behaviors. Recall that punishment occurs when an undesired behavior is immediately followed by a negative or unpleasant consequence such as loss of a privilege. But also remember the side effects of punishment. It can produce negative emotions such as anger or fear, or negative behaviors, such as avoidance.
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Shaping involves positively reinforcing each successive attempt at a behavior. It is used to teach a person new, desired behaviors. For example, shaping may be used to teach children with autism how to speak. If the child makes a “t” sound to say toy, this attempt is rewarded. Shaping has also been successfully used to teach people with intellectual disabilities self-help skills, such as washing their face or brushing their teeth.
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A token economy involves rewarding people with tokens, or symbolic rewards, for desired behavior. Because not everyone is influenced by the same reward, tokens—such as chips, points, or stars—are given each time a person engages in a desired behavior. These tokens can then be exchanged for a variety of reinforcers such as food, privileges, goods, phone time, and so on.