A Theory of Rule-Governed Behavior

CH 24

Finishing papers, courses, degrees

• Daunting task

• Well-intentioned plans

• Sometimes things get in the way of completion

• Sometimes finishing is delayed or does not occur at all

• Ineffective contingencies

The PROBLEM:Procrastination

• I’ll do it after I watch this show on TV

• I’ll get to it once I finish ___ (fill in the blank)

• I mean to read my assignments

• I mean to get my homework done

• I want to do the necessary work

• I have good intentions

What if…

• Graduate school

Supervisory System

• What if a system were put in place to manage behavior?

• What would be effective?

• How would it work?

Dillon & Malott (1981)

• Problem: Attrition in Ph.D. & M.A. programs – Students not completing theses/dissertations

• Most previous research simply documented attrition rate or provided correlations between program characteristics & student success

Dillon & Malott (cont.)• Major recommendations for training programs

from previous research (recommendations based on subjective impressions):

1. Specification of research tasks and performance standards

2. Meetings with a supervisor

3. Deadlines

4. Feedback

5. Incentives

So…

• Designed a supervisory system for PhD & MA students

• Designed experiments to test the system

Dillon & Malott (cont.)

• Student’s research time & effort were considered inputs (or costs) to the supervisory system

• Receipt of a degree is considered the output (or value) of the system

Dillon & Malott (cont.)Two preliminary studies:

1. Studied components of supervisory system and found positive and negative points toward a letter of recommendation, combined with weekly feedback, effectively controlled research behavior

2. Have shown that points alone are effective (Note: Other parts of system must be working well,

including acceptable quality of research, cost (time/effort) of supervision time is low, other coursework is completed

Dillon & Malott (cont.)

• 34 MA & 5 PhD students in an ABA program @ WMU; 1 faculty advisor

• Ph.D. students supervised MA students

• 11 dependent variables…

• 3 groups

Dependent Variables1. Individual mtg. attendance (30 min/week)2. Review article (2 articles/week; 100 words/article)3. Data presentation (weekly if implementing research)4. Log (optional – 125 words; ideas, meeting notes)5. Hours (sum – minimum of 12/week)6. Output graphs (hours worked/week)7. Writing (formal manuscript write-up – 1,000 words)8. Editing (improved readability)9. Research proposal (200 words: problem, setting,

research recommendations)10. Non-recurring tasks (special applications: candidacy)11. Large-group mtg. attendance (2 hours/week)

Point & Feedback System

• Positive points if met criterion (+3)• Negative points if did not meet criterion (-3)• Letters of recommendation included the

percentage of positive and negative points earned by the student

• (they could earn extra credit)

Experimental Conditions

• Positive & negative points

• Positive points

• Feedback

• Instructions only

Components that could be in effect:

• Specification• Meetings• Deadlines• Feedback• Consequences

– Positive Points

– Negative Points

These components could be included in an individual’s system

Conditions manipulated & supervisory system components in effect

Supervisor

• Checked all of the tasks to gather data

Three Groups of Students

1. Generating

2. Implementing

3. Writing

Experimental Design

ResultsCollapsed data across the experimental conditions…

Additional Comparison

• Compared students involved in the behavioral system with other MA students (some in ABA and some not)

Discussion

• Within system: No overlap between points system and both feedback and instruction conditions across all 7 experiments

• Between system: B-S students start thesis activities sooner, more graduate in less time

• B-S students appreciated quantity and quality of feedback

The PROBLEM:Procrastination

• I’ll do it after I watch this show on TV

• I’ll get to it once I finish ___ (fill in the blank)

• I mean to read my assignments

• I mean to get my homework done

• I want to do the necessary work

• I have good intentions

The SOLUTION????

The BOSS warned me……

Did the WARNING help?

Two months later, work still not done…

Solution

Performance management:

Performance contracting

or

Behavioral contracting

(SYSTEM)

Performance Contract

• A written rule statement describing the desired or undesired behavior, the occasion when the behavior should or should not occur, and the added outcome for that behavior.

