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Behavior Modification: Techniques for Positive Behavior Change

What are the best strategies for enacting change?

Cynthia Vinney, PhD is an expert in media psychology and a published scholar whose work has been published in peer-reviewed psychology journals.

problem solving and behavior modification

Principles and Techniques of Behavior Modification

Applications of behavior modification, behavior modification in organizational settings, ethical considerations in behavior modification, limitations and criticisms of behavior modification.

Behavior modification uses various motivational techniques to eliminate behavior you don’t want to see or encourage behavior you do want to see. For example, you can use positive reinforcement, like praise, to encourage behavior you want. Alternatively, you can use negative reinforcement, like nagging, to eliminate behavior you don’t want.

Behavior modification is based on B.F. Skinner’s theory of “operant conditioning.” Skinner emphasized that the best way to understand an individual’s behavior is through the consequences of that behavior.

If the consequences of an action were favorable, the action would be repeated, while if the consequences were unfavorable, the action would not be repeated. This is the basis of behavior modification.

In the following, we’ll look at the principles and techniques of behavior modification, explore some examples of behavior modification, and look at the ethical considerations and criticisms of behavior modification.

Klaus Vedfelt / DigitalVision / Getty

Behavior modification relies on ways to develop, strengthen, maintain, stop, or modify a behavior, according to Tara M. Lally, PhD , Supervising Psychologist in the Department of Psychiatry at Ocean University Medical Center. At the center of this is a stimulus, reinforcement, and punishment.

Stimulus and stimulus control

A stimulus is a catalyst that encourages a specific type of behavior. A stimulus control is “behavior that occurs more often in the presence of a stimulus than in its absence,” Lally explains. “For example, drivers stop in the presence of stop signs and we all act differently around someone we have a crush on.”

Consequences

Consequences occur after a behavior. “A consequence can be positive or negative,” Lally says. “Positive consequences could include praise or a reward and… negative consequence[s] could include the loss of something such as free time or attention.” In behavior modification, consequences take two forms reinforcement and punishment.

Reinforcement

“Skinner noted that a reinforcer is a consequence that increases the likelihood of behavior to recur,” said Lally. Reinforcement can be either positive or negative:

Positive reinforcement occurs when someone is encouraged to continue their behavior because they receive rewards. For instance, when a child completes their homework, they could be allowed extra time to play on their tablet.
Negative reinforcement occurs when someone is encouraged to change their behavior because something unpleasant will be taken away. For example, when a teenager does their laundry to get their parents to stop nagging them.

Punishment can be positive or negative as well. Lally notes that “punishment is a consequence that decreases the chance” a behavior will recur:

Positive punishment presents a negative consequence in order to decrease the likelihood of a negative behavior. One example is corporal punishment, including spanking, but this is an unproductive form of behavior modification as it can increase aggression and other problems. A better example is something like having a child who hurt their sibling do the siblings’ chores.
Negative punishment takes away a positive consequence to decrease negative behavior. For instance, parents may take away a child’s cell phone when they break their curfew.

Extinction “is the gradual weakening and eventual disappearance of a learned behavior,” according to Lally. “For example, a child that [has] tantrums for candy while checking out of the [grocery] store will begin to stop this behavior when ignored and not met with reward.”

Consistency is key when applying reinforcement and punishment. When consequences happen whenever you behave a particular way, eventually the choice will either become habit in the case of a positive behavior or go extinct in the case of an undesired behavior, as long as the consequences are applied consistently.

Behavior modification has been applied across all ages and settings where behavior change is necessary. Here are some examples.

Behavior modification in children and adolescents

Children and adolescents have already been covered here. Some additional examples include taking a child out for ice cream after they finish a challenging school assignment (positive reinforcement) and taking away a child’s toy when they fail to clean their room ( negative punishment ).

Behavior modification in adults

Behavior modification in adults is similar to children, and can result in similarly dramatic behavior modifications. For instance, an adult could use positive punishment to prevent themselves from biting their fingernails by putting a bad-tasting nail polish on.

Alternatively, a court could use negative reinforcement by dropping a fine so a person no longer has to go to jail. The consequence is good because the person doesn't have to do the undesired behavior.

Adults can use behavior modification to exercise regularly, eat healthy, work more efficiently, and numerous other things that can be positively or negatively reinforced or punished.

