General Questions
Behavioral medicine is a science. It is an area of applied psychology called “behaviorism” in which learning theory based experimental and clinical psychology interface with medicine. The integration of learning theory principles into medicine has created behaviorally based treatment and assessment methods to treat patients with a wide range of intransigent medical disorders. Behavioral medicine is based on the understanding that much of behavior is learned. Learned behavior occurs as we interact with our environment. Behavior is learned, undergoes change, and is extinguished (eliminated) following explicit laws of learning. These laws were discovered in experimental psychology laboratories over the last century. Largely, American experimental psychologists have pioneered the study of “how organisms learn” and they maintain a leadership role in this field of science.
Physiological and biological activity occurring throughout your body can be viewed as physiological and biological behavior. Historically, medicine has not viewed organ system function or disease of organ systems from this psychological perspective. Rather, the germ theory influences this medical view point. From a conventional medical perspective, your body’s organ systems are physiological systems that are medically treated through pharmacologic, radiologic, or surgical procedures. psychological intervention is usually not the first choice of treatment in conventional medicine.
Nevertheless, by identifying physiological and biological processes as behavior, as experimental psychologists were accustomed to doing, they speculated that human physiological systems might be subject to the same laws of learning as the behavior of their laboratory animals. They speculated that physiological and biological processes in humans could be viewed as learned behavioral responses or learned biological processes.
Further investigations showed they were right!
The Basis of Behavioral Medicine
Learning theory is a specialized scientific area of study in departments of experimental psychology. Learning theory involves the laboratory based scientific investigation of the behavioral and psychological laws underlying the acquisition of behavior or how we learn. Learning theory is a complex field of scientific investigation allowing one to obtain a Ph.D. in one of many sub areas of this specialized field of experimental psychology.
Psychophysiology is the scientific investigation of the role psychological characteristics play in the function of physiological systems. These experimental psychologists are called psychophysiologists. Learning theory experimental psychologists are interested in the role of learning in the function of biological and physiological systems.
Clinical psychophysiology translates research findings into clinical applications in the treatment of patients with medical and psychologically related medical disorders. This area of applied psychophysiology is called behavioral medicine.
Behavior modification is the method and process of changing behavior utilizing the principles of learning theory. The procedure serves as an important treatment method within the clinical field of behavior therapy. Behavior therapy itself, is based on the principles of learning theory, an area of scientific study in experimental psychology.
The objective of behavior therapy is to therapeutically alter behavior utilizing behavior modification methods and procedures. While behavior modification is effective in treating a wide array of mental illnesses, it achieves a level of noticeable superiority in the treatment of patients with disorders that have failed to respond to other forms of psychotherapy. Patients undergoing behavior therapy commonly improve significantly. and more quickly in treatment compared with other forms of psychotherapy.
Behavior therapy is the clinical application of the principles of learning theory in the treatment of psychological and medical disorders. Learning theory is the scientific study of how we learn. Clinically, it is the study of how we learn to be normal how we learn to be healthy, how we learn to be ill, and how we learn to be mentally ill. In the case of illness, it is the study of how to change.
Behavior therapy emerged as a powerful treatment when research from laboratories in experimental psychology were translated into clinical therapy during the 1960s. The transfer of this knowledge revolutionized clinical psychology and our view of mental illness. Now, mental illness could be viewed as a mental health problem that could be systematically changed and improved.
The influence of learning theory continues today to have an ever widening influence as clinical practitioners in psychology, psychiatry, and medicine come to understand and appreciate the complex principles of learning theory and behavior therapy more fully.
Our understanding of these fundamental mechanisms has evolved over the last 10 decades in experimental laboratories in psychology departments throughout the United States american experimental psychologists have held a leadership position in this scientific field.
All theories of personality, mental illness, and psychotherapy are based on the recognition that we learn and can change our behavior. The extent to which theories of behavior change are guided by a clear understanding of the scientific principles underlying learning will be the extent to which other theories of psychotherapy will be relevant and effective in clinical practice.
Cognitive behavioral therapy is an aspect of behavior therapy in which behavior modification methods, following the principles of learning theory, are designed to change thought patterns or cognitive behavior. When thinking processes are appropriately viewed as learned behavior, changing what we think and how we think become behavioral habit patterns. When learning theory principles are applied clinically, in the treatment of medical and psychological problems, the physiological and cognitive behavior associated with these conditions can be improved. The procedure has revolutionized the way we treat an increasing variety of mental disorders. Furthermore, the learning theory underlying the power of cognitive behavioral therapy is currently replacing many of the traditional (and outdated) theories held in psychiatry and clinical psychology. Most importantly, it is finally changing the way we view and treat many illnesses today.
