How do outside influences impact the way people act?
How hard is it for one to pay attention, or maintain a particular action, when distractions are around you? This was the question that was attempted to be answered in a recent issue of the journal, Behavior Modification called The Effects of Presession Manipulations on Automatically Maintained Challenging Behavior and Task Responding. In this particular experiment, there were four human observations. These human observations, which did experience severe, learning disabilities, would be exposed to manipulations. The experimenters predicted that if these observations were given the distractions, then their (the observations) level of completion of a particular task and focus shown in completing the task will decrease (Abstract section – 479). The results of the experiment seemed to follow a similar pattern, supporting the researchers’ original hypothesis proposed.
The background information of the experiment in a condensed form will help understood in order to gain an appreciation of the experiment conducted. The term pression manipulations refer to the distractions that were given to the observations during the experiment duration. The manipulations in the experiment used depended on the individual observation, already predetermined to be liked by the particular observation himself/herself. A girl, who suffered multiple disorders, involved in the experiment, was given a ball and beads as the pression manipulations. A boy named Charlie, also with multiple disorders, was exposed to a musical instrument and a toy with six buttons to push. A fish tank and a toy piano was given to Lilly, a 11-year old girl with autism and mental retardation as the pression distractions, and finally, a ball and a keyboard for a girl who dealt with multiple disorders (482). That said the experimenters wanted to determine how these objects, when exposed would affect level of a given task for each observation. It is here that it is important to note that the “tasks” given is the dependent variable for which the experiment is based. While the experiment does not per say give a particular task to each experimental observation, it measures the individual’s task completion ability on the level of a Stereotype behavior shown. Stereotype behavior, known in the experiment as automatically maintained challenging behavior, is a behavioral pattern that involves consistent movement, either physical or auditory, that is most associated with children with disabilities.
Overall the entire experiment consisted of three separate experiments – the first experiment dealing with functional analysis of each individual in the experiment, the second experiment was an analysis of the manipulations/distractions used for each individual, and the final experiment dealt with a cross analysis of the previous experiments. I will not go into too much detail as to the finer points of the overall experiment design, as these are not needed to have a general grasp of the entire experimental design and purpose, but each experiment was organized in such a way to build upon on another.
The first experiment dealt with measuring the functioning levels of each experimental individual, to measure where their levels of concentration were and the types of stereotypic behavior were shown. The second experiment dealt with introducing the manipulations, or the motivating operations, that affected the concentration and stereotypic behavior exhibited by each individual case. Motivating operations is defined as “changes in the environmental conditions that alter the extent to which a stimulus is reinforcing or punishing” and the “frequencies of behavior pertaining to that stimulus (480). The third experiment used was a cross analysis of both of the previous two experiments done (483).
After explaining the general experimental background information, the reader can now hold appreciation towards the overall findings of the researchers. The overall goal of this experiment, in more scientific terms, is to measure the affects of manipulations given to the levels of stereotypic behavior in the observations. Now, it is clear exactly what measured in the experiment, the purpose of measuring such variables, and the subsequent results that followed from such experimentation. The stereotypic behavior of the human observations served as the definition of task, or Automatically Maintained Challenging Behavior, and the manipulations given to the individuals (the toys given, etc.), were the influencing factors on these automatically maintained challenging behaviors. The overall findings of this relationship found that these manipulations did have an effect in disrupting the levels of a particular behavior shown. So, essentially, to expand on this conclusion, and to make it of significance to the audience at large, distractions that one feels attracted to or is fond of, will usually have a influencing impact on one’s exhibited levels of an innate behavior, whether that be leg-shaking, foot-tapping, or other physical patterns.
Works Cited:
- Image (first image): https://firststeptosuccess.sri.com/images/pic_1.JPG
- Image (second image): http://photos.demandstudios.com/227/170/fotolia_5804666_XS.jpg
- Chung, Yi-Chieh, Cannella-Malone, Helen I. The Effects of Presession Manipulations on Automatically Maintained Challenging Behavior and Task Responding Behavior Modification. November 2010: 479-502, first published on July 26, 2010. http://bmo.sagepub.com.libproxy.lib.unc.edu/content/34/6/479.full.pdf+html
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