Over the years there has been research on how to deal with behavioral issues of children as well as adults who are mentally challenged as a result of various mental disorders such as Autism, Down syndrome and dyslexia among others. Through the examination of behavioral patterns there has been a tremendous progress made to help in understanding the problems and developing solutions to them. The article presents a case study of a three and a half autistic boy who has been hospitalized and undergoing various procedural experiments to establish the solutions to various problems. Although he was born healthy and progressed well his problems began ant the 9 th month when he started having cataracts and other behavioral problems began as well. The response will therefore explore various behavioral problems and discuss the solutions developed to put the issues under control.
Temper problems
One of the problems that were noted is tantrums and this is an issue that can escalate to higher levels if it is not tamed. Dicky the boy who is being used as a case study depicts different intervals of tantrums. Tantrums are manifested through emotional outburst in moments of distress or worries. The child can cry uncontrollably, scream, being violent and defiant. Some can even go the extent of being physically violent. For the case of Dicky self destructive behaviors were observed and if not put under control then they can even lead to harm of self and those around . He could be seen crying uncontrollably and even slapping himself severally during moments of emotional outburst. Although there are various remedies applied to help the boy control his behavior it first became persistent for over a period of four months before a change could be seen. It was a case which was odd from others as it was not expected for him to take such a long time before the solutions being applied took effect. Procedures used to bring the behaviors under control. In order to bring this behavior under control there are two major ways that were used and they include punishment by putting him in an isolated room and the door closed as a result he would stop the tantrums and extinction would be applied. Gradually he stopped throwing tantrums for fear of being punished. The removal of all social interactions made the boy stop the behavior to be rewarded through interacting with his peers and playing with them.
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Bedtime problems
Another concern that is a deviation from the normal behavior was manifesting through sleeping problems. Most young children easily fall asleep during certain times of the day or night but when they go beyond the odds frequently and on regular times then it implies that they are having a problem that need attention. Such is the case for the three year old boy who is being conditioned to sleep through reward and punishment. Whenever the boy did not want to sleep he rebelled against any forceful action to make them go to bed. The article explains that he would cry and become violent whenever the door was closed and this indicates that he was resisting the control mechanism. By isolating him from his family and making him see them in intervals was one way of helping him get used to a certain pattern which helped in sleep training him. He could be fussier around his parents but more compliant with the attendant who enforces rules which come with a punishment if they are not followed. Procedures used to bring the behaviors under control. In regard to bedtime problems the boy was warned that the door would be closed every time he got out of bed but when he remained in bed then the door was left open. Just like the tantrum issue punishment and extinction was used to control the behavior. After some time of repeated punishment and extinction the behavior was put under control and the boy would remain in bed after being put to sleep.
Throwing of glasses
From the case study the author indicates that the boy developed another behavioral concern barely two weeks after being introduced to wearing glasses as a result of the cataracts issue. It began by doing it once a day and as the days went by the number of times he was doing it increased simultaneously and eventually became a habit. The behavior was not concerned as extremely problematic the cost of the habit was expensive because in the event that the glasses broke then it meant being replaced every time it happened and this would be financially draining. Again the glasses were meant to help improve his sight and not to be used as a toy. A control strategy had to be developed for this behavior too. Procedure used to bring the behaviors under control The strategy that quickly worked when Dicky threw his glasses was putting him in his room every time he misbehaved. The room was then locked for ten minutes. He remained in isolation for a couple of minutes and after some days he completely stopped the behavior. It is an indication that every time a punishment was applied an impact was created and the reward of opening the door when he kept calm also contributed to him becoming calm.
Eating problems
Another major problem was his eating behavior while with other children in the dining room. When the boy was eating he would not use silverware like the rest of the children but instead snatch food with his hands and even take it from other children’s plates. Dicky would also through food all over the dining room floor creating a mess. It is a behavioral concern that is not only unhealthy for him but also for those around them because they would not peacefully have their meals when Dicky was around them. It was observed that in only one meal he would pick food from other children’s plates several times and also threw it down or in the dining room. Continued behavior would lead to poor feeding habits and also would cause a major health issue for insufficient intake of enough food as well as nutrients required for his growth and development. It too needed a control mechanism that would help in curbing the issue. Procedure used to bring the behaviors under control . In order to put the boy under control in regard to the behavior a punishment mechanism had to be developed to condition him to follow a routine of eating orderly and desisting form throwing food all around. The mechanism that was applied was to remove Dicky’s plate every time he threw food around. Besides, the same was applied when he ate the food with bare hands and not the silverware. Although the mechanism seemed not to be working for the first couple of days he eventually yielded and became conditioned to the punishment and extinction. After the strategy was applied he began using a spoon and stopped throwing food all over the place. One thing however than needed to done repeatedly was to send him outside and giving him warning as a result of stealing food from other children around him.
Conclusion
It is important to note that the strategy of operant conditioning works perfectly well when consistence is applied. It takes time to train and make an autistic child adapt to new methods of instilling a behavioral change but it is greatly effective. Operant conditioning employs the use of rewards and punishment whenever a behavior is depicted or not depending on the desired outcome. It leads to the development of a relationship between a behavior and the consequence of it. The mechanism is not only used in experiments and case studies but also in real life situation as well as learning. In family set up parents have used such mechanism to instill discipline and shape their children in a desired manner. The behavioral problems depicted by the three and a half autistic boy indicates that mental problems cam affect the behavior of a child even at an early age and there is need for more studies to establish more helpful ways to help them live normal lives just like other children. Tantrums are considered to be a normal part of every child but when it goes to the extreme then it implies that there is a problem that needs psychological attention. Throwing of food as well as glasses can only be applicable when children play and get a little out of control but they refrain once they see an adult Dicky is case was exceptional because he could not be tamed unless punishment and extinction was applied. Cataracts can affect any child including those without autism. The issue of throwing glasses is a major problem because it is not only a defiant behavior but also costly concern because if they are damaged a replacement has to be made every other time it happens. The use of operant conditioning is a great way to make the child follow a desired path and adopt a given behavior.
References
Blackman, D. E. (2017). Operant conditioning: an experimental analysis of behaviour . Routledge.
McLeod, S. (2015). Skinner-operant conditioning. Retrieved from .
Risley T. (2005). Montrose M. Wolf (1935-2004). Journal of applied behavior analysis , 38 (2), 279–287. https://doi.org/10.1901/jaba.2005.165-04
