Pallavi is a grade VI student who binges on TV. As a result her studies and physical activities are getting impacted. She has started gaining weight and scores low grades. Her parents have asked her to go to play every evening after completing her homework. Pallavi's parents have tried to increase the constructive time by decreasing the TV viewing hours. This change in the reinforcing value is known as __________.
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 3
The correct answer is Option (3) → Establishing operations
In behaviour therapy, faulty behaviour is changed through antecedent operations (changing what comes before the behaviour) and consequent operations (changing what follows it).
Option (1) Antecedent operations — Incorrect. Antecedent operations control behaviour by changing something that precedes it. This is the wider class; the question asks for the particular name given to a change in the reinforcing value of a consequence, which is narrower.
Option (2) Consequent operations — Incorrect. A consequent operation works on what follows the behaviour, such as praising a child for eating dinner properly. Pallavi’s parents change what comes before her evening, not what follows it.
Option (3) Establishing operations — Correct. Increasing or decreasing the reinforcing value of a particular consequence is called an establishing operation. For example, less food at tea time makes the child hungrier, so food at dinner gains reinforcing value. Cutting Pallavi’s TV hours in the same way changes how rewarding TV and play are for her.
Option (4) Maintaining operations — Incorrect. Behaviour therapy speaks of a maintaining factor, the consequence that keeps a faulty behaviour going (relief from anxiety keeps a smoker smoking). It is not an operation the therapist uses to change behaviour.
NCERT (2025-26): “Behaviour Therapy … He had reported relief from anxiety upon smoking. Thus, anxiety-provoking situation becomes the causative or antecedent factor. The feeling of relief becomes the maintaining factor for him to continue smoking. The client has acquired the operant response of smoking, which is maintained by the reinforcing value of relief from anxiety. Once the faulty behaviours which cause distress, have been identified, a treatment package is chosen. The aim of the treatment is to extinguish or eliminate the faulty behaviours and substitute them with adaptive behaviour patterns. The therapist does this through establishing antecedent operations and consequent operations. Antecedent operations control behaviour by changing something that precedes such a behaviour. The change can be done by increasing or decreasing the reinforcing value of a particular consequence. This is called establishing operation. For example, if a child gives trouble in eating dinner, an establishing operation would be to decrease the quantity of food served at tea time. This would increase the hunger at dinner and thereby increase the reinforcing value of food at dinner. Praising the child when s/he eats properly tends to encourage this behaviour. The antecedent operation is the reduction of food at tea time and the consequent operation is praising the child for eating dinner. It establishes the response of eating dinner.…” |