Behavioral regulation: associated theories and uses in Psychology

Theories of behavioral regulation offer proposals for learning and training.

It is well known to those who study human behavior that motivation is essential when a person pursues a goal or reinforcement. Two of the theories that attempt to explain this fact are the associative structure of instrumental conditioning and behavioral regulation.

Throughout this article we will see the theories of behavioral regulationWe will explain which were its precedents and how this model is applied in behavior modification techniques.

What does behavioral regulation consist of?

In comparison with structural conditioning, which focuses on the responses of each individual, their motivational antecedents and the specific consequences of these, behavioral regulation encompasses a broader context.

In behavioral regulation behavioral regulation studies all the behavioral options that an organism has at its disposal in order to achieve something that will serve as a reinforcer. that will serve as reinforcement. It is a much more practical perspective that focuses on how the conditions of the situation or context limit or influence a person's behaviors.

• You may be interested in "What is positive or negative reinforcement in Psychology?"

Precedents in Psychology and Education

As previously mentioned, in instrumental conditioning reinforcers were considered as special stimuli that provoked a situation of satisfaction, and therefore strengthened the person.and therefore strengthened the instrumental behavior.

However, not all theorists were in complete agreement with these ideas, so alternatives such as the consummatory response theory, Premack's principle or the response deprivation hypothesis began to emerge. These would establish the basis of behavioral regulation.

1. Consummatory response theory

This theory developed by Sheffield and his collaborators was the first to question the rules of instrumental conditioning..

According to Sheffield, there are a series of species-specific behaviors that are reinforcing in themselves. Examples of these behaviors would be eating and drinking habits. The consummatory response theory hypothesizes that these behaviors constitute a reinforcing response in and of themselves.

The revolutionary idea of this theory consists of investigating the types of reinforcing responses rather than the reinforcing stimuli.

2. Premack's principle

The ideas reflected in Premack's principle represented an advance in existing thinking about reinforcement mechanisms. According to this principle, the reinforcers to be given importance were responses rather than stimuli.

Also known as the Differential Probability Principle, it theorizes that when there is a link between two stimuli (responses), the situation that is more likely to occur will positively reinforce the other. will positively reinforce the other with a lower probability of occurrence..

Premack and his team argued that a reinforcing response can be any behavior or activity that the subject perceives as positive. In this way, a behavior that is valued as positive or pleasant and that is performed habitually will increase the probability that another less attractive behavior will be performed; but for this to happen both have to be presented in a contingent manner.

For example, eating would be a positive, habitual and species-specific reinforcing response. However, cooking does not have to be. However, if the person wants to obtain the reinforcement, in this case to feed himself, he will have to cook even if this is not so attractive to him. Therefore, the pleasant reinforcing response will also promote the other response.

3. Response deprivation hypothesis

According to the response deprivation hypothesis proposed by Timberlake and Allison, when the reinforcing response is restricted, this response is instrumentally promoted..

In other words, what is important is not the proportion or probability with which one behavior is performed and not another, but rather that the mere fact of prohibiting the reinforcing behavior will motivate the person to want to perform it.

This hypothesis can be seen reflected in an infinite number of contexts or situations in which the mere fact of being forbidden to do something will work as a motivator to make us want to do it. to make us want to do it even more.

This theory is totally opposed to Premack's, since it argues that the deprivation of the reinforcing response has a greater power to incentivize instrumental behavior than the differential probability of carrying out one response or another.

Behavioral regulation and the point of behavioral delight

The idea of regulation is intimately tied to the notion of equilibrium or homeostasis. This means that If people have a distribution of their activities that is satisfactory to them, they will try to maintain it at all costs. at all costs. Thus, the moment that something or someone interferes with this equilibrium, the behavior must change in order to return to normal.

Therefore, the point of behavioral delight is the distribution of responses or behaviors preferred by the distribution of responses or behaviors preferred by the person.. This distribution can be reflected in the number of times or the amount of time spent on an activity or behavior.

In this case we can imagine a child who likes playing video games more than studying, one activity is pleasurable and the other is carried out out out of obligation. Consequently, the distribution of behaviors of this child will be playing 60 minutes and studying 30 minutes. This would be his point of delight.

However, although this distribution is pleasurable for the person, it does not always have to be the healthiest or most appropriate. According to behavioral regulation theories, the imposition of an instrumental contingency is necessary to modify negative behavior.

Imposition of a behavioral contingency

The objective of the technique of the imposition of an instrumental contingency is to to rectify or reform the person's distribution of behaviors by moving them away from the point of delight.. To this end, the therapist will resort to a series of behavior-modifying reinforcements and punishments.

If we return to the previous case, through the imposition of an instrumental contingency, the therapist will force the child to play the same amount of time as the child spends studying.. Therefore, if the child wants to play for 60 minutes he will have to study the same amount of time; or on the contrary, if he only wants to study for 30 minutes, this will be the amount of time he will have to play.

The result will be a redistribution of behavior that will remain between one option and the other, increasing the amount of desired behavior but without the person deviating too much from his or her point of delight.

The main contributions

The currents that bet on behavioral regulation as a way to increase motivation left numerous contributions and new points of view about behavior modification. These include:

• Paradigm shift in the conception of reinforcers.The paradigm shift in the conception of reinforcers, which go from being specific stimuli to specific responses.
• Concept of distribution of responses or behaviors as a method to increase instrumental behaviors.
• The distinction between reinforcing and instrumental responses is eliminated.. They are only distinguished within the therapeutic intervention.
• The notion of behavioral regulation develops the idea that people respond to or perform a behavior with the intention of maximizing its benefits.