I don\u2019t think there is anything in the science of behavior that is more well-researched and better understood than the power and importance of the principle of reinforcement. Yet, there may be no behavioral principle that is more misunderstood outside of the science world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
To truly understand Reinforcement you need to start out by being able to look at it in two important ways:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
These two statements are not up for debate. They are facts of life that science has merely been able to uncover, dissect and better understand. Reinforcement is defined as anything that will increase the future use of behavior it follows and any behavior that increases has been reinforced by something. This we cannot change\u2014and this we should not ignore!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Trying to avoid the use of reinforcement or considering the use of reinforcement a weaker or lessor form of gaining cooperation in learning is not really an option. You cannot increase behavior without the use of reinforcement.\u00a0 It\u2019s a simple truth. You can either understand this truth and use it to your child, student, or client\u2019s benefit or you can ignore the principle and ultimately use it haphazardly, incorrectly, or to inadvertently cause the wrong behaviors to increase.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
When you fully understand reinforcement as the way it is defined as a truth of human behavior, you will begin to see that there is no successful plan that increases important behavior that doesn\u2019t use reinforcement in one way, shape or form.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There are actually two main forms of reinforcement to be aware of \u2014 Positive Reinforcement and Negative Reinforcement. The difference between these two is also often misunderstood.\u00a0 I cannot count the number of times I\u2019ve heard someone in a movie or TV show say they were using negative reinforcement when in reality the principle they were describing was punishment. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Positive reinforcement is a form of reinforcement, and as such, still does what all reinforcement does. It increases the behavior it follows. The thing that would make reinforcement labeled as positive would be that the increase in behavior occurred based on the contingent \u201caddition\u201d of something to the environment after the behavior occurred. In this case, positive means adding or \u201c+.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n
What people tend to confuse is the fact that Negative Reinforcement is also a form of reinforcement and as such still does what all reinforcement does. It increases the behavior it follows. The difference here is that the increase in behavior occurs based on the contingent \u201cremoval\u201d of something from the environment after the behavior occurred. In this case, negative means subtracting or \u201c-.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
So, why is any of this important? Why dissect and consider the differences in Positive Reinforcement vs. Negative Reinforcement? Well, the answer lies in what changes in addition to the increase in the behavior of interest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In the science of behavior, we call the specific behavior we are trying to influence, the behavior of interest. When we talk about reinforcement, remember, we are only talking about increasing the use of the behavior of interest. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
So, if the behavior of interest was, for example, brushing teeth after a meal, we would be focused on what environmental changes we could organize, that would reliably lead to more teeth brushing after a meal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The problem with brushing one\u2019s teeth, is that there is a lot of work effort involved to do it correctly. You need to stop or avoid whatever other activity you might prefer to be doing. You have to go to the bathroom, find the toothbrush, find the toothpaste, open it up, put the paste on the brush and then brush in a consistent correct pattern for long enough to hit all of the teeth. The toothpaste might not taste very good and it may even sting the gums a bit. The brushing could also cause bleeding and pain. All of which likely act as punishing consequences for the behavior of teeth brushing. This means that they occur as consequences that make teeth brushing, less likely in the future without intervention. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
A behavior analyst looks at this natural occurring contingency and sees it as a math problem to solve or an imbalance to try to fix. Imagine it as a seesaw. A long bar with a fulcrum under the middle. On the right of the fulcrum is all the things that would make teeth brushing less likely to be chosen as a consistent behavior by the child. On the left side is all the things that would make teeth brushing more likely to occur. And if your child is not currently choosing to brush their teeth, you are sitting with a see saw that has much more in the way of reasons not to brush than it has reasons to brush.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
