Susie, Sally, and Serena are roommates. Susie and Sally are neat freaks, but Serena is a slob. Both Susie and Sally want to use reinforcement to get Serena to start picking up her messes. Susie wants to use positive reinforcement as her technique, and Sally wants to use negative reinforcement. Devise a plan for Susie and another for Sally based on each person’s reinforcement style.
I have a plan for what Susie can do but I really do not know what Sally could do! Please help! Thanks
Sally could yell at Serena. She could further mess up Serena's stuff. She could stop talking to Serena.
Negative reinforcement is reinforcing by taking away an aversive stimulus.
What aversive stimulus could Sally apply that could be removed when Serena starts picking up after herself? Ms. Sue has given you some suggestions, but the last one sounds the best of the three. It could be expanded by ignoring Serena completely. Do you have a better alternative?
Sure! Let's start with Susie's plan, which involves positive reinforcement. Positive reinforcement involves providing a reward or incentive to encourage a desired behavior.
Susie's Plan (Positive Reinforcement):
1. Communicate: Susie should have an open and honest conversation with Serena about the importance of cleanliness and how it affects everyone's living situation.
2. Identify desired behavior: Susie should clearly express what she wants Serena to do, such as picking up after herself regularly or maintaining a clean living space.
3. Reward system: Susie can set up a reward system where Serena earns points or tokens for each time she successfully cleans up after herself. These points can be accumulated and exchanged for rewards, such as small treats, a favorite meal, or even a night out.
4. Celebrate achievements: Susie should praise Serena whenever she successfully completes the desired behavior. Positive reinforcement works best when the reward is immediate, so acknowledging Serena's efforts as soon as she demonstrates the desired behavior will reinforce it.
Now, let's move on to Sally's plan, which involves negative reinforcement. Negative reinforcement involves the removal or avoidance of an unpleasant stimulus in response to a desired behavior.
Sally's Plan (Negative Reinforcement):
1. Communicate: Similar to Susie's plan, Sally should have a conversation with Serena about the desired behavior and the impact it has on the living situation.
2. Establish consequences: Sally should inform Serena about the consequences she will face if she does not improve her cleanliness habits. For example, Sally could explain that if Serena doesn't start picking up after herself, Sally will stop helping her out with other chores or tasks they may share.
3. Follow through: Sally needs to be consistent with enforcing the consequences. Whenever Serena fails to clean up after herself, Sally should step back from helping her or sharing responsibilities until she improves.
4. Provide relief: Once Serena starts demonstrating the desired behavior, Sally should gradually reintroduce her assistance and collaboration with other tasks. This way, Serena will experience the removal of the negative stimulus (lack of help), reinforcing her cleanliness habits.
Remember, while Susie's plan uses positive reinforcement and Sally's plan uses negative reinforcement, both approaches can be effective. The key is to communicate the expectations clearly and consistently, and to provide motivation for Serena to change her behavior.