Chaining: How To Apply This Technique And What Types There Are
One of the behavior modification techniques that Burrhus F. Skinner systematized in the process of developing his operant learning paradigm, which is based on the association of certain responses with obtaining reinforcers or punishments. In this article we will analyze What is chaining, how it is applied and what types exist.
Chaining is a behavioral technique that is framed in the operant learning paradigm. It is used to develop new chains of behavior (that is, complex sequences composed of a pre-established series of simple responses) from other behaviors that are already in the subject’s repertoire.
Some typical examples of learning that can be developed through this technique are those that allow elaborate behaviors such as playing a musical instrument or driving a vehicle. Chaining is frequently used. to teach basic skills to children with special needs such as putting on clothes or washing oneself without help.
The responses that make up the behavioral chain act as conditioned reinforcers of the previous behavior and as discriminative stimuli of the following one. There are two logical exceptions to this: the first response, which does not reinforce any other, and the last, which does not act as a signal for further behavior.
A similar operant technique is shaping, also known as the “method of successive approximations.” The central difference is that In shaping, a behavior is progressively perfected using differential reinforcement, while chaining consists of combining a series of responses in a certain order.
To use chaining appropriately, it is very important to take into account a series of recommendations. First of all, it is advisable, to the extent possible, select behaviors that the learner already masters in order to maximize the effectiveness of the procedure; Furthermore, these should be as simple as possible or divided into simpler segments.
The behaviors, or links in the chain, that are necessary and that the subject does not master must be developed during the process. Some operant techniques that can be helpful in this regard are shaping, modeling, physical guidance, and verbal instruction.
It is preferable that reinforcement be social, such as congratulations and smiles, instead of material, since the behaviors acquired thanks to this type of reinforcers are maintained to a greater extent. It is also important to use fading in order to eliminate supportive behaviors that may have been learned collaterally from the chain.
The 5 types of chaining
Chaining can be applied in several different ways. First of all It is necessary to distinguish between chaining through total and partial task ; In one the learner must execute all the steps of the behavioral sequence in each trial, while in the other the chain is divided into several segments and these are taught separately before combining them.
In turn, chaining through partial task can be subdivided into four different types: forward chaining, backward chaining, pure partial and progressive partial. Let’s see what each of them consists of.
1. Through total task
The basic type of chaining roughly corresponds to the procedures we have described so far. In these cases, the person who learns carries out in order all the behaviors that make up the chain in each of the training exercises. Reinforcement is provided once the behavioral sequence has been completed.
In this type of partial chaining, behaviors are taught one by one, starting the chain again each time a new segment is added. So, first the first link is executed and a reinforcement is obtained ; Subsequently, the first behavior in the chain is carried out again and then the second, and so on.
3. Backwards
Partial backward chaining is carried out in the opposite way to the previous type, although the scheme is very similar: the person executes the last response in the chain and obtains reinforcement; Later he has to do the same with the penultimate one and then with the last one again to obtain reinforcement, etc.
4. Pure partial
In pure partial chaining, behaviors are taught one by one, generally following a linear order (such as forward chaining). In this case no need to execute any other response in the chain except the one that is being worked on to obtain the reinforcer, although finally an integration must occur.
5. Progressive partial
This type of chaining is similar to the previous one, although the reinforcement is more gradual, as the name suggests. It would consist, for example, of rewarding the execution of the first behavior in the chain, then the second, then the combination of both, then the third…, until reaching the reinforcement of the complete chain.