So, if you were looking at this seesaw leaning heavily to the right and you were trying to figure out how to get it back leaning to the left, what would you do? Well, you could try to take off some of the weight that makes the right side so heavy. You could try to find a better tasting toothpaste? You could try not to ask for teeth brushing, when the child is engaged in a favorite activity. You could change the style of brush to make it easier and less painful. However, once you have done everything you can to make the punishing outcomes of teeth brushing as small or light as possible, if the seesaw still leans right, you have to start to add something that puts some weight on the other side. You have to have positives for brushing that overcome the negatives you cannot remove.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As a math problem, how do you make brushing greater in benefit than not brushing? Or, more specifically, how do we get brushing to be more rewarding than it is punishing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I don\u2019t think anyone using any major teaching or parenting style would say, that trying to take the punishing consequences away from a behavior is problematic. But, because of a lack of understanding about reinforcement, there are a lot of parenting programs or styles that take fault with the concept of adding value to the behavior which we want to see more.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
They say things like, \u201cwe don\u2019t like to use rewards\u201d, or \u201cwe don\u2019t like to bribe our kids,\u201d or \u201cI want the child to do it for the right reasons and not only to gain something.\u201d If they are studied in their non-behavioral technique they might say, \u201cI want the child to do it for intrinsic reasons not extrinsic or external reasons.\u201d So, what are these so-called intrinsic reasons? My guess is that they are referring to the long-term natural benefits of brushing. Things such as, avoiding tooth decay, bad breath, and gum disease. So, of course, these intrinsic reasons, if you want to call them that (technically they are all forms of negative reinforcement), are perfectly within the realm of what a behavior analyst might choose to use. Let\u2019s teach the child about gum disease and tooth decay. Show them pictures and try to get them to understand that this is a potential outcome for them if they continue not to brush. Someone who understands what makes reinforcement effective (Size, Contingency, Immediacy and Deprivation), might quickly realize however, that these long-term reinforcers are not likely to be large enough, contingent enough or immediate enough to actually affect that behavior. So, now what do they do? That is a very good question. Because there are lots of potential reinforcers in the environment, that if used correctly, could cause the child to choose the behavior more regularly. More regular use would lead to it becoming a habit and might also diminish the punishing effects of tooth brushing as it is now being paired with positive outcomes and the child is becoming used to the sensations involved.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The problem with saying \u201cI don\u2019t use rewards,\u201d or \u201cI don\u2019t want to bribe my child,\u201d is that it is a complete misunderstanding or misrepresentation of the principle of reinforcement. You see, the term \u201crewards\u201d is not synonymous with reinforcement. The act of \u201cbribing\u201d is not the act of reinforcement. There are no right or wrong reasons we learn to do things. We either learn to do them for reasons that matter to us or we don\u2019t.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Many people speed when they drive their cars. Is there a right reason for them to speed and a wrong reason? Speeding is a behavior choice that develops based on the contingencies (or the balance) of the reinforcement and\/or punishment people have experienced by doing it in their lives. People will ultimately choose to speed based on how much reinforcement they have received for speeding (positive or negative reinforcement) vs. how much punishment they get from speeding (positive or negative). It is a see saw with a fulcrum. If the positive outcomes of speeding outweigh the negative outcomes, then the person will be more likely to speed in the future under similar circumstances. It just means there was more reinforcement being contacted than punishment and the balance makes speeding seem like a worthwhile choice when late. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
