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Whereas conditioning is about creating a desired behavior, it is often desirable to eradicate other behaviors. This is called 'extinction'. Natural extinction Behavior that have been created may become extinct if they are not fully maintained. Gradual decay.At any time, a response has at best a probabilistic correlation with stimuli. A loud noise that has been associated with pain will very likely cause a person anguish, but is not 100% certain in all cases. If the stimulus is not applied and the response thus not generated over a long period of time, then probability of conditioned behavior happening will decay in a given pattern. For example the person who has not heard the loud noise for some time would not experience as much discomfort as they would soon after conditioning.An important factor here is that conditioning must be maintained, with sufficiently frequent rehearsals and re-stimulus-and-response, for the pattern to continue over time. This implies that the underlying persona is not changed at a fundamental level, and that conversion, for example, is not a one-shot activity and requires constant attention. Predictability of stimulus If the condition has been created with regular and predictable reward or punishment, then the absence of the reward or punishment will quickly lead to extinction. If, however, the reward or punishment has been applied irregularly, then a second condition has been created where, upon receiving the stimulus, the person forecasts and imagines the reward or punishment being applied.This situation takes longer for the pattern to become extinct, as the person is now maintaining it themselves, without external stimuli. Eventually, by accident or trial the person will find that the reward or punishment does not happen and thus the behavior gradually becomes extinct.This is one reason why gambling is so addictive. The uncertainty as to whether the person will win or lose gives opportunity for prediction (and hope) of winning. Extinction through accustomizing Another way of making a behavior extinct is to help the person become accustomed to the stimulus and hence not find it frightening or stimulating in any way. Desensitization When a person receives a stimulus and experiences the conditioned response a number of times, then the intensity of the emotion they feel may well become dulled with familiarity. This is used in therapy for example by starting with a weak triggering, and increasing the stimulus at the speed at which the person becomes desensitized.This is also apparent in the use of pornography. A person who is stimulated by a pornographic image will find that it soon has less effect than it previously had. This leads them to seek to capture the experience with further images, and sometimes yet more erotic (and even illegal) tendencies.

InoculationInoculation is a simple method, analogous to medical inoculation, where you present a weakened form of the experience such that the person finds it easy (and even laughably so) to resist a simulated 'attack'. When faced with the real situation, then they remember how easily they defended against the weak attack and so are better able to handle the real thing. Extinction through extreme experience A strange thing that happens sometimes is that a behavior may become extinct not through ignoring the triggers that cause it, but actually exacerbating it to the extreme. Reversing breakdown Pavlov found, with his discovery of the three stages of breakdown, a fourth stage, where dogs faced with near-death experiences 'forgot' all of their previous conditioning (and it took Pavlov several months to reinstate them). Flooding This is used in therapy, where it is called flooding. A stimulus is constantly applied and more extreme responses encouraged until there is a sudden reversal and the stimulus no longer has any effect. Aversion therapy Aversion therapy uses the methods of conditioning to break a conditioned experience. Thus a behavior that is not desirable is punished when it appears. In therapy, techniques such as electric shocks have been used, and are understandably controversial (if you have seen Stanley Kubrick's 'Clockwork Orange' then you will appreciate the potential effects). It is not clear the extent to which aversion therapy works at all. So what? If you want to eradicate a behavior, you can either ignore it and hope it goes away, or you can deliberately use desensitation or flooding methods - be extremely careful with flooding (it is not recommended except by psychological professionals), as done wrong it can simply worsen the situation. Don't bother with aversion methods - they are not reliable and could cause moral backlashes. Punishment Description This is the dissonance felt when a person lack sufficient external justification for having resisted a desired activity or object. This often results in the person devaluing the forbidden thing. Research Aronson and Carlsmith (1963) threatened children with either mild or severe punishment if they played with favored toys. None of them played with toys, even when left alone with them. Afterwards the children who had only been mildly threatened favored the toys less. Lacking a strong external

justification, they had made internal attributions that they actually did not like the toys so much. Example Company disciplinary systems often start with a weak dissuasion. This is all that most people need. Before long they not only follow but believe the company line.

people behave differently to our images of them, when we hold any conflicting thoughts, we experience dissonance.Dissonance increases with the importance and impact of the decision, along with the difficulty of reversing it. Discomfort about making the wrong choice of car is bigger than when choosing a lamp. Note: Self-Perception Theory gives an alternative view. Research

Using it To stop someone doing something, don’t threaten massive punishment. Threaten only just enough (or use some other minimal technique) to stop them for a while. Eventually, they will give up voluntarily. See also Description This is the feeling of uncomfortable tension which comes from holding two conflicting thoughts in the mind at the same time.

Festinger first developed this theory in the 1950s to explain how members of a cult who were persuaded by their leader, a certain Mrs Keech, that the earth was going to be destroyed on 21st December and that they alone were going to be rescued by aliens, actually increased their commitment to the cult when this did not happen (Festinger himself had infiltrated the cult, and would have been very surprised to meet little green men). The dissonance of the thought of being so stupid was so great that instead they revised their beliefs to meet with obvious facts: that the aliens had, through their concern for the cult, saved the world instead. In a more mundane experiment, Festinger and Carlsmith got students to lie about a boring task. Those who were paid $1 felt uncomfortable lying.

