BEHAVIOUR
MODIFICATION IN CHILDREN
by Greg Stevenson
Behaviour
modification is a term that can sound a little Orwellian.
To parents of struggling teens, behaviour modification
may even sound like a blessing. Thoughts of sending kids
off to juvenile bootcamps to have negative and deviant
behaviours drilled out of them can sound appealing at
times. However, in most cases, the reality of behaviour
modification is somewhat different.
Behaviour
modification is a system of rewards (and sometimes punishments)
designed to influence behaviour in children. It is a technique
espoused by behavioural psychologists as an effective
tool for young children and youth with behavioural issues
or learning disabilities. Quite simply, desirable behaviours
are singled out and promoted using positive reinforcement.
But
how can behaviour modification help struggling teens?
Primarily, it's a way of simplifying the complex array
of behaviour patterns that emerge during that often tumultuous
period called adolescence. By singling out specific behaviours
and working to modify them through a cooperative approach,
distractions are reduced and expectations become clear.
For example, if Suzie is skipping school and hanging out
downtown with a negative peer group, then behaviour modification
might focus on encouraging Suzie to attend class. In order
to help her succeed in this goal, she would be rewarded
for regular attendance with something that pleases her.
In order to avoid distraction and complications, this
school attendance reward would be maintained independently
of other behaviour issues.
Sound
too simple? In most struggling teens cases it probably
is.
When
parents are mired with so many behaviour issues that they
can no longer single one out for modification, there may
be a need for intervention. This can involve a declared
truce with the child in an effort to 'start from scratch',
or it could involve professional help. Assuming that the
former has already been tried, we'll focus on professional
intervention options for struggling teens.
Parents
in crisis often resort to extreme measures to 'correct'
a child's behaviour. This can involve military-style juvenile
bootcamps and other strict authoritarian programming options.
While there may be benefits to these approaches, there
are also concerns. Military-style juvenile bootcamps have
been found to be ineffective in generating long-term change
in struggling teens, and concerns exist regarding "degrading
and dehumanizing" treatment of struggling teens at
military-style juvenile bootcamps (John Howard Society
of Alberta, 1997). In 1990, Morash & Rucker pointed
out the following about juvenile bootcamps: "The
very idea of using physically and verbally aggressive
tactics in an effort to 'train' people to act in a prosocial
manner is fraught with contradiction."
Therapeutic
wilderness programs provide an alternative to authoritarian
intervention techniques, approaching the necessary learning
in a more cooperative and supportive manner. By removing
a youth from his or her normal environment, many of the
problematic distractions are eliminated. This clears the
path for the development of new ways of behaving and interacting
with others. In contrast with the authoritarianism of
juvenile bootcamps, wilderness programs for struggling
teens use experiential learning and positive reinforcement
of constructive behaviour. This lays the foundation for
a fresh new start upon returning to the home environment,
allowing parents to then employ consistent behaviour modification
and management practices to maintain a positive relationship
with their children.
