#shitaba

Does fluency or number of locations matter more with regards to generalization?

Hooo you ask for nerdy, you shall get nerdy. You ask for me to lay down the law, you too shall get nerdy. My answer is two many pronged, partly because there are generally two different ways in which “Premack” is referred to.

PART 1

ABA Premack Definition: a behavior that occurs at high free operant rates can/will reinforce behavior that occurs at lower free operant rates when made contingent upon than behavior.

English version of ABA Premack Principle Definition: If X is more likely to occur than Y, and X follows Y, Y will be reinforced. (Or maybe thats the math version of the ABA Premack Principle Definition, Oops)

So in reality no we use the Premack Principle all the time in dog training. We use it every single time we provide a reinforcer. e.x. Eating treats is more likely to occur than Sit-Stays, eating treats will reinforce Sit-Stays.

Part 2

Dog Trainer Premack Definition: Lets use the thing the dog seems to want most to reinforce the thing we want. Most frequently I see it as, lets use the thing the dog wants to do to reinforce the dog for not doing that thing.

Often you see this in recall training. Dog recalls from fence, dog is reinforced by access to fence to bark at neighbors dog. If we are using this definition, hell yeah we could be using premark more…Let me explain how.

Part 3

Before I go further, let me also introduce…

Response-Deprivation Hypothesis: if a type of behavior is restricted below free operant levels it can function as reinforcement for other behavior

This is important, because it doesn’t matter if food or play or whatever occurs super frequently (is very reinforcing) if they have also already satiated on that reinforcer. e.x. You regularly watch tv 6 hrs a week but this week you watched 10 hours already, is access to TV really gonna be very motivating anymore, especially if you have to [clean the toilet/ talk on the phone/ insert terrible task here] to access it?

So, with these things in mind…we have a whole bucket of reinforcers we can use. We know have things we never even though of as reinforcers as tools in our toolbox. Do you know you can reinforce cleaning the toilet by making a rule that you don’t get to fold the laundry until cleaning the toilet happens. (Assuming laundry folding occurs more frequently than toilet cleaning and has been restricted below normal levels).

Let me start to list the number of reinforcers we can use for our dogs…

Common: Food, Play, Praise, Petting

Less Common: access to outside, letting them sniff, sending them chase [squirrels, rabbits, etc], any cued behavior with a clear reinforcement history, performing any OCD/naughty/unwanted behavior that occurs at high rates, sleeping, anything which progresses them along the search->stalk->chase->bite->kill->eat chain, relieving on things (esp for boys), literally any behavior that happens more frequently than the least likely behavior they perform

Granted, some of those things are much harder to dispense in small consumable bits than others. However, with a little creativity and practice, its is not all that hard to real in a dog on a long line after they tree each squirrel and set yourself up for the next trial.

Part 4

(WITH ACTUAL SCIENCE)

There are a few reasons why we procrastinate and they all have to do with...wait for it...consequences. That shouldn't be a huge shock considering that consequences drive behavior but we also know these things aren't always as common sense as they appear after they are explained.

Reason Number 1: Variable Schedules of Reinforcement

When we don't reinforce after every single response we get variable patterns of responding that look like this...

VR=Variable Ratio, FR= Fixed Ratio, VI=Variable Interval, FI=Fixed Interval

The problem is our to do lists often land in the categories of Fixed Ratio or Fixed Interval schedules of reinforcement. We only get reinforced by crossing things off the list and by finally being able to relax when the whole list is done. See the scalloped pattern in those two lines? Each of those dips is us procrastinating.

We can fix this by altering the schedule of reinforcement, imposing a contrived schedule of reinforcement, or by rearranging our to do list so that tasks least likely to be done are finished first, followed by those most likely to be done. We know from the Premack Principle that high probability behaviors can be used to reinforce low probability behaviors, so arranging our to do lists in this fashion presents reinforcers after each task that is completed, even if that reinforcer is the opportunity to vacuum instead of clean the toilet. 

