Post on 14-Jan-2016
transcript
Carmen Luciano (University of Almeria)Carmen Luciano (University of Almeria)Jennifer L. Boulanger (University of Nevada Reno)Jennifer L. Boulanger (University of Nevada Reno)
Ian Stewart (National University of Ireland, Galway)Ian Stewart (National University of Ireland, Galway)
Overview of WorkshopOverview of Workshop• PART 1
– RFT and the Self– Empirical Model of Self– Perspective Taking– Three Selves
• PART 2– Applications– Experiential exercises
RFT & The SelfRFT & The Self
RFT and the SelfRFT and the Self
• The self is a core concept in ACT, in psychotherapy and psychology more generally
• Skinner suggested the concept of the self is based on the discrimination of one’s own behavior
That definition seems a bit on the simplistic side…
Verbal vs Nonverbal Verbal vs Nonverbal Self-KnowledgeSelf-Knowledge
• Animals know what they experience• Learned through direct experience
with contingencies in their environment
• Animals can be trained to report their own experience
DRL scheduleDRH schedule
Reinforcer
LATTAL (1975)
(SLOW)
(FAST)
Nonverbal Self-KnowledgeNonverbal Self-Knowledge
• Nonverbal self-awareness – Responding to one’s own behavior
• Nonverbal self– The physical organism
Verbal Self-KnowledgeVerbal Self-Knowledge
• Humans don’t simply behave with regard to their own behavior - they respond verbally with regard to their own behavior
RFT & LanguageRFT & Language
• According to RFT, the core of human language is the ability to arbitrarily relate objects and events, thus changing the psychological functions of those events
• This is referred to as arbitrarily applicable relational responding or relational framing
• To explain this concept, we first distinguish between non arbitrary and arbitrarily applicable relations
NON-ARBITRARY (PHYSICAL) RELATIONS
ARBITRARILY APPLICABLE RELATIONS
‘SAME’
‘MORE THAN’
‘OPPOSITE’
Better Worse
‘IS’
‘APPLE’
5c10c
Non Arbitrary & Arbitrarily Applicable Non Arbitrary & Arbitrarily Applicable RelationsRelations
CONTEXTUAL CUE
Apple
Ull
1. Mutual 1. Mutual EntailmentEntailment
2. Combinatorial 2. Combinatorial EntailmentEntailment
3. Transformation3. Transformationof Functionsof Functions
RELATIONAL FRAME THEORYRELATIONAL FRAME THEORY
PROPERTIES OF ARBITRARILY APPLICABLE RELATIONAL RESPONDING
sweetsalivation
smooth red
sweetsalivation
smooth redull
RFT & LanguageRFT & Language
• Any object in a relational frame is a verbal object
• Our own responding can be part of a relational frame and hence it can be verbal
• In less technical language, we can talk about our own behavior
I wandered lonely as a cloud…
I’ve been practising my ‘friendly’ smile
… see?
An empirical model of self An empirical model of self awarenessawareness
Modeling verbal discrimination of ‘self’ Modeling verbal discrimination of ‘self’ behaviour behaviour
(Dymond & Barnes, 1994)(Dymond & Barnes, 1994)
A1 - B1 - C1
A2 - B2 - C2
A3 - B3 - C3
SR+
SR+
Transfer of self
discrimination response
functions
• We can compare our behavior either to a different example of our own behavior (e.g., “I used to know that but I’ve forgotten”) or to someone else’s behavior (e.g., “She swam faster than me”)
Transformation of self-discrimination responseTransformation of self-discrimination response functions via comparative relations functions via comparative relations
B1
C2C1
B2
A1
Same Less
Same More
Same
Less
More
Train 1 Response Train 1 Response FunctionFunction
Test 1 Response Function
Test 2 Response Function
Test 0 Response Function
Dymond and Barnes (1995)
Verbal Self-DiscriminationVerbal Self-Discrimination
• Verbal reports of one’s own behavior, or of the contingencies controlling it, can alter the functions of both– The light side --- EXAMPLE?...– The dark side --- EXAMPLE?...