Performance Management Rules

1. Put it in writing

Tasks Proof

Do Done Do Done

Read three articles Notes 6 6

Write lecture10 PPT slides & 5 pages

6 6

Graph points earned Updated graph 0.1 1

Prepare contract for next week

Contract 0.1 1

Meet with Tom on SUN @ 5pm

Obvious 1 1

Totals 13.2 15

Hours Points

Contractor: TomDates: Weekend of 11/09/06 (Fri night, Sat, til Sun at noon)

Behavioral “Weekend Reading & Writing” Performance Contract

Performance Management Rules

1. Put it in writing

2. Have effective performance management contingencies

Ruth’s Contingencies

• If at least 15 points are earned by Sunday at 5 pm, Ruth will go out to movie that evening

• If less than 15 points are earned by Sunday at 5pm, Ruth will work until finished & not go to movie

Performance Management Rules1. Put it in writing

2. Have effective performance management contingencies

3. Performance not monitored once a week turns to Jell-o

Tasks Proof

Do Done Do Done

Read three articles Notes 6 6

Write lecture10 PPT slides & 5 pages

6 6

Graph points earned

Updated graph 0.1 1

Prepare contract for next week

Contract 0.1 1

Meet with Tom on SUN @ 5pm

Obvious 1 1

Totals 13.2 15

Hours Points

Contractee: RuthContractor: TomDates: Weekend of 11/09/02 (Fri night, Sat, til Sun at noon)

Behavioral “Weekend Reading & Writing” Performance Contract

Performance Management Rules

1. Put it in writing

2. Have effective performance management contingencies

3. Performance not monitored once a week turns to Jell-o

4. Specify the contingencies clearly

Tasks Proof

Do Done Do DoneWrite 6 hours on introduction & results

3 new pages 6 6

Write Lecture10 PPT slides & 5 pages

6 6

Graph points earned Updated graph 0.1 1

Prepare contract for next week

Contract 0.1 1

Meet with Tom on SUN @ 5pm

Obvious 1 1

Totals 13.2 15

Hours Points

Contractee: RuthContractor: TomDates: Weekend of 11/09/02 (Fri night, Sat, til Sun at noon)

Behavioral “Weekend Writing” Performance Contract

Performance Management Contingency

Before

Ruth will lose 6 points at meeting

S

After meeting at

5pm

SD

Before meeting at

5pm

After

Ruth will lose those 6 points at meeting

After

Ruth will not lose those 6 points at meetingBehavior

Ruth writes 10 PPT slides

& 5 pages

What kind of contingency is this?Avoidance of Loss

Before

Ruth will lose 6 points at meeting

S

After meeting at

5pm

SD

Before meeting at

5pm

After

Ruth will lose those 6 points at meeting

After

Ruth will not lose those 6 points at meetingBehavior

Ruth writes 3 pages

Performance Contract

• A written rule statement describing the desired or undesired behavior,

• the occasion when the behavior should or should not occur, and

• the added outcome for that behavior.Contract

Theory of Rule-Governed Behavior

• Theoretical and somewhat controversial ideas…..

How do rules govern our behavior?

• Remember this is theoretical…

Environment exerts 2 types of control over behavior… operant and respondent

Rule control explains influence of indirect acting contingencies

What function or role do rules serve?

Rule statements function as SD’s? Not Likely

• A rule is a description of a behavioral contingency

• Function as reinforcement or punishment based SD’s?

• Absence of rule should serve as an S but it doesn’t.

• SD ANALYSIS DOES NOT WORK.

Example

• You enjoy drinking a smoothie regardless of whether someone has given you a rule about how much you’d enjoy drinking it

• Someone may tell you you’ll like drinking the smoothie, and that may govern behavior, but it does not seem to be a reinforcement based SD

• Drinking a smoothie is not under the stimulus control of the rule…

Malott suggests:Rule statements are establishing operations

• A rule statement is an establishing operation that establishes noncompliance with the rule as an aversive motivating condition.

Example

You state the following rule to yourself:“If I don’t start reading this chapter, I’m not going to be

ready for the quiz.” After you’ve stated that rule, your goofing off produces an

aversive condition.The aversive condition (establishing operation) is presentEstablishes noncompliance with rule (goofing off) as an

aversive condition (produces “fear,” “quilt,” “anxiety”)Begin reading – experience a reduction in aversive

stimulation (what contingency is this?)

Aversive Condition???