Behavior modification in clinical settings

In clinical settings, treatment teams may use behavior modification to reinforce prosocial behavior. They can do this through positive reinforcement. For instance, a token economy uses tokens or points that have real value, such as stickers or coins, as rewards for positive behaviors.

Behavior modification in educational settings

Educational settings have been widely studied. To manage classroom behavior modification:

Define the problem
Figure out a way to change the behavior
Determine an effective reinforcer
Apply the reinforcer consistently to modify behavior

Reinforcement and punishment are both effective as reinforcers but, in the classroom, reinforcement is preferred in helping children develop better behaviors.

For example, in third grade, a teacher decided to stop Allen from tipping back his chair. Every time she looked over, he would get a tally mark as punishment if he was leaning back. But positive reinforcement , where Allen got a tally mark as a reward every time she looked over and all four legs of his chair were down, might have been better as it would reinforce the positive behavior.

In recent years a wide variety of organizational settings have used behavior modification and most have claimed positive results. In organizational settings, behavioral modification is used as a technique for managers to motivate employees.

For example, in a field study by Luthans and Kreitner, they trained the experimental group of supervisors in the techniques of behavior modification. The trained supervisors were asked to use what they’d learned with their employees, and after 10 weeks it was found that the experimental group had reduced the frequency of complaints, increased quality indicators, and declined in individual performance problems.

Also, the group’s labor effectiveness improved significantly. The control group, whose supervisors weren’t exposed to behavior modification techniques, showed none of these improvements.

While behavior modification has a lot of promise, there are numerous ethical considerations . The most important of these from the perspective of a therapist or counselor is informed consent . According to Lally, “behavior modification… should have clear informed consent with patient autonomy driving the behavior change.” This involves agreement between the therapist and the patient that a given behavior needs to change.

“If the individual does not want to change the behavior, they cannot be manipulated to do so,” explained Lally. “However, the rewards, punishments, and perceived benefits of this behavior engagement may shift to lessen the appeal of continued behavior.” In other words, it would be easy for an unethical therapist to manipulate the patient to change behavior.

In addition, some behavior modification can result in ethical questions, especially those involving punishment, which can result in harm or negative consequences for the individual.

Behavior modification also has several limitations and criticisms. Chief among them are critiques of behaviorism, particularly that behavior modification addresses outward behavior instead of underlying psychological issues. This can lead to problems that may be suppressed and then resurface later.

In addition, Lally observes that behavior modification does not always use intrinsic motivation to get its results. For example, when using token economies, people do things for external rewards, leading to questionable long-term effectiveness, because external rewards are less reinforcing than internal rewards.

Also, Lally points out that individuals and individual differences vary, so the same intervention may have an outsized effect on one person but practically no effect on someone else.

Based on the work of B.F. Skinner, behavior modification uses reinforcement and punishment as ways of encouraging or discouraging behavior. Many people of all different ages can have undesired behaviors and behavior modification techniques can be used to eliminate undesired behaviors and champion desired behaviors.

New Directions for Women. What is Behavior Modification Therapy? 2021.

Morin A. Behavior Modification Techniques . Verywell Family . 2021.

Stevens CJ. Behavior Modification: The 4 Main Components . Care . 2021.

Scott HK, Jain A, Cogburn M. Behavior Modification . In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2024 Jan.

Mather N, Goldstein S. Behavior Modification in the Classroom . LD Online . 2001

Black JS, Bright DS. Learning and Reinforcement . Organizational Behavior . OpenStax; 2019.

Luthans F, Kreitner R. Organizational Behavior Modification and Beyond . Scott, Foresman; 1985: 150-159.

Kaur D. The Harmful Effects of Behaviour Modification . Project Haans . 2023.

By Cynthia Vinney, PhD Cynthia Vinney, PhD is an expert in media psychology and a published scholar whose work has been published in peer-reviewed psychology journals.

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Problem solving and behavior modification

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v.13(9); 2021 Sep

Role of Behavioral Interventions in the Management of Obesity

Iyanu v olateju.

