Counseling/Therapy Techniques A strength of the behavioral approaches is the development of specific therapeutic techniques that must be shown to be effective

through objective means. The results of behavioral interventions become clear because therapists receive continual direct feedback from their clients. The therapeutic techniques used by behavior therapists are specifically designed for a particular client rather than being randomly selected from a bag of techniques. The following techniques do not encompass the full spectrum of behavioral procedures, but they do represent a sample of the approaches used in therapy: APPLIED BEHAVIORAL ANALYSIS: OPERANT CONDITIONING TECHNIQUES *Positive Reinforcement involves the addition of something of value to the individual (such as praise, attention, money or food) as a consequence of certain behavior. The stimulus that follows the behavior is the positive reinforcer. *Negative Reinforcement involves the escape from or the avoidance of aversive (unpleasant) stimuli. The individual is motivated to exhibit a desired behavior to avoid the unpleasant condition. *Extinction Refers to withholding reinforcement from a previously reinforced response. In applied settings, extinction can be used for behaviors that have been maintained by positive by positive or negative reinforcement. *Punishment (or aversive control) The consequences of a certain behavior result in a decrease of that behavior. Miltenberger described two kinds of punishment: *Positive Punishment - an aversive stimulus is added after the behavior to decrease the frequency of a behavior. *Negative Punishment a reinforcing stimulus is removed following the behavior to decrease the frequency of a target behavior.

IN VIVO EXPOSURE AND FLOODING *Exposure Therapies Designed to treat fears and other negative emotional responses by introducing clients, under carefully controlled conditions, to the situations that contributed to such problems; involves systematic confrontation with a feared stimulus, either through imagination or in vivo (live). *In Vivo Exposure involves client exposure to the actual anxiety-evoking events rather than simply imagining these situations. *Flooding Refers to either in vivo or imaginal exposure to anxiety-evoking stimuli for a prolonged period of time. *In Vivo Flooding intense and prolonged exposure to the actual anxiety producing stimuli. *Imaginal Flooding based on similar principles and follows the same procedures except the exposure occurs in the clients imagination instead of in daily life. Prolonged and intense exposure can be both an effective and efficient way to reduce the clients anxiety. However, because of the discomfort associated with prolonged and intense exposure, some clients may not elect these exposure treatments. (Bummer)