So, if we bring this back to teeth brushing. A well intentioned parent might say \u201cI don\u2019t want to bribe my student\u201d, or \u201cI shouldn\u2019t have to reward my child for doing something they are supposed to do.\u201d And because, they mistakenly equate these things with reinforcement they may actually say \u201cI don\u2019t want to use reinforcement.\u201d However, if we go back to the original definition of reinforcement, it states that:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If you focus on part 2, you will see that it is impossible to work without the use of reinforcement. If a behavior has increased, it has been reinforced, whether you understand or want to admit to it, or not. So, what these people are actually against is not reinforcement at all but, certain forms of reinforcement and reinforcement combined with other principles that they think are inferior to others.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
So, let\u2019s dissect that a little. If you are being successful with any child in increasing any skill, you are using reinforcement. You may not be aware of what you are doing or how you are reinforcing the behavior but, you still are. There is no way to say you are not using reinforcement, as that is what increases our future behavior. Now, there may be things you want to use as reinforcement and things you would rather not. This is fine as a personal choice and we as behavior analysts and families working together make those choices all the time.\u00a0 However, to say you don\u2019t use reinforcement is not a legitimate statement. Remember, if behavior increases, it is being reinforced by something.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Now that we have that out of the way, we can start to talk about what it is that is reinforcing behavior. I have already split all reinforcement up into two basic forms. The addition of something deemed beneficial (positive) and the subtraction of something detrimental (negative) that increases behavior.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If I were to watch any teacher or parent anywhere in the world doing anything with a child and that child is increasing their use of the behavior of interest (learning skill), I can identify what forms of reinforcement are likely responsible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
When people say they don\u2019t like to use reinforcement, what they usually mean is one of two things. They don\u2019t like to use positive reinforcement or they don\u2019t like to use \u201cextrinsic\u201d reinforcement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The idea of avoiding positive reinforcement is likely meant to avoid bribing or rewarding a child to behave in a way that they feel is inappropriate for learning.\u00a0 Example: \u201cI\u2019m not going to bribe my child with $10 to wash my car because, they should do it solely because I asked them and not for a reward.\u201d Again, in describing their objections to positive reinforcement, I am using the two terms most often used to try to discredit reinforcement \u2013 Bribes and Rewards. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Bribes are not reinforcement, because the bribing actually takes place before the behavior occurs. \u201cIf you wash my car I will give you $10.\u201d A promise to potential reinforcement is not reinforcement. It is a completely different behavioral principle and has nothing to do with the concept of reinforcement. Bribes or consistent promising of potential reinforcement is normally not considered best practice in any behavioral program and therefore thinking that reinforcement is bad because it is synonymous with bribing is a complete factual inaccuracy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Most bribes would be conducted in a \u201cif\/then\u201d statement. \u201cIf you wash my car, then I will give you $10.\u201d Again, this is not reinforcement. There are also a lot of really good reasons why we teach our parents to avoid \u201cif\/then\u201d statements in their teaching. My goal is never to get a child to assess the value of an offer and accept or decline that offer based upon what they would get from it. This doesn\u2019t help me long-term and is not a part of most modern behavioral approaches. In fact, every behavior analyst I\u2019ve ever worked with has always recommended avoiding \u201cif\/then\u201d statements as much as possible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The goal of programming is to set up a situation where a child begins to see, through experience, that cooperation is its own reward. Positive engagement in the family activities and needs leads to a better more fulfilling and socially beneficial life. I don\u2019t ever want my child to wash my car only because I offered $10. But, if I am not aware of the principle of behavior and I am not engaging in a planned environment that consistently make the child\u2019s life better when he engages positively than when he doesn\u2019t, I am not likely to see an increase in cooperation and engagement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