1 Internal Medicine, MedStar Harbour Hospital, Baltimore, USA

2 Psychiatry, University of Benin, Benin, NGA

Matthew O Owolabi

3 Pediatrics, Children's National Hospital, Washington DC, USA

Ugonna Azode

4 Clinical Research, Walden University, Minneapolis, USA

5 Informatics, University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, Madison, USA

6 Physical Therapy, University of Ghana Legon, Accra, GHA

7 Medicine and Surgery, Avalon University School of Medicine, Williemstaad, CUW

Felicity Osula

8 Internal Medicine, The University of Chicago Medicine, Chicago, USA

Richard Okeke

9 Internal Medicine, Ivano-Frankivsk National Medical University, Ivano-Frankivsk, UKR

Ijeoma Akabalu

10 Medicine, Caribbean Medical University School of Medicine, Willemstad, CUW

Overweight and obesity are the leading lifestyle-related causes of clinical and public health concerns. Health behavior change is central in obesity management. This review provides the various behavioral interventions in the management of obesity. Behavior modification is a structured method for improving lifestyle habits such as exercise, diet, and other practices that might influence behavior. This review article was based on current and older literature on behavioral approaches to target overweight/obesity. Articles about the various interventions to reduce obesity, particularly behavior interventions, were searched and explored. All the articles found to reveal behavior modification techniques, including goal-setting, self-monitoring, stimulus control, cognitive restructuring, stress management, problem-solving, and social support and information were obtained by reading the full text of the articles. The articles which did not provide any information regarding behavior interventions to reduce obesity were excluded from the review. This review discussed practical ways to incorporate behavior interventions in the management of obesity. The benefits and effectiveness of behavioral interventions on achieving and maintaining weight loss are also discussed. Patients using behavioral modification strategies to make these changes are more likely to succeed in long-term weight maintenance.

Introduction and background

Obesity and overweight are defined as abnormal or excessive fat accumulation [ 1 ] and weight gain exceeding the standard indicator values [ 1 , 2 ]. Overweight and obesity are the leading lifestyle-related causes of clinical and public health concerns [ 2 ]. Obesity is often measured using the body mass index (BMI), where BMI = weight (kg)/height (m 2 ) [ 1 , 3 ]. BMI greater than 25 is considered overweight, and over 30 is obese. Obesity is now an epidemic, with over four million people dying each year due to being overweight or obese in 2017 [ 1 ].

Bodyweight is influenced by genetic, metabolic, behavioral, environmental, cultural, and socio-economic influences [ 4 , 5 ]. The etiology of obesity can be observed from a clinical and public health perspective. The clinical perspective is based on individual variations (genetic and biologic variations), while the public health perspective is based on calorie intake and energy expenditure [ 4 , 5 ]. It is crucial to achieving a sustainable balance between energy output and input. Increasing levels of energy expenditure can be achieved by increasing physical activity levels and decreasing sources of sedentary lifestyle [ 4 ]. Therefore, overweight and obesity result mainly from a sedentary lifestyle and a negative balance between energy consumption and expenditure [ 4 ].

Obesity is associated with increased risk for metabolic disorders (such as hypertension, hyperlipidemia, dyslipidemia, type 2 diabetes), cardiovascular diseases, some types of cancer, cholelithiasis, and increased risk of morbidity and mortality [ 6 , 7 ]. The leading causes of death among adults with obesity include ischemic heart disease, complications from diabetes mellitus type 2, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and cancers [ 6 - 10 ]. The risk of these non-communicable diseases increases even when slightly overweight and grows more severe as the BMI climbs. There is a crucial need to develop and implement interventions that specifically achieve weight stability in those with an existing weight problem and help prevent deterioration in obesity-related comorbidities over time. Programs including nutritional, activity, and behavioral components can effectively help manage obesity/overweight [ 11 ]. Behavioral modifications targeting diet and physical activity changes are the cornerstones of interventions for weight management in overweight and obese populations [ 12 ]. Behavioral modifications are also effective in reducing weight and improving health, at least in the short term [ 13 ].

This review provides the various behavioral interventions in the management of obesity. Behavior modification is a structured method for improving lifestyle habits such as exercise, diet, and other practices that might influence behavior [ 14 ]. Behavior modification includes goal-setting, stimulus control, stress factors management, self-monitoring, cognitive restructuring, stress management, problem-solving, and support systems [ 14 , 15 ]. Behavioral interventions, exercise, and diet lead to more effective and sustainable weight maintenance [ 14 , 15 ].

