debate: conditioning techniques to modify a child's behaviour

Question 1

points to make in the introduction

Answer 1

• children have always been punished/rewarded for their behaviour by adults
  -conditioning is being used in schools and by parents
• ethical issues raised
  -on the other hand overall…

Question 2

what have parents been influenced by to use conditioning techniques
(intro)

Answer 2

TV programmes such as supernally which shows how we can alter a Childs behaviour by using rewards and punishment

Question 3

what ethical issues have been raised with conditioning children
(intro)

Answer 3

is it okay to condition a child’s behaviour without their consent or to over ride their free will

Question 4

what could we say that conditioning children is (good, intro)

Answer 4

in the best interest of the child in the long run

Question 5

3 parts debate is split into

Answer 5

• school
• home
  -vulnerable individuals

Question 6

opening sentence for conditioning in the home

Answer 6

in the home, people often use popular conditioning methods to shape the behaviour of the child (pocket money or being grounded)

Question 7

evidence for conditioning in the home

Answer 7

supernanny Jo Frost introduced the naughty step to be used in the correction of inappropriate behaviour, prior to this technique, parents would often shout at the child. this is actually positively reinforcing the behaviour. the naughty step ensures the child doesn’t receive any positive reinforcement for their bad behaviour and allows for time to reflect on what they have done wrong. parents are also encouraged to make a fuss of what their child is doing right.

Question 8

explain why the evidence for conditioning in the home is a strength

Answer 8

this is a strength because conditioning techniques can be used to develop long term behaviours (i.e respect)

Question 9

weakness/evidence against conditioning in the home

Answer 9

these techniques have been criticised for their long term emotional effects. Morris claims that children are too young to reflect on their own behaviour and to say the feelings they experience from the naughty step. without help understanding their feelings the naughty step, could effect them gaining skills like respect.

Question 10

conclusion
using conditioning in the home

Answer 10

this suggests that without the use of conditoining strategies, children’s behaviour may be unruly. however, it is important for parents to consider the Childs temperament before using these techniques

Question 11

opening sentence for using conditioning in education

Answer 11

lots of teachers have used conditioning techniques (merits/detentions) to control the behaviour of pupils

Question 12

evidence for conditioning in schools

Answer 12

McAllister et al looked at inappropriate talking in school in English lessons. he found that increased praise (reward) and disapproval (punishment) led to a decrease in this behaviour whereas in a control condition there was no decrease.

Question 13

explain why the evidence for conditioning in schools is a strength

Answer 13

shows that conditioning can be used in schools to create an environment of good order.

Question 14

weakness/evidence against conditioning in school

Answer 14

some Montessori educators believe conditioning techniques are harmful to a child’s development, they interfere with a child’s drive to learn. Lepper et al conducted a research to support this. nursery children were asked to draw some nice pictures. when children were promised a reward they spent half as much time drawing as children who weren’t promised a reward, suggesting their own motivation had been destroyed by an extrinsic motivation.

Question 15

conclusion
using conditioning in education

Answer 15

this suggests that children would not be out of control in an educational setting without the use of conditioning techniques as the evidence shows that the use of conditioning in the classroom can destroy a Childs desire to learn.

Question 16

opening sentence
conditioning with vulnerable individuals

Answer 16

psychologist use conditioning techniques to deal with various physical and psychological conditions.

Question 17

evidence for the use of conditioning with vulnerable individuals

Answer 17

Lovaas developed applied behaviour analysis to increase the frequency and quality if social interactions for children with autism. targe behaviour might include language difficulties and problems with self-care. one-on-one therapy shapes the Childs behaviour. initially the child is rewarded for most behaviours but overtime the amount of rewards are
reduced and are only issued if behaviour is close to the target behaviour.

Question 18

explain why the evidence for the use of conditioning with vulnerable individuals is a strength

Answer 18

this shows conditioning can do lots of good and improve the quality of life of individuals who are suffering with mental health problems.

Question 19

weakness/evidence against using conditioning with vulnerable individuals

Answer 19

critics believe this method has many problems. Lovaas indicates the treatment is intensive (40 hours per week) apart from being very costly, Anderson et al found that 20 hours a week was enough to see improvement.

Question 20

conclusion
use of conditioning with vulnerable individuals

Answer 20

it seems unlikely that the behaviour of vulnerable individuals would be out of control without the use of conditioning techniques. very few individuals would be able to access such extensive treatments so other alternative methods for shaping behaviour must be equally successful

Question 21

points to be made in the conclusion

Answer 21

• evidence shows that children’s behaviour can be conditioned to fit into expectations
• we must question whether these techniques do more harm than goof
  -Tramell supports this view with evidence that conditioning techniques can have a long term behavioural and psychological consequences as they won’t know for themselves what right and wrong is
  -conditioning techniques may be contributing to ‘bad behaviour’
• better alternatives should be developed