–Self-instructions can reduce the effects of temporal delays in reinforcement
–Self-knowledge of aversive events is itself aversive
PerspectivePerspectiveTakingTaking
Perspective-TakingPerspective-Taking• Most relational frames are based
on formal or non-arbitrary counterparts– This chair is bigger than that chair– Steve has less hair than Homer
<
• Some frames have no non-arbitrary counterparts and must be taught through demonstration and multiple exemplars
• Such frames include DEICTIC frames or perspective-taking frames– I-YOU– HERE-THERE– NOW-THEN
Perspective-TakingPerspective-Taking
Development of Perspective-TakingDevelopment of Perspective-Taking
• The verbal community trains a child to make self-discriminations by asking questions such as– What am I doing over here?– What are you doing now?
• Perspective is the invariant that is abstracted from these discriminations– I-YOU, HERE-THERE, NOW-THEN
• It is responding to responding from a particular locus
I eat breadI eat ice creamI eat a steakI eat chocolate
I hear musicI hear a driving carI hear birds singingI hear my mother calling
I see a deskI see you comingI see a bright futureI see and hear a dog
I touch the screenI touch my faceI touch into the waterI touch the hot pan
I go to my officeI go homeI go into the darkI go back to school
I think of my workI think of your painI think of lunchtimeI think of my father
I am goodI am badI am a husbandI am a doctor
I eat breadI eat ice creamI eat a steakI eat chocolateI hear musicI hear a driving carI hear birds singingI hear my mother calling
I see a deskI see you comingI see a bright futureI see and hear a dog
I touch the screenI touch my faceI touch into the waterI touch the hot pan
I go to my officeI go homeI go into the darkI go back to school
I think of my workI think of your painI think of lunchtimeI think of my father
I am goodI am badI am a husbandI am a doctor
I eat breadI eat ice creamI eat a steakI eat chocolateI hear musicI hear a driving carI hear birds singingI hear my mother callingI see a deskI see you comingI see a bright futureI see and hear a dog
I touch the screenI touch my faceI touch into the waterI touch the hot pan
I go to my officeI go homeI go into the darkI go back to school
I think of my workI think of your painI think of lunchtimeI think of my father
I am goodI am badI am a husbandI am a doctor
I eat breadI eat ice creamI eat a steakI eat chocolateI hear musicI hear a driving carI hear birds singingI hear my mother callingI see a deskI see you comingI see a bright futureI see and hear a dogI touch the screenI touch my faceI touch into the waterI touch the hot pan
I go to my officeI go homeI go into the darkI go back to school
I think of my workI think of your painI think of lunchtimeI think of my father
I am goodI am badI am a husbandI am a doctor
I eat breadI eat ice creamI eat a steakI eat chocolateI hear musicI hear a driving carI hear birds singingI hear my mother callingI see a deskI see you comingI see a bright futureI see and hear a dogI touch the screenI touch my faceI touch into the waterI touch the hot pan
I go to my officeI go homeI go into the darkI go back to school
I think of my workI think of your painI think of lunchtimeI think of my father
I am goodI am badI am a husbandI am a doctor
I eat breadI eat ice creamI eat a steakI eat chocolateI hear musicI hear a driving carI hear birds singingI hear my mother callingI see a deskI see you comingI see a bright futureI see and hear a dogI touch the screenI touch my faceI touch into the waterI touch the hot pan
I go to my officeI go homeI go into the darkI go back to school
I think of my workI think of your painI think of lunchtimeI think of my fatherI am goodI am badI am a husbandI am a doctor
I eat breadI eat ice creamI eat a steakI eat chocolateI hear musicI hear a driving carI hear birds singingI hear my mother callingI see a deskI see you comingI see a bright futureI see and hear a dogI touch the screenI touch my faceI touch into the waterI touch the hot panI go to my officeI go homeI go into the darkI go back to schoolI think of my workI think of your painI think of lunchtimeI think of my fatherI am goodI am badI am a husbandI am a doctor
• Abstraction of one’s perspective requires– Sufficiently well developed relational repertoire– Extensive history of multiple exemplars that take
advantage of that repertoire
• Deictic frames build upon simpler relations that are true relative to a given perspective– Which is your left hand?– Which way is left?
