Business

Behavioral and Social / Cognitive Approaches to Forming Habits

Tanya Bell

PSY/250

July 11, 2012

Instructor, Dr. Dawn Muhammad

Behavioral and Social/ Cognitive Approaches to Forming Habits

When a person learns to interact with a person it is called conditioning. A behaviorist must know the difference between preconditioning behavior and inherited behavior. According to Murphy, “some believe that all learning is simply conditioning, and that the conditioning response is the true unit of learned behavior” (Murphy & Kluver, 1928,1999).

   Habit as defined in Webster’s as :a). behavior pattern acquired by frequent repetition or physiologic exposure that shows itself in regularity or increased facility of performance b) .an acquired mode of behavior that has become nearly or completely involuntary (Merriam-Webster Dictionary Online, 2011).     Behavior is the manner of conducting oneself or anything that an organism does involving action and response to stimulation.   In everyday life habits are formed and intertwined with one’s behavior.   People are often associated with the way they behave based on the environment they come from and the habits they develop from that environment.

Behavioral Theorists believe learning experiences as the development of our personality.   During these developmental years the environment has the greatest influence on the personality.   This influence is reinforced by positive or negative rewards.   Classic conditioning explains many behavioral reaction patterns.   When a person receives positive reinforcement of a behavior (reward), they develop this behavior as part of their own. A person will continue to perform a certain action because of the reward at the end of the action.  Changing a habit is not as easy as people think it is.

Two of my habits are being a neat freak and being addicted to shopping. Under no circumstance will I leave my house in a clutter, nor go to bed with anything being dirty. Whether it’s a dirty...