• Guilt

• Anxiety

• Fear

• Nervousness

So

• Stating the rule and not working is like turning on the shock in an escape experiment. Working on the assignment is the escape response.

• Just beginning the assignment may reduce the aversiveness a bit…

• Does this sound familiar????

Yes!

• This is a direct-acting contingency controlling our rule-governed behavior, even when the rule describes an indirect-acting contingency.

Example

• Poor grade on the quiz or even the poor performance during the quiz would be too delayed from the behavior of studying to be part of a direct-acting contingency controlling that studying.

• The delayed grade could influence only indirectly.

Example (cont)

• M&T think that all operant control requires direct-acting contingencies

• Theorize that the direct-acting contingency is the escape contingency based on the learned aversive condition that results from your stating the rule

• Reduction of aversive stimulation associated with non-compliance with the rule is the direct acting contingency (escape)

• Begin study to escape or reduce aversive stimulation associate with noncompliance with the rule

Myth of Poor Self-Management

• Poor self-management occurs because we can’t delay our gratification, because immediate outcomes control our behavior better than delayed outcomes do. So we fail to act in our long-run best interest

The real cause of poor self-management (Malott)?

• Poor self-management results from poor control by rules describing outcomes that are either too small (though often of cumulative significance) or too improbable.

• The delay is not crucial

Rules that are easy to follow

• Describe outcomes that are both sizable and probable.

• The delay is not crucial.

Rules that are hard to follow.

• Describe outcomes that are either too small (though often of cumulative significance) or too improbable.

• The delay is not crucial.

• These rules do not act as effective establishing operations

What if this were true?

• If you eat one more bite of ice cream, you will gain 50 pounds, your blood pressure will enter the danger zone, your arteries will plug with plaque, and you’ll have a mild heart attack. One little bite will definitely cause all these horrible things; however, those horrible things won’t happen until exactly one year after that bite. But remember, just 1 bite will do it.

Compare – small cumulatively significant outcomes

• If you continue eating ice cream and the like, you will gradually gain 50 pounds, your blood pressure will gradually rise to the danger zone, your arteries will gradually plug with plaque, and you’ll be at serious risk for a fatal heart attack (not just a mild one).

• Just one more bowl of ice cream, and then I’ll stop.

M&T, p. 418 Contingency Tree

R e in fo rce m e nt E sca pe

R e in fo rce m e ntF req u en cy In cre ases

P u n ish m e nt

R e spo n se C o st T im e -O ut

P en a lty

P u n ish m e ntF re qu en cy D ec re ases

B a sic B eh av io ra l C on tin ge n cies

Direct Acting (Effective < 60 s)

Not direct Acting (> 60 s delay)

IneffectiveIndirect Acting (effective)

Outcomes are immediate,

probable, and sizable Outcomes probable

and sizable, though delayed

Outcomes are improbable or small

but cumulative

The 3 contingency model of performance management

The three crucial contingencies are: 1. The ineffective natural contingency

2. The effective, indirect-acting performance-management contingency

3. The effective, direct-acting theoretical contingency

Example – Wednesday is Senior Day at Bi-Lo ----- 10% discount

Ineffective Natural Contingency

Before Behavior After

Retiree will have much less money for future expenses

Retiree goes to store on Wednesday

Retiree will have much more money for future expenses

Effective Indirect Acting Contingency

SD (Deadline) Midnight Wednesday night

Retiree will lose opportunity for 10% discount

Retiree goes to store on Wednesday

Retiree will not lose opportunity for 10% discount

Effective Direct-Acting Theoretical Contingency

Retiree has aversive thoughts about loss of the 10% discount

Retiree goes to store on Wednesday

Retiree has no aversive thoughts about loss of the 10% discount

Alternate View• The delay does matter…• It is all about choice of response in the presence of

concurrent schedules of reinforcement – (Herrnstein)

• Choice of response is based on reinforcer value, delay to reinforcement, and sensitivity to change in delay to reinforcement

• A person is said to engage in self-controlled behavior when he selects the higher valued, more delayed reinforcer over the lesser valued though more immediate reinforcer…

• Psy 417

Delay Trap

Time

Reinforcer Value

High

Low

LongShort

Value of a good grade

Value of extra sleep

Sunday Monday

Night Morning

End of semester

From Mazur (1998)