Re: Re: Changing Behaviors

[Guest guest]

> Consequently, a multifactoral / integrated approach is required to

> reach an optimal outcome.

Hi ,

and just what is a " multifactoral / integrated

approach " ;-) (just couldn't pass it up).

Following is a summary of my observations relating to the negative

side of change.

Jerry

HORRORS OF CHANGE Review 12118

“One of the greatest pains to human nature is the pain of a new idea

“ --BAGEOUT

Understanding and getting past the “change” barrier.

THE HORRORS OF CHANGE

As I continue to research the process of change these interrelated

factors are more than obvious.

• NATURAL INSTINCT RESISTANCE TO CHANGE. we are programmed to learn a

way of doing things and once learned do such and such the rest of our

lives.

• SYSTEMIC DISSONANCE PARADOX.

Even when we have changed behaviors – have developed a positively

valenced, positively reinforcing experience with a new much more

productive behavior -- the old dysfunctional behavior will compete

(for various lengths of time) with the new to the point of pain.

• EGO. What may be the strongest adversary to change, for vast numbers

of people, is admitting to ones self that ones life would/could have

been much better if so and so had been realized and acted upon earlier.

• WRONG IS WRONG SYNDROME. Two wrongs don’t make a right. That is,

when we believe we have made a mistake – that we have been wrong – we

beat ourselves up for it. Thus, it is Wrong to be Wrong.

• LEARNING. Another fact faced by “changers” is realizing that change

takes learning; time, effort, focus, viable strategies, persistence –-

knowing all along that “things get worse before they get better” ---

if in fact they do get better – that there are no guarantees!

• EXPECTATIONS/PREDICTIONS/ANTICIPATIONS

Predicitability governs our lives. Behavior is entirely a function of

what we expect to happen and how we are going to respond to it. In one

“implicit” sense our lives are movies we have already learned, seen

and experienced a thousand times before. After watching any big silver

screen movie, the next time we watch it, we know what is to happen

next and next and etc. Maybe you have noticed yourself setting your

self emotionally for an upcoming scene in an already viewed movie – or

in movies not previously seen? In part it is because of the music we

haven’t paid attention to – in another aspect it is out predictive

expectations that alert us to upcoming events.

After living and learning our own movies we basically project ahead in

time what’s going to happen, what we are going to do and follow/

imitate/act out those projections. This aspect of expectation is

primarily habitual – learned and followed pretty much verbatim outside

of CA conscious awareness. Because we perceive/ or at least

anticiapate mill secs into the future it is important that those

future foercasts be accurate. If we expect to change something none

habitual we must expect predict we will do such and so and that it

will be rewarding

• THE I’LL DECIDE FACTOR

In our family one of my brothers had a favorite saying--”I’ll

decide”-- He’d say this when ever he needed to win an argument -- not

that he was wrong much. He has a Ph.D in physics from Cornell. Strange

how that little saying always seemed to slow down or even stop the

conversation--despite his considerably smaller size. One day I beat

him to the punch and much to my ego’s satisfaction said “I’ll decide”

before he did. “To late” he smirked, “I’ve already decided” He may

have already decided but he almost died also.

Calhoun, an animal researcher observed definite preferences wild

mice had for various situations and activities. That is, until Calhoun

tried to provoke the mice into doing what the mice preferred. At that

point the mice “decided”!!! to do the less preferred activity.

Prohaska speculates this is “foolish freedom”------That “the mice

demanded! control over their behavior, even if it meant sacrificing

their own health”. (reference lost)

Aparently any organism that has an option will pick?/do, ? that

activity– where there is no active momentary influence? Or the one

which is more predictable? -- even if that choice/act is typically

less “desireable”. Deep s--- for a rat. A rat that cant talk (and

thus not think)!

Regardless the points the same – try to influence – even towards

activities known to the influencee as desireable and the influencee

will tend not to do that activity. So what are the probabiliites of

influencing an organism that doesn’t want to do what the influencer

desires.

TELLE the following in not an emphasis but problems with my computers

translations.)

Recent alcoholism treatment studies indicate that how people account

for their behavioral change has important consequences for maintaining

abstinence. People are more likely to maintain a change in behavior if

they attribute it to their own efforts rather than to an external

factor or agent. If treatments are framed to match patients' own

attributional styles, (even better if the patients determined and

chose the plan) more patients would be motivated to continue with

desirable treatments and benefit from their effects.All of this

suggests that anyone seeking better health, will tend to be “put off”

by the ministrations of another.

Regardless the vast majority of folk are reluctant to willingly do

what others tell them – or even what others suggest – unless they (at

some level) feel they are the “causitive” agent AND ?? not doing such

and so at the bequest of another??

• LACK OF WORTHWHILE STRATEGIES. THE CURRENT STATE OF IGNORANCE

Oprah Winfrey, an amazing person with an immense degree of

inteligence, drive and motivation – is the ultimate American dream/

success story. At one point she lost 60-70 lbs, looked great and

received tons of fan mail and adulation. AND if anyone should be able

to loose weight its her. She has at her disposal all the best!?!

advisers in the world when it comes to change--from book selling, tear

dripping, bleeding hearter’s to hard line “tell it like it isers” to

exercise and nutrition consultants.

Her situation amplifies the sad state of affairs when it comes to

change. The last I read only 3-8% of change wannabes maintain change

for 2? years or more. My thoughts are the ones who have permanently

changed are not a function of any particular exercise or nutiron plan

but an unrecognized, probably even to them, system of experiential --

as opposed to semantic symbolic insight -- thought mental constructs.

NORMATIVE FACTORS. As a function of peer, family, hero, religious

and self imposed norms. Its interesting to speculate, when considering

a hierarchical stratified group, what the majority of the leaders

parade would willingly do when said leader demanded vs. suggested vs.

modeled a new behavior?

MISPERCEPTIONS.

As if all of this weren’t enough -- from “Scientific American Mind”,

vol. 16, #4 PICTUREIMPERFECT, PG. 20 “---------researchers find that

self ratings of aptitude hold only a tenuous to modest relation, at

best, with actual performance, --- abilities and predicting desirable

outcomes. Findings have important consequences for health, education

and the workplace”.

Thus another obstacle to change is getting to and past accurate

perceptions.

All of these barriers to change, as disquieting as they are,

dramatically point to the need for education. That is, if these above

factors are influencing an individual and that individual is not aware

of them that persons “operating system” is likely to associate the

unpleasant unnatural and natural negative factors with the change –

the new behavior.

Jerry Telle

Lakewood CO USA