Development of Perspective-TakingDevelopment of Perspective-Taking
Perspective-TakingPerspective-Taking• A person is always speaking from the
perspective of I-HERE-NOW about events that happen THERE and THEN
• Words like I and YOU do not define perspective-taking frames; they are Crels that often control perspective-taking frames
• Responding in accordance with deictic frames allows us to evaluate, compare, contrast, and judge events from a constant perspective
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
Errors
Adults Adoles. Late C/hood
Mid C/hood
Early C/hood
Age Range
McHugh, Barnes-Holmes, & Barnes-Holmes (2004)Development of
Perspective Taking
• Deictic relational framing (I-You, Here-There, Now-Then) ability correlates with data from Theory of Mind studies
A Single Relation Task
I have a white brick and you have a red brick
Which brick do you have?
Which brick do I have?
I am sitting here on the blue chair and you are sitting there on the black chair
and THERE was HERE
Where would I be sitting?
Here: There:
A Reversed Relation Task
Where would you be sitting?
If HERE was THERE
Yesterday I was sitting there on the black chair, today I am sitting here on the blue chair
and NOW was THEN and THEN was NOW
Where would I be sitting now?
Now: Then:
A Double Reversed Relation Task
Where would you be sitting then?
If HERE was THERE and THERE was HERE
Here: There:
Further Research on DeicticsFurther Research on Deictics• Relational repertoires required for
perspective taking follow a distinct developmental profile and are comprised of functionally distinct relational components (McHugh, Barnes-Holmes, Barnes-Holmes & Stewart, 2006)
• Deictic relations are generalized operants (Weil, 2007)
• Deictic relations can be trained (e.g., Heagle &
Rehfeldt, 2006) including in children with autistic spectrum disorders with perspective-taking deficits (Rehfeldt, Dillen, Ziomek & Kowalchuk, 2007)
The 3 SelvesThe 3 Selves
• In RFT, self is defined by participation of one’s behavior in relational frames and networks
• Verbal behavior gives rise to three types of self– Object of verbal knowledge
• The conceptualized self• Self as content
– Process of verbal knowledge • The knowing self• Self as process
– Locus of verbal knowledge • transcendent self• Self as context or perspective
The Three SelvesThe Three Selves
Self-as-Content (Conceptualized Self)
• Descriptive and evaluative relational networks that I construct HERE and NOW when talking about I (or my behaviors) THERE and THEN– I’m lazy. I’m a good cook. I’m a loyal friend.
• We tend to organize our own histories and tendencies into a coherent relational network– Ignore contradictory evidence, amplify confirmatory
evidence, act in ways that avoid disconfirmation
Self-as-Content (Conceptualized Self)
• Well-elaborated– Touches on every verbally known aspect of
life (e.g. history, situation, preferences, abilities, private events)
• Multi-layered– Strong social contingencies support different
depths of self-knowledge in different contexts
• Rigid– Historical, and thus, seemingly unchangeable– Basis for reason-giving
Self-as-Content (Conceptualized Self)
• The product of evaluative processes are defended, while the process itself rarely noticed
• Difficulties occur when products of relational responding are treated as True, Real aspects of the world– This is a good book vs. I evaluate this book as good– I am anxious vs. I feel my heart beating fast and I
have the urge to run away from this situation.– You are obnoxious vs. I think ‘you are obnoxious’
Self-as-Process (Knowing Self)
• Ongoing, fluid awareness of the action of relating events verbally – I feel, I think, I wonder, I like, I hear, I remember…
• Extremely useful in behavioral regulation – Allows others to predict behavior without knowledge
of individual history– Self-rules would be much less effective without this
kind of self-knowledge
• Threats to self-as-process – Inadequate training by verbal community – Experiential avoidance
Self-as-Process (Knowing Self)
• The knowing self feeds the conceptualized self and is necessary to contact the transcendent self– In order to know that “I am a depressed
person”, I must first know that I frequently feel sad and have low energy across many contexts
– Self-monitoring and awareness are required to observe the observer
Self-as-ProcessSelf-as-ProcessClinical IssuesClinical Issues
• Weak self knowledge– Difficulty observing and describing
current thoughts, emotions, sensations– Inability to persist in or change focus
• Dominance of conceptualized past and future– Present moment is lost to worry and
rumination
• What have you noticed in your clients?
