Tangible Difference Company Blog

Written by Michael Conteh Monday, 02 November 2009 07:29

Blog 11-04-2009: Lady Gaga Syndrome

Attention-maintained behavior.

I know I am getting older when I can't keep up with the new teeny-bopper stars like Lady Gaga and Hannah Montana, and I can't help but look at what an attention-maintained society we have become. ABA interventions can be for anyone, and it doesn't surprise me that our society is shifting to a more "look at me" sort of attitude. Humans crave attention! Even the ones who deny it and want to tell EVERYONE how they don't like attention. They tweet and update their Facebook page with lines like, "I want everyone to leave me alone!" You know people will leave comments, thus garnering attention. It's natural.

Now let's take attention-maintained behavior and talk about when it happens with our kids. People with extreme attention-maintained behavior will do things, even to their own detriment, for attention. I've had kids who repeatedly slapped their face until they cried in order to get it. Attention-maintained behavior can be difficult to get rid of, since all they need is one person's attention to gain some satisfaction. Here are some symptoms that your child engages in attention-maintained behavior:

• Interrupts you while you're on the phone, or talking to others

• Will continue to engage in inappropriate behavior after being told "no"

• Loves to see the reaction of others, good or bad

• Tends to exaggerate or over-do emotional reactions

Once you identify that it's possibly attention-maintained behavior that you're dealing with, you are left with a couple of options. GENERAL RULE - GIVE ATTETNION WHEN APPROPRIATE and IGNORE OR REDIRECT WHEN INNAPPROPRIATE.

That is the general fail-safe way to reduce this behavior. Now, since attention-maintained behavior is engraved in our DNA, it will never go away, but it can be modified so that it's not destructive. Ways to redirect:

• Have a child ask appropriately for attention - don't give it to child when they are screaming and not listening well

• Occasionally give your child 5-10 minutes of uninterrupted attention where you overload them with affection. This may reduce the need to gain attention inappropriately, and it works as a great motivator when it's time to teach skills. Plus, it's quality time with your kids!

• If the child is older - I am a big fan of social stories, and these can be used to let your child know how to get attention appropriately.

Those are some general rules to help and curb attention-maintained behavior in your kids. Adults, however, are another story. Don't even get me started on ">balloon dad!