Dissonance increases with: Example

• • •

The importance of the subject to us. How strongly the dissonant thoughts conflict. Our inability to rationalize and explain away the conflict.

Dissonance is often strong when we believe something about ourselves and then do something against that belief. If I believe I am good but do something bad, then the discomfort I feel as a result is cognitive dissonance.Cognitive dissonance is a very powerful motivator which will often lead us to change one or other of the conflicting belief or action. The discomfort often feels like a tension between the two opposing thoughts. To release the tension we can take one of three actions:

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Change our behavior. Justify our behavior by changing the conflicting cognition. Justify our behavior by adding new cognitions.

Dissonance is most powerful when it is about our self-image. Feelings of foolishness, immorality and so on (including internal projections during decision-making) are dissonance in action. If an action has been completed and cannot be undone, then the after-the-fact dissonance compels us to change our beliefs. If beliefs are moved, then the dissonance appears during decision-making, forcing us to take actions we would not have taken before. Cognitive dissonance appears in virtually all evaluations and decisions and is the central mechanism by which we experience new differences in the world. When we see other

Smokers find all kinds of reasons to explain away their unhealthy habit. The alternative is to feel a great deal of dissonance. Punishment Punishment works when a behavior is weakened as a result of experiencing a negative condition. The basic structure is as follows: Do X ==> Z happens ==> Feel bad ==> Do X less Example A cow grazes an electric fence. It feels discomfort. It learns not to go near the fence. A child hits a sibling. It is made to stand in a corner. It hits siblings less in the future. Extinction Extinction occurs when a behavior is weakened as a result of not experiencing an expected positive condition or a negative condition is stopped. Y expected ==> Anticipate feeling good ==> Do X ==> Y does not happen ==> Feel bad ==> Do X less Z happens ==> Feel bad ==> Do X ==> Z does not happen ==> Feel better ==> Do X less

Example

Behavior

Condition

Positive reinforcement

Strengthened

Positive

Undesirable thinking can come in two forms. First, the person may be distracted by innocuous thoughts when they should be concentrating on a particular area. When I am reading or meditating, for example, someone talking nearby would be a distraction and cause my mind to wander onto the subjects about which they are talking. Distraction is thus just a block to conversion, slowing it down.People may also be taught thought-stopping methods as ways of blocking out dissuasive arguments when they meet them. Just as a child puts their hands over their ears and makes 'da-da-da' noises to block out what they do not want to hear, so a group member may distract their conscious, for example by reciting some form of litany to themselves or otherwise avoiding having to experience the tension of contradictory arguments.

Negative reinforcement

Strengthened

Negative

Dissuasion

Punishment

Weakened

Negative

Extinction

Weakened

Positive or negative

A dog sniffs around, looking for food and finds none in the outhouse. It does not look for food in the outhouse next time. A child screams and is ignored. They scream less in the future.

Name

punish Description A behavior will increase if it is followed by positive reinforcement. It will decrease if it is followed by punishment.Operant Conditioning is thus ‘learning by consequences’. Research Skinner put rats and pigeons in a box where pressing a lever resulted in food being dispensed. From accidental knocking of the lever, they quickly learned to deliberately press it to get food.

The second form of unwanted thoughts are when the person is thinking about something that will dissuade them and persuade otherwise from the thoughts that they should be having. This is far more serious that distraction as it can cause a reversal in the process of conversion, rather than a temporary pause.Dissuasion may occur accidentally or deliberately. Accidental dissuasion occurs, when the person reads, hears or sees something that is not targeted directly at them, but causes them to think the wrong thoughts. Preventing thoughts Isolation Isolation from distractions is commonly used at least at two levels. First, when practices such as meditation and prayer are used, then individual isolation removes immediate distractions. At the second level, individuals and groups may be isolated from the world, either to avoid any dissuasion of individuals or to remove distractions. Occupation

Example Parents often try to balance praise and punishment. To be effective, they should punish only behaviors they wish to extinguish--they should not punish for not doing what should be done.

Another simple way of limiting undesirable thoughts is to keep people busy with all kinds of physical and mental activities that gives them little time for any action, talk or reflection that may lead to wrong thoughts. Carrot and stick

So what? Using it If you want someone to work harder, do not punish them when they do not work—reward them when they do. If you want them to stop smoking, make it unpleasant when they do rather than pleasant when they refrain. The principle of 'thought stopping' is first to stop people thinking about those things which will distract or dissuade them from what they are supposed to be thinking. Undesirable thoughts Distraction

Operant Conditioning says that rewards causes behavior to be repeated, whilst punishment leads to extinction of behavior. Reward of right thinking and punishment of wrong thinking may thus be used to persuade and dissuade. • •

Kawalan ketat dan dendaan menyebabkan timbul perasaan ragu-ragu dan tidak gemar mencuba sesuatu yg baru dan mencabar. Kritikan dan dendaan menyebabkan wujud perasaan bersalah dan tidak berinisiatif.

Tiga elemen perkembangan personaliti manusia;iii) Supereg—menyerupai hati nurani, merupakan komponen sosial dan moral. bertanggungjawab menentukan sesuatu tingkah laku itu baik atau buruk berdasarkan kepada pendidikan yang

diterimanya sejak awal dulu, ia bersifat idealistik. Dapat melahirkan ganjaran yang berupa penghargaan diri dan dendaan yang berupa rasa bersalah dan kritik diri.