Behavior modification through covert semantic desensitization

Rational-Emotive Therapy: Research Data That Supports The Clinical and Personality Hypotheses of RET and Other Modes of Cognitive-Behavior Therapy

This article examines 32 important clinical and personality hypotheses of rational-emotive therapy (RET) and other modes of cognitive-behavior therapy and lists a large number of research studies that provide empirical confirmation of these hypotheses. It concludes that (1) a vast amount of research data exists, most of which tends to confirm the major clinical and personality hypotheses of RET; (2) this data keeps increasing by leaps and bounds; (3) RET hypotheses nicely lend themselves to experimental investigation and therefore encourage a considerable amount of research; (4) researchers have not yet tested some of the major RET formulations and could do so with profit to the field of psychotherapy and personality theory.

Toward a common theory for learning from reward, affect, and motivation: the SIMON framework

While the effects of reward, affect, and motivation on learning have each developed into their own fields of research, they largely have been investigated in isolation. As all three of these constructs are highly related, and use similar experimental procedures, an important advance in research would be to consider the interplay between these constructs. Here we first define each of the three constructs, and then discuss how they may influence each other within a common framework. Finally, we delineate several sources of evidence supporting the framework. By considering the constructs of reward, affect, and motivation within a single framework, we can develop a better understanding of the processes involved in learning and how they interplay, and work toward a comprehensive theory that encompasses reward, affect, and motivation.

Rule-governed behavior: Unifying radical and paradigmatic behaviorism

Commonalities and differences between Skinner's analysis of verbal behavior and the paradigmatic behaviorism (PB) approach are described as a means of introducing the latter to behavior analysis. The focus is on treating the topic of rule-governed behavior-a topic of current interest in behavior analysis in addressing the challenge of cognitive psychology-within the PB framework. Dealing behaviorally with traditional psychology interests is considered important in PB, and this article aims to advance toward that goal. PB has presented a framework that deals with not only the behavioral description of language but also with language function as well as language acquisition. This includes a treatment of the manner in which verbal stimuli generally can control motor behavior. This framework includes analyses in addition to those present in the behavior analytic framework, along with empirical developments, and these can be used to enhance a behavioral understanding of important parts of verbal behavior and the effects of verbal stimuli on behavior, including rule-governed phenomena. Our purpose is to use the particular topic of rule-governed behavior to argue that a more explicit interaction between radical and paradigmatic behaviorism would advance behaviorism and also enable it to have a stronger impact upon psychology and the scientific community.

Psychological behaviorism and behaviorizing psychology

Paradigmatic or psychological behaviorism (PB), in a four-decade history of development, has been shaped by its goal, the establishment of a behaviorism that can also serve as the approach in psychology (Watson's original goal). In the process, PB has become a new generation of behaviorism with abundant heuristic avenues for development in theory, philosophy, methodology, and research. Psychology has resources, purview and problem areas, and nascent developments of many kinds, gathered in chaotic diversity, needing unification (and other things) that cognitivism cannot provide. Behaviorism can, within PB's multilevel framework for connecting and advancing both psychology and behaviorism.

Valuable, but not maximal: it's time behavior therapy attend to its behaviorism

The field of behavior therapy is not in touch with itself in terms of its overarching behaviorism. Many erroneously consider its basic behaviorism to have been radical behaviorism and continue to look to develop behavior therapy (including behavior analysis and behavioral assessment) within that framework. But that approach turns out to be much less than maximal because there is a more advanced, better developed behaviorism within which to conduct and project the field. There is much that behavior therapy is not doing in practice and research because it is not making full use of that behaviorism foundation.

Suggestion/placebo effects on pain: negative as well as positive

This study explores the effect of positive and negative placebo suggestions on pain induced by hand exposures to ice water. Thirty-six participants were randomly assigned to one of the following interventions: (a) positive placebo suggestion, (b) negative placebo suggestion, and (c) control. The positive placebo-suggestion participants were given favorable messages about the beneficial effects of ice-water hand immersion. The negative placebo-suggestion group was given messages depicting the negative effects of exposure to ice water. The control groups were given neutral messages about exposure to ice water. Participants rehearsed the messages and focused on them during their second hand exposures. Results indicate that both the positive and negative placebo-suggestion interventions significantly altered participants' pain threshold, pain tolerance, and pain endurance. Participants exposed to a positive placebo condition tolerated pain better than a neutral condition. Participants exposed to a negative placebo did not tolerate pain as well as participants with a neutral condition.

Higher-order semantic counterconditioning of Filipino women's evaluations of heterosexual behaviors

The purpose of this study was to determine if semantic counterconditioning could modify semantic differential ratings regarding premarital sexual behaviors, in Filipino women whose culture exerts great control over such matters. A total of 303 unmarried, predominantly middle class, English speaking, Roman Catholic Filipino women aged 15-21 years volunteered to be subjects. Significant changes in the semantic differential ratings were obtained in four of the five CS (conditioned stimuli) phrases for subjects receiving semantic counterconditioning. Lesser changes in the semantic differential ratings for the same phrases were obtained from subjects in the Pseudo Conditioning and Repetition Control groups.

Semantic desensitization: language conditioning or demand characteristics manipulation?

Previous studies in language conditioning, especially those called semantic desensitization, have shown changes in self-report, behavioral measures, and the semantic meaning of the target concept following treatment. This last has been proposed as a causal variable but experimental and control groups differed greatly in terms of their demand characteristics. The present study included a placebo group with demand characteristics similar to those of the control group. The target area was self-concept (18 male Ss, 9 female Ss). Significant changes in self-report and actual performance with a hand dynamometer were obtained but these were as great for the placebo group as for the experimental groups. It was suggested that factors other than conditioning are of importance in semantic desensitization.