Triadic Model—Dynamics of Behavior Change

Summary: In the present section, we have suggested a model by which the principles of learning may be systemati­cally applied to the natural environment. The basic technique is contingency management; that is to say, a positively reinforcing event must follow desirable behavior, and must not follow undesirable behavior. A positively reinforcing event is defined as that outcome in which the resolved sign of all sources of reinforcement is +. The task of the consultant is to select mediators and behaviors which will maximize the posi­tive resolution. The task can be facilitated by attending to the role positions and the specific available reinforcers for each individual in the chain. Each individual in the chain must attend to the primary task of modifying the behavior of the next individual in the chain, not the target's behavior. That behavior should be chosen for the next individual, which will then ultimately maximize the behavior correction of the target. [Reprinted from Behavior Modification in the Natural Environment, Academic Press, 1969]