But lets say you to do list requires you to read several chapters of a boring textbook or 50 pages of a scientific journal article. Time to get out that bag of M&Ms! Eating one M&M per page seems reasonable right? But no, that would be a Fixed Ratio. The procrastination might not be super obvious but we've all been known to check out and read the same page over and over while comprehending nothing. The alternative? Reward yourself after a certain number of paragraphs read. But wait, isn't that a fixed ratio too? Nope! Because paragraphs tend to differ drastically in size while pages tend to vary around the same number of words. Say I eat one M&M per paragraph. I might end up eating one after a paragraph that lasts nearly a whole page and then another after a really short paragraph two sentences later. Voilà, a perfect variable ratio schedule of reinforcement! (PS. Peanuts, marshmallows, and bite size chunks of dinner or dessert work equally well)

Reason Number 2: Deciding Between Two Equal Choices

Do you ever want to get something done but you end up watching four hours of TV instead? Thats a displacement behavior. A displacement behavior is what happens when we can't decide what to do or we are trying to avoid something awkward. If you want to watch 30 people all engaging in displacement behaviors at once go sit in a college hallway ten minutes before the first class of the semester and count the number of people pretending to be super engaged in texting their buddies to avoid interacting with their new and unknown classmates.

Displacement behaviors happen a lot whenever we are presented with two equal choices. This can be a choice between two positive things (mint ice cream or rocky road?). It can be a choice between two negative things (what is the lesser of two evils, asking for help from Chatty Cathy or getting yelled at by the boss when your project doesn't get finished on time?). Or it can be a choice between a good consequences and avoiding a bad one (you really want to talk to that cute girl at the bar but you really don't want to be rejected either). So what do we do instead of actually making a decision and getting on with our lives. We repeatedly check for new texts, we binge watch a television show on netflix, we doodle on a blank piece of paper. 

The fix? Recognize when you are procrastinating and try to tip the balance? This can be as complex as a pro-con list or as simple as realizing that it doesn't really matter what kind of ice cream you get, its still ice cream, and you walk out with one scoop of each.

Reason Number 3: Avoiding Aversives

This very similar to Reason 2, this one doesn't come up quite as often. It seems to happen when you want to do something but your brain recognizes a hidden aversive that you don't consciously see. Imagine a writer. There they are, plugging along, typing chapter after chapter and then suddenly they're stuck. They know what they want to write next but the words just don't come. After, days of struggle they look back and realize they wrote themselves into a corner. There is a fundamental flaw in their plan. They fix it, and bam, writers block gone. In this scenario, and many others, procrastination is our brain’s way of going “Whoa stupid! Look what you are doing! Thats dumb!” The fix? Ask yourself whats holding you back, then fix it. 

Today ended in yet another of those incidents that makes me want to get that t-shirt that says “People like you are the reason my dog is still reactive.” The park we went to on our evening walk happened to have a band playing as a part of their summer concert series. I decided to pause for a while to enjoy the music and maybe do a little training and socialization with River. 

In the middle of the concert the man next to us untied his dog from the tree and prepared to leave. Unfortunately he did not do this in a respectful manner but instead let his now off leash dog wander over to us while he busied himself with something else. I stood up and backed River away while alerting the man to attend to his dog. He gave the usual “its fine, he’s friendly” response while coming slowly over to retrieve his dog. I insisted that I did not want our dogs to greet as River has trouble displaying appropriate behavior towards other dogs on leash. Did he fetch his dogs, apologize or leave respectfully? No he did not. He continued to let his dog approach mine while mansplaining to me (a professional dog trainer) how to let two dogs greet each other and telling me that I just needed to “relax”. River managed a semi appropriate greeting and broke off when I called for a game of tug. The man left. But sure enough River hackled and vocalized at the next dog to pass. Dear sir, here is the result of your lovely advice, my dog and I have once again been forced to take a step back in our training because you think its your right to let your dog walk up to strangers enjoying themselves in the park.

Although the net worth of todays training may have been zero it did give me a better picture of what we need to be working on. River needs more work on settling in public places, being calm around people and dogs, and learning to regulate her arousal level. I need to get better at channeling my inner asshole and advocating for my dog.