So, the use of $10 for washing the car might actually be beneficial to the overall goal of showing a child that engagement and cooperation with family needs is beneficial but, we should never be setting it up so the child is only working for $10 or making a value choice, based on what they can gain from the individual behavior in the moment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Here is where it can get quite complicated. So, in teaching behavior analysts, parents and other professionals \u201cThe 7 Steps to Earning Instructional Control,\u201d I usually word it this way:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
We never want the child to be making good choices for a specific thing they can gain but, we want them to generally see through experience that good choices consistently leads to better overall outcomes and a better life. In other words, I\u2019m not going to teach a child that washing the car is worth $10 but, I might use $10 (along with many other reinforcers in many other situations) to show the child that engaging in positive ways is generally beneficial and worthwhile. This will occur, because the result of positive interactions with others consistently leads to a happier and more fulfilling existence through reinforcement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Now, when someone tries to avoid using positive reinforcement, what they do is refuse to allow the child\u2019s good choice making lead to positive outcomes. By not being the giver of good things on a regular basis, the parent or teacher loses the opportunity to be seen as a positive in the child\u2019s life. When someone who doesn\u2019t truly understand reinforcement chooses to try to avoid all reinforcement in a desire to get children to \u201cdo things because they are told or they are supposed to,\u201d what they generally end up doing is gaining their cooperation through an overwhelming use of negative reinforcement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
When using negative reinforcement in teaching, the teacher has to set up an aversive stimulus (something the child does not want to deal with) and then try to get the child to respond appropriately as a way to end or avoid that aversive stimulus. In most cases, the quickest and easiest aversive to use is the teacher or parent\u2019s nagging. If your child comes home from school and puts their bookbag away, because they want to avoid you nagging them or embarrassing them or punishing them, you haven\u2019t avoided using reinforcement. You have just been using negative reinforcement. If the way you get a child to put his name on his paper is to call him out in class, make a joke at his expense or stand over him and keep tapping at the paper and not let him go to recess until he has done it, you are not avoiding using reinforcement, you are just using negative reinforcement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Negative reinforcement, such as described above, will ultimately get you what you want but, it will also teach the child that behavior is something they do to avoid or escape you and your demands. Conversely, if a child puts their bags away or writes their name on their paper out of a desire to spend more time and have more fun with you or gain something of value from you, you are still getting the positive outcomes. But, in this case, the child is seeing you as someone they want to be with and will begin doing this important behavior as a way to gain more social interaction and benefits from you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For these reasons, most teachers or parents who try to avoid using reinforcement generally either fail at getting the cooperation and teaching the skills they desire, or they succeed but damage their relationship. The damage is caused by choosing to be a dictator rather than social partner and lead.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There are other parents or professionals that don\u2019t try to eschew all reinforcement, but instead suggest that they avoid the use of extrinsic reinforcers and want the child to intrinsically want to do the behaviors of interest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
According to the website verywellmind.com: \u201cIntrinsic motivation refers to behavior that is driven by internal rewards. In other words, the motivation to engage in a behavior arises from within the individual because it is naturally satisfying. This contrasts with extrinsic motivation<\/a>que consiste en adoptar un comportamiento para obtener recompensas externas o evitar castigo<\/a>.