Principles of Behavior Analysis

Today we are going to talk about the 3 principles of behavior:

What is a principle of behavior? It's a rule of nature to describe the relationship between responses and events that influence behavior. Simple right?

Now what are the 3 principles of behavior?

• Reinforcement

• Punishment

• Extinction

They might sound familiar since they were mentioned in our Skinner blog!

Let's dive into each principle and see how it works

Reinforcement: there are 2 types of reinforcement (positive and negative), which means it can increase the effect of future frequency of behavior.

The most common reinforcement we use is positive reinforcement, this means the person gets something after the behavior occurs, such as a sticker.

Here is a 3 term contingency to help you follow along:

• Antecedent/Sd: Clap hands

• Behavior: Client claps

• Consequence (positive reinforcement): Client gets a stickers

• In the future, there is a larger possibility that he will clap when told "clap" in the future

Punishment: there are 2 types of punishment (positive and negative), which means it can decrease the effect of future frequency of behavior.

Here is a 3 term contingency to help you follow along:

• Antecedent/Sd: Clock; you are late for class

• Behavior: Running down the hallway

• Consequence (positive punishment): You get a detention for running

• In the future you are less likely to run to class due to the possibility of getting detention

Extinction: a previously reinforced response is discontinued, and the behavior decreases

Here is a 3 term contingency to help you follow along:

• Antecedent/Sd: Your dog sees you eating a hotdog

• Behavior: whining, barking and begging under your feet

• Consequence (Extinction): You pretend like you don't hear/see him and continue eating

• In the future there is a a more likely possibility that your dog won't even bother begging because he knows he won't get any food from you