Ho Operant Parenting
Psychology courses provide an immense amount of knowledge regarding the study of the mind, behaviors, and the way in which we view the world. With this essay, I will reflect on the ways in which the first part of my general psychology course has changed my understanding of prior concepts, as well as what I will retain after this course is over. Having a deeper understanding of the concepts taught in this course will influence the relationships I have with individuals in my life. Presented are ways in which I can apply these concepts to better evolve my parenting methods. It is easy for individuals to mistake reinforcements with different conditioning methods, and understanding the difference between the two will allow people to mature into better individuals and, in my case, emerge into a better parent.
The Struggles of Parenting
As an adult, one of the most challenging factors I face is parenting. Moreover, having a child diagnosed with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) has tested the limits of my understanding, my patience, and often times even my own sanity. For the past 8 years, I struggled to understand …show more content…
how my child thinks and learns, and how best to be able to parent him given his diagnosis. Through learning about the different reinforcements and learning styles, I now have a deeper understanding of my son and his deficits, which provided the opportunity to evolve my parenting methods.
Reading about the different types of reinforcements was significant and is surely my a-ha moment. Until that moment, I believed that positive reinforcement meant rewarding positive behavior with a type of prize and negative reinforcement was taking something away or even spanking. However, I recognize now that I was confusing different concepts. What I was referring to as both positive and negative reinforcement is actually “operant conditioning”, which is a form of associative learning. I realize now that I was unaware of the type of parenting I was demonstrating and realized, in that moment, that if I wanted to make a change to better suit my children’s needs, it would require me to dig deeper to try and better comprehend these concepts, more specifically the different types of learning styles.
Methods of Learning
Most individuals are aware that there are different learning styles, myself included. However, it was not until reading about the learning styles in this psychology course that I was truly able to understand those concepts more deeply, thereby gaining the ability to apply those concepts to others and myself. Prior to psychology class, I was only familiar with terms like visual learning and hands-on learning. Though it remains, there are a few more to consider; there is associative learning and observational learning, which were the two types of learning the chapter “Learning” was focused on (King, 2016, p. 167).
Associative Learning
This particular type of learning “occurs when an organism makes a connection, or an association, between two events” (King, 2016, p. 167). Although the term association is one I am familiar with, I never thought to apply it to a learning method. I recognize, however, that I, along with most individuals, use each type of associative learning every day without even realizing it. Immediately I recognized that my child with ADHD excels with associative learning. He is capable of making connections between events or objects that I otherwise would not have thought of.
Classical conditioning. This type of conditioning is when an individual can make the association between two separate stimulants (King, 2016, p. 167). Although at one time we needed to learn this behavior, classical conditioning eventually becomes reflexive. For example, if a stop light turns red, you automatically know that you need to stop your vehicle. This is not information we are born with but rather taught throughout our life. My son, despite knowing many associations, has a difficult time retaining information like this. Even after years of having rules set in place, he often times requires reminding of those rules.
Operant Conditioning.
When you were a child and did well on a chore, did your parent(s) ever reward that behavior with a treat? If you ever disobeyed your teacher’s instructions, did the teacher reprimand you? Most likely, you answered yes to both of these examples; each of which is an example of operant conditioning. This form of conditioning is a method I did not realize was a form of learning; I mistook it for a form of reinforcement. Nonetheless, operant conditioning most accurately represents my parenting methods. Which, when I compare this conditioning method to other parents, I see them demonstrating this type of conditioning as their form of parenting as well. It leads a person to wonder if these individuals, like myself, are mistaking their parenting styles as positive or negative reinforcement when it is, in fact, operant
conditioning.
Observational Learning As the name would imply, observational learning “occurs through observing and imitating another’s behavior” (King, 2016, p. 168). This method of learning registers with me significantly due to it being the learning style I personally use best. This particular method requires the learner to “pay attention, remember, and reproduce what the model did” (King, 2016, p. 168). ADHD inhibits my child from being able to use this type of learning to its fullest potential; mainly because of the amount of focus it requires to pay attention and remember. You can see the struggle in my son’s face, and other children like him, when he is trying to concentrate on doing nothing more than observing when he has the uncontrolled impulse to move and touch things without hesitation.
