Assignment 6
Scenario 1
Koki is a 4- year-old boy whose grandparents relocated to the US after World War II from Japan. Koki and his family live in a middle-class neighborhood, and all adults in the family feel responsible for him.
Koki is energetic and has a habit of jumping on an oversized armchair. He does the jumping continuously until he is worked out. Koki refuses to cooperate with the desires of his grandmother and mother to prepare him for kindergarten. Instead, every time the two make efforts, he gets into his jumping habit. This behavior leaves the boy’s family worried that he would not be well prepared for kindergarten, which is shameful to the family.
Scenario2
Mia is a 16-year-old girl who is very popular among her friends. She loves conversing over the phone and spends much of her free time after school on a cell phone. Mrs. Peterson, Mia’s mother, is counting on her to help with the house chores as well as preparing her five siblings to school. Mia is supposed to help her siblings do their homework since the mother had to return to work to help cater for the family. However, Mia does none of the above, and the mother has to start from zero in the evening.
The Functional Behavior assessment in the first case found out jumping as the unusual behavior of Koki (Mirnasab and Mohebbi, 2017). From the story, it seems that Koki has no time to relate to other children since the only people around him are the mother and grandmother. He might be jumping from chair to chair because he lacks play; thus, a lot of energy is reserved in him, which he releases by the jumps. Even though this behavior may interfere with his kindergarten, it will persist as long as he remains enclosed in the house without other children to keep him company. Enough play is essential in preparing a kid for kindergarten.
As for Mia, her unusual behavior is talking on a cell phone nonstop (Mirnasab and Mohebbi, 2017). Mia may have much time to spend on the phone since there are no strict rules set for her in the house. Her parents are always out for work, and she finds a lot of freedom for herself. Unless her parents start inflicting punishment on her for ignoring her duties while concentrating on the phone, the habit will continue. In the end, her overall performance in school will be interfered with since she has no time for her studies. Guiding children back at home on the dos and the don’ts may help set them on the right track. This is what should be done with Mia.
Antecedent–based intervention (ABI) is a practice of evidence-based practice that addresses the interfering and on-task behaviors (Christensen, 2019). For Koki, his environment is the cause of the action interfering with his learning process. Because there are armchairs in the house, he cannot learn, so the parents should consider taking him outside the home and do the learning there. This may work out due to the absence of the couches. In the second scenario, Differential Reinforcement should be applied. Mia should be supervised as she does her chores, and the parents should promise her a better cell phone if they are impressed with her work over a given period. She will do all her tasks because she expects a reward. However, in the process, the time she spends on the phone shall have reduced. In time her hobby of talking on a cell phone will go extinct, and she will fully embrace her responsibilities (Scott, 2020).
According to Christensen (2019), the steps in antecedent –based BIP includes; (i) increase of interest level through the use of highly preferred activities or items, (ii) Changing routine or schedule, (iii) pre-activity intervention implementations that are providing a warning of changes in the program,(iv) offering choices, (v) Altering instructions and lastly enriching the environment so that the learner gets a sensory stimulus that will serve the same purpose as the interfering behavior (Christensen, 2019).This is the best solution for Koki’s case since the environment is enriched to meet his needs; hence there is no urge to run back to the house. Steps involved in Differential Reinforcements are: (i) Identification of the interfering behavior, (ii) Determination of the functions of the interfering behavior, (iii) Determine an alternative and incompatible behavior (Scott, 2020).This method suits Mia’s situation since it helps her forget the cell phone slowly without being forced and getting into productive tasks.
I believe I am qualified to work with these clients based on the codes of ethics 1.02a. My services to the client will be to teach and do research on their behavior only to the level of my competence (Bailey and Burch, 2016). This is equivalent to my level of education, supervised experience, and training. I am qualified based on the codes of ethics number 2.01 that talk of accepting the client (Bailey and Burch, 2016). I will only take clients who need the services corresponding to my level of education and will do so under the supervision of a senior behavioral analyst.
My obligations to the Japanese client involves providing information on the services to be delivered before the delivery day and to provide appropriate information on the results of the offered services. According to Rosenberg and Schwartz (2019), the information must be provided in a language well understood by the recipient. Besides, in a case where behavior analyzed is challenged because of the age, gender, race, language, disability, and any other characteristics of the client, further training and consultation is to be done (Rosenberg and Schwartz, 2019). If these are not done, the client is referred to where he or she can get better services. During service delivery, I will simplify my information as much as possible. If I realize the client is not getting satisfied with what I offer, I will seek help from a more experienced analyst. BACB code of ethics 1.06d forbids behavior analyst from giving to or receiving any gift from the client (Rosenberg and Schwartz, (2019). This is seen to constitute an unaccepted relationship. To avoid conflicts between my clients’ cultural practices and the codes of ethics, I will set things straight before I start offering my services. I will explain to the client that I appreciate them willing to provide gifts with or to expect to receive some from me, but that is a violation of the service delivery rules. I will do it in a friendly manner so as not to raise tension.
References
Bailey, J., & Burch, M. (2016). Ethics for behavior analysts. Routledge.
Christensen, K. N. (2019). The Use of Antecedent-Based Interventions to Increase Compliance Related to Physical Activity in Children with Down syndrome.
Mirnasab, M., & Mohebbi, M. (2017). Functional Behavior Assessment (FBA): An Approach to Behavioral Intervention Planning for the Challenging Behaviors in Schools. Quarterly Journal of Child Mental Health, 3(4), 89-100.
Rosenberg, N. E., & Schwartz, I. S. (2019). Guidance or Compliance: What Makes an Ethical Behavior Analyst? Behavior Analysis in Practice, 12(2), 473-482.
Scott, J. (2020). Using Self-Monitoring and Positive Reinforcement to Increase On-Task Behavior and Independence.