Methodology

This review article was based on current and older literature on behavioral approaches to target overweight/obesity. The studies included were available publications on the topic from March 1992 through January 2021. We searched the following databases for relevant articles: Google Scholar, PubMed, ScienceDirect, and Web of Science. We identified searches using the keywords, Obesity, Weight Management, Behavioral Modification, motivational interviewing, and Behavioral Interventions for Weight Loss. In addition, we searched and explored articles cited in the primary publications for pertinent information regarding the topic. All the articles found to reveal behavior modification techniques, including goal-setting, self-monitoring, stimulus control, cognitive restructuring, stress management, problem-solving, and social support and information were obtained by reading the full text of the articles. We excluded articles that did not provide any information regarding behavior interventions to reduce obesity from the review.

Obesity management

Efficient and successful management of obesity involves multiple treatment strategies, focusing on modifying lifestyle habits such as exercise and diet. Other methods include behavior modification, adjunctive pharmacotherapy, and surgical approach [ 14 , 16 ]. The recommendations for the management of obesity are represented in Table Table1 1 .

Interventions	Definition
Behavioral strategies	The use of multiple strategies like stress management, cognitive restructuring, self-monitoring, social support, and stimulus control.
Dietary intake	Reduction of caloric intake by 500 to 1,000 kcal per day; leads to a total loss of one to two pounds in body weight per week.
Physical activity	Obese patients should start with moderate-intensity physical activity like walking for 30 to 45 minutes, three to five days per week.
Adjunctive pharmacotherapy	Drug therapy should be considered in patients with BMI greater than or equal to 30 or a BMI greater than 27 with comorbidities.

Behavioral interventions in obesity management

Behavior modification is a structured method for improving lifestyle habits such as exercise, diet, and other practices that might influence obesity [ 14 ]. Most behavior modification strategies focus on: increasing awareness around triggers for problem behaviors, identifying feelings and beliefs around weight issues, increasing structure around common weight-related behaviors, providing support that enables change, and setting realistic goals for changes [ 11 , 17 ]. Effective behavioral strategies for weight loss is heavy on behavior change techniques such as self-monitoring, physical activity, goal setting, problem-solving, support system, stressor and stimulus control, cognitive restructuring, alternative behaviors, continuous patient-centered care, weight control, and maintenance plan, structured meal plans, meal replacements, understanding portion control, and contingency management-making specific plans for "slip-ups" and alternative behaviors [ 11 , 15 , 18 ].

Self-monitoring

Monitoring of energy consumption and expenditure and intake is the central dogma of the cognitive management of obesity. Effective self-monitoring has a direct positive relationship with weight loss [ 19 ]. Intentional surveillance and record of food and daily physical activities positively influence self-consciousness and personal behaviors. In addition, self-monitoring allows more time to self-reflect before making decisions, promoting healthier food choices [ 11 , 20 ]. Tools involved in self-monitoring are food diaries used to record a breakdown of daily caloric food content, nutrient groups, physical activity logs (type and duration), body weight, and mass [ 14 ]. Although patients are not always accurate in documenting their diet and exercise behaviors [ 19 ], the purpose of self-monitoring is to create awareness. Self-awareness helps patients understand how their daily choices can be beneficial or detrimental to their weight management efforts. Self-monitoring records can also provide information to identify activity contingencies targeted for intervention [ 21 ].

Goal-setting

Setting reasonable and achievable goals promotes long-term success. Goal setting effectively focuses participants' attention on behavior change and helps set a specific dietary intake and weight management goal. In selected patients (depending on their capabilities and general health), low-intensity physical activity or exercise should be started and increased gradually to moderate-intensity with a goal of 150-200 minutes per week [ 19 , 22 ]. Exercise compliance can be improved by promoting lifestyle activities (such as walking, hiking, riding bicycles rather than driving, taking the stairs rather than elevators), stretching, home-based endurance, and strength exercises, especially for individuals with hectic schedules [ 3 , 22 ].

