Abstract

Clinical experience suggests that a variety of neurotic and personality disorders are effectively treated by an approach to therapy that is relatively passive in appearance and is directed towards the development of self-knowledge. Behavior theory provides an economical, naturalistic analysis of the therapeutic effects of this approach. Punishment, a common method of controlling “forbidden” behavior, can result in pathologic avoidance and deficient awareness of one's own behavior and its relation to the environment. Traditional methods of psychoanalysis and behavior therapy provide circumstances that help the patient to observe acts and feelings and their relation to elements of the environment that are otherwise avoided. These procedures may work best when self-observation is (1) not selectively reinforced by the therapist, and (2) supplemented by explicit training in behavior analysis. These elements are combined in a treatment approach for generating observations of one's own behavior and its functional significance in the natural environment.

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