SUNY Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY, USA.
J Exp Anal Behav. 2023 Nov;120(3):440-456. doi: 10.1002/jeab.875. Epub 2023 Aug 1.
The persistence of operant behavior when disrupted tends to be positively related to how often reinforcers were delivered in the past. Behavioral momentum theory describes this finding as the outcome of Pavlovian processes. That is, the relation between discriminative stimuli and reinforcers that were delivered in their presence strengthens behavior, thereby making it more likely to persist. If only the story were that simple. A growing number of findings challenge the basic tenets of behavioral momentum theory. Some even call into question whether Pavlovian relations contribute to persistence in the first place. In this paper, I will review behavioral momentum theory and some of the data that have been problematic for the theory. I will argue that despite these very real challenges, the theory provides important utility not only to basic analyses of response persistence but also to clinical interventions directed at long-term reductions in problem behavior. It, for example, has set the stage for the development of alternative conceptual analyses of resistance to change, two of which will be highlighted for readers. Moreover, behavioral momentum theory may tell us something important about the reasons it continues to have an influence on the field, despite the challenging data that deter it.
操作性行为在受到干扰时的持续存在往往与过去强化物的出现频率呈正相关。行为动量理论将这一发现描述为巴甫洛夫过程的结果。也就是说，在辨别刺激和强化物出现时，它们之间的关系会增强行为，从而使其更有可能持续存在。如果事情仅仅是那么简单。越来越多的发现对行为动量理论的基本原理提出了挑战。甚至有人质疑巴甫洛夫关系是否首先有助于行为的持续存在。在本文中，我将回顾行为动量理论以及一些对该理论来说存在问题的数据。我将认为，尽管存在这些非常现实的挑战，但该理论不仅为对反应持久性的基础分析提供了重要的效用，而且为针对问题行为的长期减少的临床干预提供了重要的效用。例如，它为抵制变化的替代概念分析奠定了基础，其中两个将为读者重点介绍。此外，尽管存在阻止其发展的数据，但行为动量理论可能会告诉我们一些关于它继续对该领域产生影响的重要原因。