Problem-solving

Specific problem-solving tactics help patients traverse their health-related habits. Patients are strongly advised to weigh their options before making an educated decision regarding their health [ 11 , 23 ]. Patients are encouraged to create and apply a personalized plan for the desired goal and measure their success against a pre-produced measurement scale. Beyond this, patients are taught to analyze their problems circumspectly and create problem-solving tactics [ 11 ]. In addition, group visits are encouraged because they promote collaborative problem-solving tactics. Individuals learn from each other’s experiences and can adopt solutions from their peers [ 11 , 23 ]. Problem-solving is also necessary for specific eating situations like social and emotional eating [ 11 , 23 ]. Social eating is typical when eating outside of the home and in restaurants. Eating in restaurants has a high chance of increasing calorie intake; patients must learn adaptative strategies for healthy eating outside of the home [ 11 , 23 ]. Dining out is arguably increasing but should not be abused by overeating. Understanding the negative impact of overeating might help patients control social eating. Some struggles associated with eating out are food portioning, high-calorie food, food preparation methods, and a strong desire to finish all the food on the plate [ 11 , 23 ]. On the other hand, emotional eating is when people eat in response to their feelings or emotions. These emotions include sadness, happiness, anger, joy, boredom, and stress. These eating responses can hurt weight maintenance [ 11 , 23 ].

Social support

Good social support is associated with a more sustainable weight loss [ 14 , 24 ]. Social supports can come from family members, community-based programs, and social activities like conferences, courses, and clubs. The community-based programs can be either weight-loss oriented or not; the essential component is a sound support system. Support systems can also be instrumental in assisting individuals to develop healthy relationships and formulate a reasonable work-life balance [ 14 , 24 ].

Stress management

Educating patients on various managing methods is crucial, as stress can influence eating habits [ 24 ]. Examples of stress reduction techniques are breathing exercises, muscle relaxation, mediation, and yoga. These techniques reduce tension by inhibiting stimulation of the sympathetic nervous system, thereby distracting from stressful events. Patients can also be advised to adopt other strategies, including exercise, swimming, relaxation techniques, yoga, family support, and other behavioral interventions [ 11 , 25 ].

Stimulus control

Stimulus control is simply conditioning, classical, and operant conditioning. It involves the identification of environmental cues associated with eating habits and inactivity. Controlling these cues can help sustain weight loss and prevent relapse [ 3 , 14 , 25 ]. Patients can implement these strategies by eating only at the dining without distractions from electronic devices, avoid storing snacks at home, bringing out active wears the night before a workout day, and a reminder note on the refrigerator or any other visible surface [ 3 , 14 , 25 ]. A collaborative patient-physician effort should develop a practical and sustainable customized stimulus control plan [ 14 ]. The primary focus should be to create a suitable environment that supports weight management goals and strategies [ 3 , 14 ]. The environment can be modified to encourage a healthy lifestyle by building practical and goal-oriented networks suitable for walking (such as pedestrian pathways), cycling (for bicycles), and safe recreational spaces (such as local parks and centers) [ 3 , 14 , 26 ]. It is recommended that patients remove inactivity triggers to avoid relapse [ 3 ].

Alternative behaviors

It includes recognizing triggers for overeating like a strong urge or desire to eat and identify healthy behavioral alternatives [ 11 ]. In collaboration with primary healthcare providers, patients learn to identify triggers of unhealthy behaviors and develop strategies to eliminate such behaviors. Patients are taught to gradually substitute unhealthy behaviors with healthy behaviors [ 11 ].

Cognitive restructuring

Cognitive restructuring promotes self-awareness which helps patients actively change the internal dialogue that undermines their weight loss efforts [ 14 , 16 ]. Cognitive restructuring is essential because many obese patients think poorly of themselves and have low expectations or are entirely ignorant of weight loss possibilities and potential benefits [ 14 ]. Cognitive restructuring helps patients to change their perspective of weight loss expectations [ 16 , 19 ]. The first contact with patients is usually the primary care providers; this opens room for discussing and formulating realistic and sustainable weight loss plans. This is the perfect avenue for developing a trusting physician-patient relationship and encouraging patients on their weight loss journey [ 11 , 16 ].