Often misunderstood by the general public and health professionals alike, the principles of biofeedback are founded on one of the most revolutionary changes in our understanding of physiologic function and psychological process. Biofeedback involves the application of learning theory principles to directly control and change the function of one’s own nervous system, hormonal system, and organ systems. In other words, biofeedback is a method of gaining voluntary control over your own involuntary nervous system. The clinical psychologists who pioneered this field were interested in helping patients control, reduce, and eliminate their own medical problems through the use of biofeedback therapy.
Biofeedback emerged as a clinical application of learning theory principles that were established during a century of animal and human research in the laboratories of experimental psychology departments throughout the United States.
Based on learning theory principles, the sensation or awareness of our environment (whether internal or external), permits us to use the feedback of that experience to adjust our behavior to successfully navigate in the world. Without sensory feedback, we would learn nothing! We could not survive, independently.
If one could receive clear feedback of those very subtle biological processes in our organ systems and nervous system (most of which lie beyond our awareness) we might be able to learn to control them in much the same way we learn to control our bodies to walk through a door way.
If we electronically amplify those subtle body functions, we might have the basic information necessary to learn to control the functions of our own body. That is the goal of biofeedback!
Biofeedback is simply the amplification system. Learning to control body function requires the implementation of a learning theory based behavior modification treatment to learn this skill and to benefit from this self regulated therapeutic procedure.
Stress can kill you!
Chronic stress will kill you faster!
There is probably no greater contributor to early death than stress caused or stress related medical disorders. Physicians as well as psychologists are aware of its dangers.
Until the behavioral revolution occurred in clinical psychology and much later, psychiatry: “stress management” was unknown as a systematized treatment. With the emergence of learning theory based behaviorism, stress management has become one of the most important treatment methods in the care of patients experiencing a wide array of medical and psychological disorders.
Chronic (long term) stress conditions are learned. We condition our nervous systems and biological systems to accommodate abnormally high levels of tension, or bioelectric activity. Eventually, like an automobile engine revving at 6,000 rpms, 24 hours a day, organ systems begin to functionally break down. Illness susceptibility, organ function capacity and eventual deterioration, are associated with a wide range of stress induced medical and psychological illnesses.
Stress management techniques enable patients to reduce and reverse stress levels. in treatment, patients then learn to cope more effectively with stress in their daily lives as they learn to inoculate themselves from the effects of stress. this learned ability is termed “stress inoculation”.
Complementary Behavioral Therapies
Anger management is a specialized behavioral therapy focusing on the ability to effectively manage anger and aggression. The treatment methods are drawn from the research conducted in learning theory and social learning theory laboratories. Anger management is designed to train patients in the appropriate expression of anger, while constructively confronting aggression in others. Research has demonstrated that skills taught in anger management lead to a significant improvement in self esteem and self confidence.
In general, effective anger management leads to a decrease in emotional distress in patients and a significant improvement in the ability to cope with emotional challenges in daily life.
Assertion training is an aspect of behavior therapy that incorporates principles from learning theory and social learning theory research.
Assertion training involves learning the skills of effective self expression. The therapeutic process is designed to help patients express themselves in all social and interpersonal situations with confidence and self assurance.
Conflict resolution training is a form of behavior therapy designed to train patients to effectively resolve conflicts, emotionally charged arguments, and aggressive behavior in others. The goal of conflict resolution training is to build self esteem and self confidence through successfully negotiating and resolving conflicts in a socially acceptable and successful manner.
The ability to successfully resolve conflicts in an effective manner is the foundation of leadership strengths.
A prerequisite to successful resolution of conflicts is successful management of anger in oneself and in others. Therefore, it is recommended that a patient complete our anger management course before enrolling in our conflict resolution program.
Social skills training is a form of behavior therapy that draws its effectiveness from social learning theory and learning theory laboratories. Social skills training is designed to assist patients to interact successfully in social situations. Emphasis is on skills that enable one to 1) interact and effectively resolve conflict with others, 2) build respect from others, and 3) build leadership qualities.
Successful interaction with others in face-to-face social situations builds self confidence and self esteem. This achievement, in turn, becomes the foundation of one’s leadership qualities.