Behavioral contrast: An exploratory survey of practitioner experiences
Behavioral contrast can wreck stakeholder trust, so plan for it before you shift reinforcement across settings.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Boyle et al. (2023) sent a survey to practicing BCBAs. They asked how behavioral contrast shows up in real cases and how it affects families and staff.
The survey was open-ended. BCBAs shared stories about sudden jumps or drops in behavior when programs changed across settings.
What they found
Most BCBAs said contrast hurts rapport. Kids act worse in one place right after you tighten up someplace else. Parents and teachers then trust the plan less.
The big trigger was mismatch between settings. Home and school used different rewards or rules, so behavior bounced around.
How this fits with other research
Ring et al. (2023) ran a lab test and saw almost no contrast in adults doing work tasks. Boyle’s real-world survey says contrast is common and painful. The gap shows contrast is easier to feel than to capture in tidy experiments.
Classic pigeon studies like Wesp et al. (1981) proved contrast exists, but they used simple key pecks and food. Boyle moves the idea into messy human homes and classrooms.
Kazemi et al. (2022) found that workplace conflict makes BCBAs lose cases. Boyle adds that contrast-driven setbacks can spark that same conflict when parents blame the BCBA for sudden behavior spikes.
Why it matters
You can’t stop contrast if you don’t spot it. When a client’s behavior jumps after you tighten reinforcement at school, parents may think the plan is broken. Explain the bounce ahead of time, keep rewards and rules alike across places, and track data to show the jump is temporary. This keeps trust and keeps the case.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
Behavioral contrast is defined as a change in reinforcement conditions in one context that causes a change in behavior in the opposite direction in another, unchanged context. Although behavioral contrast has implications for applied behavior analysts, researchers have not examined ramifications or identified common methods of mitigating contrast in applied settings. Therefore, we surveyed Board Certified Behavior Analysts in an exploratory investigation to determine practitioner experiences with behavioral contrast. Participants' responses reflected a variety of themes: contrast resulted in conversations with stakeholders; supporting stakeholders and mitigating factors are important; contrast is due to inconsistencies across settings; and contrast affects stakeholder buy-in, hurts rapport or relationships, and produces negative emotions. Our results suggest that contrast is not an innocuous occurrence in applied settings. We recommend a variety of areas for future research to further predict and control contrast and to identify the extent to which it affects clinical practice.
Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 2023 · doi:10.1002/jaba.1022