Contingency management making specific plans for slip-ups

A slip is an error. For example, Jane Doe intended to eat a wrap of chocolate but ended up eating five wraps. If Jane Doe sees this as a mistake (a slip), understands how she slipped, and treats it as a learning experience rather than dwelling on it, Jane Doe will react better (and wiser) when she is next faced with a similar temptation. The concept is to develop contingency plans to avoid repeating an error or mistake [ 11 , 23 ]. In the real sense, five wraps of chocolates are not necessarily going to cause obesity. However, if a slip/mistake turns into a sequence of slips, there is a high chance of relapse. Again, the belief and understanding of one’s actions influence the reaction. It is crucial to know and understand the difference between an educational experience and a failure [ 11 , 23 ]. A negative attitude to failed experiences impedes success, whereas a learning experience is knowledge gained [ 11 , 23 ]. For instance, time and seasons change, unexpected or unplanned events or incidents happen. All of these are common reasons that call for a change in an exercise routine. Rather than denying that this could ever happen, it is more prudent to stay focused on the reasons behind these problems and formulate contingency plans [ 11 , 23 ].

Meal planning with the help of a dietitian

For successful meal planning, it is important to assess patients' understanding and preferences. This assessment is professionally done by a registered dietitian nutritionist (RDN). RDNs work with patients to develop a practical plan that aligns with their finances, culture, and preferences while still working towards weight management and sustenance [ 11 ].

Develop specific relapse prevention techniques

Necessary components of relapse prevention include: (1) recognize social triggers that could stimulate unhealthy eating behaviors and formulate practical plans to avoid or minimize such triggers. It is also vital to generate strategies that can help prevent relapse during social events or travels [ 11 , 23 ]. (2) A significant cause of relapse is stress. Stress management strategies should be set up. Patients should be encouraged to discover activities that help reduce stress, such as relaxation exercises, swimming, hiking, watching movies [ 11 , 23 ]. (3) Staying motivated can be a hurdle; hence, it is necessary to acknowledge each milestone, success, failure, and challenge with a positive mindset. In addition, plans should be constantly assessed to set new goals and reviewed if futile [ 11 , 23 ].

Continuous patient-centered care

A non-judgemental approach to patient care is the bedrock of a solid physician-patient relationship. Motivational interviewing (MI) is an effective technique used to achieve patient-centered care [ 11 ]. MI is a technique used to motivate and encourage patients to make decisions that promote their wellbeing [ 3 ]. Primary care providers play a major role in MI because they are usually the first contacted by patients. This is the perfect opportunity to educate, encourage and support patients, on their weight loss journey. In most cases, primary care providers collaborate with behavioral health specialists and other specialists like endocrinologists (per patients' health needs) to achieve desired weight loss goals. A strong medical support system promotes implementation, compliance, maintenance, and sustenance of patients' goals [ 11 , 23 ]. MI has the following core values: (1) Express Empathy equals skillful reflective listening is fundamental to expressing empathy. Health practitioners (HP) see the world from the individual's perspective. Acceptance from HP facilitates change in the individual [ 3 , 11 ]. (2) Develop discrepancy equals discrepancy between present dilemma and desired goals. HPs should help patients understand the reasoning behind their desire for change and encourage them to note it down [ 3 , 11 ]. (3) Roll with resistance means resistance might cause push-back, fear of the unknown, hostility, accusations, denials, and rebellion against recommendations from HPs. Once resistance is identified, HPs must avoid increasing resistance and use it constructively [ 3 , 11 ]. (4) Support self-efficacy means self-belief and acceptance. A self-belief is a crucial tool often maximized by HPs to effect a desired change or goal and promote change talk [ 3 , 11 ]. The MI strategies "OARS," aimed at promoting change talk are (1) Open-Ended Questions - helps facilitate dialogue, involve the patient in collaborative care, and give room for analytical and critical thinking. Open-ended questions are a good way to validate patients' concerns and opens the door to a potential trusting physician-patient relationship [ 3 , 27 ]. (2) Affirmations are statements made by HPs to genuinely motivate patients, acknowledging their strengths and achievements, replacing negativity with positivity, and reframing their failures to strengths. Affirmations encourage patients to stay persistent and determined [ 3 , 27 ]. (3) Reflective Listening - patiently listening to patients to understand and interpret their emotions, express empathy, and help navigate the pathway to success [ 3 , 27 ]. (4) Summaries - reiterate the interest of HPs in patient care, help patients identify problems while proffering workable and lasting solutions [ 3 , 27 ]. In a study conducted by Kelley et al. [ 11 ], MI helped reduce body mass in obese/overweight participants compared to the control group.

