Essential Reading:
In the below example of a supervision meeting, Simon (an RBT) is asking Janet for help understanding behavioral momentum:
Janet: Good morning, Simon! How are you today?
Simon: Morning, Janet! I’m doing well, thank you. I wanted to talk to you about behavioral momentum. I’ve heard about it, but I’m not exactly sure what it is or how to implement it. Can you help me understand?
Janet: Of course, Simon! I’d be glad to explain behavioral momentum to you. Let’s say we have an adult with an intellectual disability, and one of the challenging tasks for them is taking their epilepsy medication. With behavioral momentum, we want to increase the likelihood of cooperation with this task that?s really important for their health.
Simon: Okay, that makes sense. How do we go about doing that?
Janet: Great question! We start by presenting a series of easy tasks that the individual can easily accomplish. For example, you can ask them to put a t-shirt, a sweater, and a pair of socks in the laundry basket. These are familiar tasks that they can do independently. You reinforce those easy behaviors.
Simon: So, after they’ve completed those tasks, we introduce the more challenging task of taking their epilepsy medication?
Janet: Exactly! By completing the easy tasks successfully, they experience a pattern of success and reinforcement. Now they’re more likely to cooperate with the challenging task of taking their medication because of the momentum built from their prior successes.
Simon: I see. That sounds like a helpful approach. Does it work with children too?
Janet: Absolutely. Imagine you’re teaching a child to complete a challenging task, such as putting away their toys. With behavioral momentum, we want to increase the likelihood of them cooperating with the task.
Simon: Okay, I think I get that part. But what would it look like in practice?
Janet: We start by presenting a series of easy or preferred tasks to build momentum. For example, you can ask the child to perform three simple instructions, like “touch your nose,” “clap your hands,” and “stand up.” ?I?m mentioning these tasks because, in this scenario, they are tasks the child already knows and finds easy to do.
Simon: So, once they’ve completed those tasks, we then introduce the challenging task?
Janet: Exactly! By completing the easy tasks successfully, they experience a pattern of success and reinforcement. Now they’re more likely to complete the challenging task because of the momentum built from their prior successes. So, after the easy tasks, you would then present the challenging task, like asking them to put away their toys.
Simon: Thank you, Janet! I really appreciate the examples.
Janet: You’re welcome, Simon! I’m glad I could help. Remember, if you have any more questions or need further guidance on implementing behavioral momentum, don’t hesitate to reach out. Keep up the great work!
Optional Videos
Behavioral Momentum is sometimes called the “Salesperson Approach”. In this video from Amelia Dalphonse provides examples of how one might use Behavioral Momentum in practice.
Behavioral Momentum is also known as a High-probability (high-p) response sequence. In this video from the Iris Center, we see an example of how this might be used in a high-school context:
Below, you’ll see a video of Hilarie Barry. In this scenario, you’ll notice that the learner is a young child. Note the similarities and differences between the example of Mrs. Ward working with Virgina and the current example. In both cases, we see an example of somebody using behavioral momentum, however what the looks like in practice will depend on the needs, preferences, age and abilities of the learners you work with.
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