Self-as-ProcessSelf-as-Process Clinical IssuesClinical Issues
• What ACT processes would you target in order to develop a sense of knowing self?
• ACT Techniques– Leaves on stream, soldiers on parade– Cubbyholing (labeling)– Observing sensations, body scan– Any, all mindfulness exercises
Self-as-Context(Transcendent Self)
• The sense of self as perspective or of psychological locus– The invariant in all self-discriminations
• Experiential link between verbal and nonverbal knowledge (repertoires)– Not thing-like: no limits, unchanging, ever-present
• Not itself verbal, though it is a product of a verbal history– Cannot be contacted verbally, only experienced
directly
Self-as-ContextSelf-as-Context Clinical Issues Clinical Issues
• No/unstable sense of self• Stigma, objectification of others• Low empathy and self-compassion• Difficulties with intimacy, connecting
with others• What have you noticed in your own
clients? In your own lives?• How would you help clients develop a
sense of self as perspective?
Self-as-Context Self-as-Context TechniquesTechniques
• Observer exercise• Chessboard metaphor• Box full of stuff• The documentary of you• Expanding awareness• You as child, you as older adult• Perspective shifting• When would you not be you?
Perspective-Taking & the 3 Perspective-Taking & the 3 SelvesSelves
Self as ContentI am male
I am 34 years old
I am a son and a brother
I am generous
Etc.
Self as ProcessI am feeling nervous
I am feeling defensive
I want to escape
Etc.
ME
BAD
NOTHING BUT TROUBLE
STUPID
WORTHLESS
EVERYONE LAUGHS AT ME
NO-ONE LOVES ME
UNWORTHY OF THE
AFFECTION OR TRUST
OF OTHERS
MUST AVOID INTIMACY
FEELINGS OF LONELINESS
LONELY SAD INDIVIDUAL
Lack of contact with social contingencies
Self as Content
I am a worthless person
Self as Process
I feel so worthless right now
AND
I am having the thought that I am worthless
I am having the feeling that I am worthless right now
FUSION AND DEFUSIONFUSION AND DEFUSION
Hierarchical
RelationHierarchical
Relation
Carmen Luciano (University of Almeria)Carmen Luciano (University of Almeria)Jennifer L. Boulanger (University of Nevada Reno)Jennifer L. Boulanger (University of Nevada Reno)
Ian Stewart (National University of Ireland, Galway)Ian Stewart (National University of Ireland, Galway)
Non-Verbal Non-Verbal KnowingKnowing
Verbal Verbal KnowingKnowing
Self-as-ProcessSelf-as-ProcessSelf-as-Self-as-ContentContent
Self-as-Self-as-ContextContext
"Whereof one cannot speak, thereof one must be silent." Wittgenstein
Verbal & Verbal & Non-Verbal Non-Verbal KnowledgeKnowledge
Nonverbal Nonverbal KnowingKnowing
• Nonverbal self– Locus of nonverbal knowledge– Ongoing behavioral stream– Biological organism
• Nonverbal knowledge– Organism’s non-relational
behavioral repertoire
• Nature of knowing: direct behavioral processes – Operant and classical
conditioning– Stimulus and response
generalization based on formal properties of events in evolutionary sense
Verbal KnowingVerbal Knowing
• Verbal self– Object of verbal knowledge– Process of verbal knowledge– Locus of verbal knowledge
• Verbal knowledge– Behavioral functions established through networks of
derived stimulus relations
• Nature of verbal knowledge– Derived and arbitrarily applicable relational
responding
Nonverbal Verbal
Locus of KnowingDirect
processes: operant/classical conditioning; stim gen based
on formal properties
“I” perspectiv
e
Behavioral stream; biological organism
Nature of
Knowing
Arbitrarily Applicable Relational Responding
KNOWING