Effectiveness of behavioral interventions

The incorporation of behavioral modification in the management of obesity has proven to produce body mass and weight loss [ 3 , 11 , 16 , 19 , 26 ]. Over the past 20 years, multiple studies reported that behavioral interventions lasting over four months lead to an average weight loss of 0.45 kg (1 lb) per week [ 14 , 16 , 28 , 29 ]. The administration of multiple interventions produces a more significant weight loss [ 14 ]. After nine to ten months of behavioral treatment, a greater percentage of patients (about two-thirds) achieve and maintain weight loss [ 14 ]. In addition to exercise and diet, multiple studies consistently prove that extended behavioral treatment achieves a significant weight loss [ 11 , 14 , 15 , 24 , 26 , 28 , 29 ].

Conclusions

Health care providers must become more involved in preventing obesity and incorporate multiple behavioral interventions in managing and preventing obesity. There is a need to transition from prescribing only diet and exercise as lifestyle interventions to a more holistic approach that includes behavioral treatment. This multidisciplinary approach to obesity management will foster patient compliance, adherence, and maintenance of lifestyle modification.

The content published in Cureus is the result of clinical experience and/or research by independent individuals or organizations. Cureus is not responsible for the scientific accuracy or reliability of data or conclusions published herein. All content published within Cureus is intended only for educational, research and reference purposes. Additionally, articles published within Cureus should not be deemed a suitable substitute for the advice of a qualified health care professional. Do not disregard or avoid professional medical advice due to content published within Cureus.

The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

DOI: 10.1037/H0031360
Corpus ID: 3137290

Problem solving and behavior modification.

T. D'Zurilla , M. Goldfried
Published in Journal of Abnormal… 1 August 1971

2,052 Citations

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Highly Influenced

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Problem solving and behavior modification. - APA PsycNet
Selectively reviewed problem-solving theory and research for possible applications in behavior modification. Problem solving was defined as a behavioral process which (a) makes available a variety of response alternatives for dealing with a problematic situation, and (b) increases the probability of selecting the most effective response from ...
Behavior Modification: Techniques for Positive Behavior Change
In the following, we’ll look at the principles and techniques of behavior modification, explore some examples of behavior modification, and look at the ethical considerations and criticisms of behavior modification.
Problem solving and behavior modification - PubMed
Problem Solving* Programmed Instructions as Topic Psychological Theory Psychology, Clinical Research Set, Psychology
Behavior Change Techniques and Their Mechanisms of Action: A ...
The BCTs that were most frequently linked to an MoA were “Instruction on How to Perform the Behavior” (182 times) and “Problem Solving” (177 times). The most frequently linked MoA was “Beliefs about Capabilities” (734 times), followed by “Intention” (318 times).
Behavior Modification - StatPearls - NCBI Bookshelf
Behavior modification is a psychotherapeutic intervention primarily used to eliminate or reduce maladaptive behavior in children or adults. While some therapies focus on changing thought processes that can affect behavior, behavior modification focuses on changing specific behaviors with little consideration of a person’s thoughts or feelings.
Problem solving and behavior modification. - Abstract ...
Cultural adaptation of a UK evidence-based problem-solving intervention to support Polish prisoners at risk of suicidal behaviour: a cross-sectional survey using an Ecological Validity Model. Perry AE , Zawadzka M , Lapinski P , Moore K , Rychlik J , Nowak B
Role of Behavioral Interventions in the Management of Obesity
Most behavior modification strategies focus on: increasing awareness around triggers for problem behaviors, identifying feelings and beliefs around weight issues, increasing structure around common weight-related behaviors, providing support that enables change, and setting realistic goals for changes [11,17].
Problem solving and behavior modification. | Semantic Scholar
This article reviews the theoretical models guiding research, the development of normative and atypical social problem solving, and the connection between social information processing and individual differences in functioning and concludes with a summary of efficacy of programs aimed at preventing social informationprocessing biases or ...
Problem solving and behavior therapy revisited - ScienceDirect
Much of this research can be categorized into three lines of inquiry: (a) whether a relationship between problem solving and distress exists; (b) whether effective problem solving serves to attenuate the deleterious effects of stressful life events that in general increase the likelihood of experiencing psychological distress; and (c) whether tr...
(Emotion-centered) problem-solving therapy: An update
Problem-solving therapy (PST) is a psychosocial intervention, typically considered to be a member of the cognitive and behaviour therapies family, and is based on a biopsychosocial, diathesis-stress model of psychopathology.