Professional animal trainers and behavior consultants sometimes overlook or undervalue Level 2 (Antecedent Arrangements) of the Humane Hierarchy. This six-level progression of behavior-change procedures, arranged so that the least intrusive, most positive interventions come first, was first elucidated by Dr. Susan Friedman in 2010. (See What’s Wrong With This Picture? Effectiveness is Not Enough) It informs the core ethical commitment of several professional animal-training organizations (e.g., IAABC, CCPDT). Yet we may be tempted to “skip ahead” to familiar operant training procedures such as positive reinforcement (Level 3) & differential reinforcement of alternative behaviors (Level 4). Antecedent arrangements (Level 2) suggest we notice and adjust the animal’s environment in ways that facilitate the behaviors we wish to reinforce. It invites us to be creative in changing conditions that precede these behaviors, with the goal of making learning more effective and efficient. Note that Level 2 is much broader than simply “managing the environment” to prevent problem behaviors from occurring. We’ll look at many specific examples of antecedent arrangements drawn from Kathy’s work with her behavior-consultation clients.

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Speaker(s):Kathy Sdao

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