Moving Forward with New Information Although there are two forms of learning, it does not account for the fact that every individual’s brain is different. Concepts that I believe are easy to retain and put to use does not necessarily mean those same concepts will be easy for every individual. People of all backgrounds and people with and without learning disabilities, all learn in their own way. As a parent, I will carry this newfound understanding of learning styles through parenthood, and I will apply this information to help my child develop new skills as he transitions into adulthood. Which, no matter what type of parenting style you exhibit, helping your child grow and flourish is always priority number one.
The Struggles of Parenting
As an adult, one of the most challenging factors I face is parenting. Moreover, having a child diagnosed with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) has tested the limits of my understanding, my patience, and often times even my own sanity. For the past 8 years, I struggled to understand …show more content…
how my child thinks and learns, and how best to be able to parent him given his diagnosis. Through learning about the different reinforcements and learning styles, I now have a deeper understanding of my son and his deficits, which provided the opportunity to evolve my parenting methods.
Reading about the different types of reinforcements was significant and is surely my a-ha moment. Until that moment, I believed that positive reinforcement meant rewarding positive behavior with a type of prize and negative reinforcement was taking something away or even spanking. However, I recognize now that I was confusing different concepts. What I was referring to as both positive and negative reinforcement is actually “operant conditioning”, which is a form of associative learning. I realize now that I was unaware of the type of parenting I was demonstrating and realized, in that moment, that if I wanted to make a change to better suit my children’s needs, it would require me to dig deeper to try and better comprehend these concepts, more specifically the different types of learning styles.
Methods of Learning
Most individuals are aware that there are different learning styles, myself included. However, it was not until reading about the learning styles in this psychology course that I was truly able to understand those concepts more deeply, thereby gaining the ability to apply those concepts to others and myself. Prior to psychology class, I was only familiar with terms like visual learning and hands-on learning. Though it remains, there are a few more to consider; there is associative learning and observational learning, which were the two types of learning the chapter “Learning” was focused on (King, 2016, p. 167).
Associative Learning
This particular type of learning “occurs when an organism makes a connection, or an association, between two events” (King, 2016, p. 167). Although the term association is one I am familiar with, I never thought to apply it to a learning method. I recognize, however, that I, along with most individuals, use each type of associative learning every day without even realizing it. Immediately I recognized that my child with ADHD excels with associative learning. He is capable of making connections between events or objects that I otherwise would not have thought of.
Classical conditioning. This type of conditioning is when an individual can make the association between two separate stimulants (King, 2016, p. 167). Although at one time we needed to learn this behavior, classical conditioning eventually becomes reflexive. For example, if a stop light turns red, you automatically know that you need to stop your vehicle. This is not information we are born with but rather taught throughout our life. My son, despite knowing many associations, has a difficult time retaining information like this. Even after years of having rules set in place, he often times requires reminding of those rules.
Operant Conditioning.
When you were a child and did well on a chore, did your parent(s) ever reward that behavior with a treat? If you ever disobeyed your teacher’s instructions, did the teacher reprimand you? Most likely, you answered yes to both of these examples; each of which is an example of operant conditioning. This form of conditioning is a method I did not realize was a form of learning; I mistook it for a form of reinforcement. Nonetheless, operant conditioning most accurately represents my parenting methods. Which, when I compare this conditioning method to other parents, I see them demonstrating this type of conditioning as their form of parenting as well. It leads a person to wonder if these individuals, like myself, are mistaking their parenting styles as positive or negative reinforcement when it is, in fact, operant
conditioning.
Observational Learning As the name would imply, observational learning “occurs through observing and imitating another’s behavior” (King, 2016, p. 168). This method of learning registers with me significantly due to it being the learning style I personally use best. This particular method requires the learner to “pay attention, remember, and reproduce what the model did” (King, 2016, p. 168). ADHD inhibits my child from being able to use this type of learning to its fullest potential; mainly because of the amount of focus it requires to pay attention and remember. You can see the struggle in my son’s face, and other children like him, when he is trying to concentrate on doing nothing more than observing when he has the uncontrolled impulse to move and touch things without hesitation.
Moving Forward with New Information Although there are two forms of learning, it does not account for the fact that every individual’s brain is different. Concepts that I believe are easy to retain and put to use does not necessarily mean those same concepts will be easy for every individual. People of all backgrounds and people with and without learning disabilities, all learn in their own way. As a parent, I will carry this newfound understanding of learning styles through parenthood, and I will apply this information to help my child develop new skills as he transitions into adulthood. Which, no matter what type of parenting style you exhibit, helping your child grow and flourish is always priority number one.