\"<\/p>\n\n\n\n Lo que esta definici\u00f3n intenta transmitir es que si un comportamiento es natural o automotivador, el ni\u00f1o lo llevar\u00e1 a cabo porque se siente bien o porque hay un beneficio interno natural. Si la motivaci\u00f3n es externa, el ni\u00f1o no la realizar\u00e1 de forma natural, sino que necesitar\u00e1 motivadores externos para participar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As\u00ed que, esto es encantador. \u00bfPor qu\u00e9 no ense\u00f1amos s\u00f3lo con motivaci\u00f3n intr\u00ednseca? Bueno, si algo que quisi\u00e9ramos ense\u00f1ar ya estuviera intr\u00ednsecamente motivado, lo m\u00e1s probable es que el ni\u00f1o ya lo estuviera haciendo. Por lo menos, s\u00f3lo tendr\u00edamos que present\u00e1rselo una vez y la motivaci\u00f3n intr\u00ednseca se encargar\u00eda de que siguiera haci\u00e9ndolo. \u00bfA cu\u00e1ntos de ustedes les motiva intr\u00ednsecamente aprender las tablas de multiplicar? \u00bfA cu\u00e1ntos de ustedes les motiva intr\u00ednsecamente correr largas distancias? \u00bfA cu\u00e1ntos de ustedes les motiva intr\u00ednsecamente limpiar la casa? <\/p>\n\n\n\n Es cierto que algunos de nosotros podr\u00edamos encontrar cualquiera de esas cosas intr\u00ednsecamente motivadora, pero dudo que muchos de ustedes fueran capaces de decir \"s\u00ed\" a las tres. (E incluso si lo hicieran, estoy seguro de que podr\u00eda encontrar muy f\u00e1cilmente otra actividad diaria esperada para la que estar\u00edan de acuerdo en que la respuesta es \"no\").<\/p>\n\n\n\n Entonces, si no tienes un deseo interno de aprender matem\u00e1ticas o no tienes un deseo interno de correr o limpiar tu casa, \u00bfc\u00f3mo puedo yo, como tu profesor, padre o gu\u00eda, conseguir que hagas esas cosas utilizando s\u00f3lo la motivaci\u00f3n intr\u00ednseca? Esa es una muy buena pregunta para la que todav\u00eda estoy esperando una respuesta.<\/p>\n\n\n\n De forma parecida a cuando se ense\u00f1a a un ni\u00f1o sobre la caries y las enfermedades de las enc\u00edas, supongo que estos profesores o padres creen que conseguir que un ni\u00f1o limpie su habitaci\u00f3n por motivaci\u00f3n intr\u00ednseca implica alg\u00fan tipo de explicaci\u00f3n de todos los beneficios futuros de tener una habitaci\u00f3n limpia. \"La habitaci\u00f3n estar\u00e1 ordenada y podr\u00e1s encontrar tus cosas m\u00e1s f\u00e1cilmente\". \"No pisar\u00e1s cosas accidentalmente\". \"No te insistir\u00e9 para que la limpies todo el tiempo\". \"Tendr\u00e1s m\u00e1s espacio para exponer tus creaciones de Lego\". Y la \"verdadera\" raz\u00f3n por la que deber\u00edas hacerlo: \"Una vez que hayas limpiado, sentir\u00e1s una sensaci\u00f3n de logro y orgullo\". Lo que la mayor\u00eda de la gente no entiende es que todas estas \"razones\" dadas antes de que se produzca la conducta no son m\u00e1s que formas de promesas de refuerzo. No son sustancialmente diferentes de un soborno o de una afirmaci\u00f3n \"si\/entonces\". Si limpias tu habitaci\u00f3n, entonces no tendr\u00e1s que pisar cosas accidentalmente, etc. La verdad es que no pisar las cosas no es m\u00e1s que una forma de refuerzo negativo, al igual que dejar de tener a mam\u00e1 insisti\u00e9ndole para que limpie su habitaci\u00f3n. Adem\u00e1s, tener un lugar donde exponer los Legos o sentirse orgulloso son dos formas de refuerzo positivo.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As\u00ed, en un intento de evitar el uso de refuerzos para ayudar a un ni\u00f1o que no est\u00e1 intr\u00ednsecamente motivado para limpiar su propia habitaci\u00f3n, estos profesores y padres se ven obligados a utilizar exactamente los sobornos que dicen querer evitar. Y al hacerlo, con una lista tan limitada de reforzadores naturales entre los que elegir, es mucho menos probable que tengan \u00e9xito en su objetivo final de conseguir que el ni\u00f1o quiera de forma natural tener una habitaci\u00f3n limpia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Ahora, utilicemos un enfoque conductual de la crianza que podr\u00eda recomendarse para este objetivo de conseguir que un ni\u00f1o quiera intr\u00ednsecamente limpiar su habitaci\u00f3n. En \"The 7 Steps to Successful Parenting\" se recomienda utilizar grandes dosis de refuerzo positivo y evitar en la medida de lo posible el refuerzo negativo y las afirmaciones \"si\/entonces\". Tambi\u00e9n trabajamos para pasar de los refuerzos tangibles a los refuerzos sociales y a los refuerzos intr\u00ednsecos.<\/p>\n\n\n\n En primer lugar, intentamos reducir la carga de trabajo de nuestras instrucciones en la medida de lo posible para que sean algo que probablemente podamos conseguir del ni\u00f1o con una motivaci\u00f3n m\u00ednima. As\u00ed, en lugar de empezar con la instrucci\u00f3n de \"limpia tu habitaci\u00f3n\" (que podr\u00eda implicar una hora de mover y organizar, etc.), podr\u00edamos optar por empezar con la instrucci\u00f3n mucho m\u00e1s f\u00e1cil de \"pon tus mu\u00f1ecas en esta caja.\"<\/p>\n\n\n\n Entonces, en lugar de sobornar al ni\u00f1o con una frase del tipo \"si\/entonces\", esperamos a que demuestre alg\u00fan tipo de motivaci\u00f3n por un objeto o actividad que nosotros controlamos. Por ejemplo: el ni\u00f1o entra y dice \"Mam\u00e1, \u00bfpodemos jugar a un juego?\". Mam\u00e1 se da cuenta de que es un motivador que podr\u00eda utilizarse como refuerzo para el objetivo de limpiar la habitaci\u00f3n, as\u00ed que dice: \"Claro cari\u00f1o, lo preparar\u00e9 pero, necesito que vayas a tu habitaci\u00f3n y pongas tus mu\u00f1ecas en su caja.\" En este caso no estamos utilizando un enunciado \"si\/entonces\" en el que identificamos nuestro deseo y ofrecemos algo a cambio. En su lugar, utilizamos un \"primero\/despu\u00e9s\" en el que el ni\u00f1o identifica un deseo y nosotros dictamos lo que hay que hacer para conseguirlo. