behaviour therapy

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Behaviour therapy uses psychological techniques to overcome problem behaviours. It is used to change the habits of those with eating disorders, whether they are overeating or undereating. Therapists usually achieve this by establishing new attitudes and by focusing, not on the food, but on a person's behaviour around the food. The therapy uses a wide range of psychological techniques including stimulus control where, for example, a person susceptible to impulse buying, learns to shop only after eating, or shopping only from a prescribed list. Appropriate rewards, such as praise from friends or treats, are used in the therapy to reinforce good behaviour. Subjects learn to control eating behaviour so that they can eat the correct amount of food. Those who should be eating less can learn to put down their knife and fork between mouthfuls of food and to chew food fully.

Setting appropriate goals is an important part of behaviour therapy. Subjects are discouraged from using words such as ‘always’ or ‘never’, and encouraged to set themselves achievable tasks. Physical activity could be increased, even by changing a simple routine, such as by walking to the corner shop rather than taking a car. Continuous feedback forms an essential part of most behaviour therapy. Eating and exercise habits are monitored by using a food and exercise diary. This enables problems to be identified and good behaviour to be rewarded. Behaviour therapy can be very effective, but it may take a long time to overcome problems. Those with serious eating disorders should seek professional help from a clinical psychologist.

Behaviour therapy is also used by athletes who suffer from excessive anxiety before competition. Some competitions, such as the Olympic Games, which are seen by millions of people may invoke a feeling of fear in even the most seasoned athlete. Behaviour therapy uses relaxation techniques and other procedures which enable the athlete to approach such a competition with optimal levels of physiological arousal and minimum anxiety.

For more information on behaviour therapy, visit Britannica.com.

An offspring of behaviourism, in which underlying cognitive states are ignored, but behaviour is itself rewarded or punished with different stimuli, in order to encourage or suppress it.

A technique for changing problem behaviour, including relaxation procedures requiring the subject to approach a feared situation gradually while maintaining physiological arousal at a low level.

Behavior therapy is a form of psychotherapy used to treat depression, anxiety disorders, phobias, and other forms of psychopathology. Its philosophical roots can be found in the school of behaviorism, which states that psychological matters can be studied scientifically by observing overt behavior, without discussing internal mental states.

History

Possibly the first occurrence of "behavior therapy" was in a 1953 research project by B.F. Skinner, Ogden Lindsley, and Harry C. Solomon.^[1] Other early pioneers in behavior therapy include Joseph Wolpe and Hans Eysenck.^[2]

In the second half of the 20th century, behavior therapy was coupled with the cognitive therapy of Aaron Beck and Albert Ellis, to form cognitive behavioral therapy.

Scientific basis

Behavior therapy is based upon the principles of classical conditioning developed by Ivan Pavlov and operant conditioning developed by B.F. Skinner. There has been up to now a good deal of confusion about how exactly these two conditionings differ and whether the various techniques of Behaviour Therapy have any common scientific base. One answer has come in the form of an online paper called Reinforcing Behaviour Therapy which more and more psychologists are now studying and appreciating.

Methods

• Systematic desensitization
• Exposure and response prevention

See also

• Cognitive therapy
• Cognitive behavioural therapy
• Behavior modification

References

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1. ^ Lindsley, O., Skinner, B.F., Solomon, H.C.. "Studies in behavior therapy (Status Report I)". Walthama, MA.: Metropolitan State Hospital.
2. ^ Clark, David M.; Christopher G. Fairburn (1997). Science and Practive of Cognitive Behaviour Therapy. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0192627260. 

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