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Si consideramos la ecuaci\u00f3n del balanc\u00edn, si el deseo de jugar a un juego con mam\u00e1 es m\u00e1s valioso o tiene m\u00e1s peso que el deseo de evitar meter sus mu\u00f1ecas en una caja, es muy probable que lo haga y que lo haga con gusto. Una vez que lo haga, mam\u00e1 jugar\u00e1 con \u00e9l al juego como refuerzo positivo.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Entonces, \u00bfqu\u00e9 ha pasado aqu\u00ed hasta ahora? Mam\u00e1 no soborn\u00f3 al ni\u00f1o con una afirmaci\u00f3n \"si\/entonces\". El ni\u00f1o acudi\u00f3 a mam\u00e1 en busca de ayuda para satisfacer un deseo y mam\u00e1 le dijo: \"Claro, har\u00e9 eso contigo en cuanto hagas... (una conducta modificada de inter\u00e9s)\".<\/p>\n\n\n\n A continuaci\u00f3n, el ni\u00f1o completaba felizmente la conducta modificada que le interesaba y mam\u00e1 reforzaba positivamente esta conducta jugando al juego con el ni\u00f1o, lo que hac\u00eda m\u00e1s probable que el ni\u00f1o cooperara con las instrucciones de mam\u00e1 en el futuro. Tambi\u00e9n es probable que el ni\u00f1o empiece a ver las instrucciones de mam\u00e1 como caminos f\u00e1ciles hacia la diversi\u00f3n. Una ventaja adicional es que ahora la madre puede participar en una interacci\u00f3n positiva contenta de haber visto progresos y, al hacerlo, contribuir\u00e1 a construir una relaci\u00f3n afectiva m\u00e1s positiva. <\/p>\n\n\n\n El ni\u00f1o aprende que las relaciones se desarrollan y nutren a trav\u00e9s de un dar y recibir positivo. Tambi\u00e9n aprende que cooperar con las peticiones de mam\u00e1 no es demasiado dif\u00edcil y que, por lo general, conduce a cosas buenas. Adem\u00e1s, esas cosas buenas implican interacciones positivas con la madre y el ni\u00f1o.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Los padres pueden seguir haciendo esto con diferentes tareas de limpieza de la habitaci\u00f3n como pr\u00f3ximas instrucciones que dar. Podr\u00edan decir: \"Claro, puedes tomarte unas uvas, pero primero ve a hacer la cama\". Podr\u00edan intentar: \"S\u00ed, puedes ver un programa pero, necesito que primero pongas tu ropa en el cesto\".<\/p>\n\n\n\n Siempre que la madre entienda la percepci\u00f3n del ni\u00f1o sobre el nivel de dificultad de lo que le est\u00e1 pidiendo que haga, as\u00ed como el nivel de importancia de lo que le est\u00e1 pidiendo, se asegurar\u00e1 de que el balanc\u00edn est\u00e9 preparado a su favor. Cuando el balanc\u00edn est\u00e9 colocado correctamente, el ni\u00f1o empezar\u00e1 a cooperar sistem\u00e1ticamente, no por un objeto espec\u00edfico como $10, sino por saber que \"dar y recibir\" con mam\u00e1 siempre VALE LA PENA.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Esto empieza a crear un patr\u00f3n de comportamiento de ver la cooperaci\u00f3n con mam\u00e1 como algo positivo. Ya no ser\u00e1 un obst\u00e1culo para las cosas buenas, sino el camino hacia ellas. Adem\u00e1s, mam\u00e1 pasa a ser vista como una \"dadora de cosas buenas\" en el entorno y no como una rega\u00f1ona o una capataz.<\/p>\n\n\n\n En este sentido, es importante recomendar a los padres que emparejen la administraci\u00f3n de refuerzos con la de elogios y otros refuerzos sociales. El principio conductual del emparejamiento muestra que, con el tiempo, dos elementos que se experimentan juntos empiezan a tener propiedades de valor compartido. En otras palabras, si un ni\u00f1o no limpia su habitaci\u00f3n a cambio de un elogio, pero trabaja para tener acceso a un refuerzo tangible, se puede emparejar sistem\u00e1ticamente el elogio con los elementos tangibles para que el elogio aumente su valor percibido. Esto ocurrir\u00e1, con el tiempo, debido al principio de emparejamiento.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A medida que el ni\u00f1o empieza a disfrutar y a gustarle cada vez m\u00e1s el elogio, \u00e9ste puede empezar a ser lo bastante fuerte como para actuar como su propio refuerzo en tareas m\u00e1s peque\u00f1as y f\u00e1ciles, como meter los mu\u00f1ecos en una caja. Entonces, como padre, puedes empezar a utilizar el refuerzo tangible (emparejado con el elogio) para pedir instrucciones un poco m\u00e1s exigentes como: \"Claro, en cuanto metas los mu\u00f1ecos en la caja y hagas la cama\".<\/p>\n\n\n\n Uno de los beneficios secundarios de que el ni\u00f1o limpie ahora su habitaci\u00f3n de buena gana es que los sentimientos de beneficio de tener una habitaci\u00f3n limpia (por los que usted quer\u00eda que el ni\u00f1o trabajara intr\u00ednsecamente) son cada vez m\u00e1s evidentes para el ni\u00f1o, a medida que sigue experimentando el beneficio de la habitaci\u00f3n limpia. Adem\u00e1s, esta motivaci\u00f3n interna s\u00f3lo aumentar\u00e1 si la limpieza de la habitaci\u00f3n va acompa\u00f1ada de elogios sociales positivos y refuerzos tangibles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Siguiendo este camino, se puede llegar a un punto en el que el ni\u00f1o sea capaz de limpiar toda su habitaci\u00f3n cuando se le pida una combinaci\u00f3n de elogios, motivaci\u00f3n intr\u00ednseca y tangibles, todo ello mientras ve a los padres como personas que tienen m\u00e1s posibilidades de mejorar su vida.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Ahora bien, este es s\u00f3lo un ejemplo de la cantidad de maneras en que \"Los 7 Pasos para Ganarse el Control Instructivo\" funciona para fomentar la cooperaci\u00f3n y el deseo de mantener el comportamiento ense\u00f1ado, a la vez que construye una mejor relaci\u00f3n entre el ni\u00f1o y sus padres. Hay miles m\u00e1s que podr\u00eda darle si tuvi\u00e9ramos tiempo. Le dar\u00e9 muchos de estos, as\u00ed como le ayudar\u00e9 a generalizar el uso de estos principios en mis cursos y entrenamiento pero, el punto principal, que quiero compartir hoy es este:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Al igual que las personas respiran ox\u00edgeno del aire que les rodea durante todo el d\u00eda y lo necesitan para sobrevivir, las personas responden y aprenden del refuerzo que les rodea durante todo el d\u00eda y lo necesitan para guiar su comportamiento. Desarrollar un plan de comportamiento que garantice que hay suficiente refuerzo en los momentos adecuados del d\u00eda es como asegurarse de que alguien que tiene dificultades para respirar dispone de suficiente ox\u00edgeno para respirar m\u00e1s c\u00f3modamente.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Asegurarse a prop\u00f3sito de que se dispone de suficiente refuerzo para ayudar a un ni\u00f1o a tomar las decisiones que se le quiere ense\u00f1ar es como conectar a alguien a un tanque de ox\u00edgeno. Utilizar el refuerzo como principio conductual para tener \u00e9xito en la ense\u00f1anza no es diferente de utilizar un tanque de ox\u00edgeno para asegurarse de que alguien que lo necesita est\u00e1 recibiendo un suministro suficientemente limpio de algo que debe tener para tener \u00e9xito. Cualquiera que le diga lo contrario desconoce las muchas maneras en que se utiliza el refuerzo en los programas ABA modernos y de calidad, y est\u00e1 malinterpretando sus propios \u00e9xitos al intentar atribuir el crecimiento a algo distinto del refuerzo. Recuerde, el comportamiento no puede crecer sin refuerzo, as\u00ed que si est\u00e1n teniendo \u00e9xito, est\u00e1n reforzando. Es probable que no sepan c\u00f3mo ayudarle a adaptarse, cuando la intervenci\u00f3n que han elegido no es lo suficientemente reforzante como para producir resultados positivos. Para cualquiera que est\u00e9 luchando por conseguir el tipo de relaci\u00f3n positiva, divertida, cari\u00f1osa y de dar y recibir con un ni\u00f1o, aprender a entender y utilizar de forma competente el refuerzo es imprescindible. Este principio se ense\u00f1a en detalle (as\u00ed como otros principios conductuales importantes), cuando se aprende a trabajar con \"Los 7 pasos para una crianza exitosa.\"<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" No creo que haya nada en la ciencia del comportamiento que est\u00e9 mejor investigado y comprendido que el poder y la importancia del principio del refuerzo. Sin embargo, puede que no haya un principio conductual m\u00e1s incomprendido fuera del mundo cient\u00edfico. Para entender realmente el Refuerzo hay que empezar por ser [...]<\/p>","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":4514,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"none","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"default","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"disabled","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"default","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[196],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4479","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-reinforcement"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/robertschrammconsulting.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4479","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/robertschrammconsulting.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/robertschrammconsulting.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/robertschrammconsulting.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/robertschrammconsulting.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4479"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/robertschrammconsulting.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4479\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4480,"href":"https:\/\/robertschrammconsulting.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4479\/revisions\/4480"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/robertschrammconsulting.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4514"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/robertschrammconsulting.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4479"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/robertschrammconsulting.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4479"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/robertschrammconsulting.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4479"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}