review and reflection

Evolution & Contextual Behavioral Science

Review

This section discusses evolution and contextual behavioral science. One of the points in this section concerns the origin of contextual behavioral science. This started in an evolutionary dimension within the confines of a philosophical tradition (Chapter 18). It is important to note that the brain of a person is constantly evolving for the future. This implies that the developments and growth in the brain are meant to prepare a person for the future. Furthermore, behavioral science helps people move forward past some cultural barriers placed for them by society. The section also discusses how the tension between stability and behavioral change can be reconciled and the importance to organisms. One point that has stood out in this is that organisms possess the ability to show high flexibility behaviors to respond to certain life conditions, for example, environmental changes and changes in their respective populations. All this flexibility is made possible by the presence of neuroendocrine components of the brain, which allow it to change and adapt depending on the situation at hand. Having an in-depth understanding of this will make the construction of individualized approaches to change in human behavior possible among the people. Consequently, this will play a major role in determining how different individuals perceive the world.

A third chapter of the section discusses the various ways in which healthy and flexible relationships can be built from contextual behavioral science. Learning exists in various forms. The different forms of learning have different impacts on individuals and groups. These forms of learning include but are not limited to emotional learning and operant learning. It is worth noting that operant learning is a form of learning centered on the consequences of a given behavior. The section also captures an important point about the increasing or the prevalence of people with various mental health illnesses. This leads to the discussion on the variations and selections in psychotherapy and psychopathology. An important concept mentioned in this section is psychological flexibility. This refers to the state of a person being aware, open, and actively engaged. Of psychological flexibility is psychological inflexibility (Chapter 15). The number of psychologically inflexible people is constantly rising in the world today because of various conditions that affect humans, for example, adverse life experiences.

Reflection

The various aspects discussed in this section greatly affect me as a current behavior analyst in several ways. Also, the information herein will impact me when I start practicing behavioral analysis. One of the ways this section affects my current behavior is that it teaches me how to interact in various situations (Chapter 18). From this section, I have been able to deduce that as a current behavior analyst, I should never be quick in judging others based on the things they do or the ones they do. On the contrary, I should always look into the situation that made the person act or behave in that particular manner (Chapter 16). By the time I start practicing behavioral analysis, information from this section will guide me to know the various approaches I should take when handling clients (Chapter 17). Also, I will be able to tell the types of people depending on their psychological flexibility and administer the right therapy to the affected persons (Chapter 15). The brain's functioning, which is significant to all behavioral analysts, will also guide me as I will have deep knowledge about it from the information provided in this section. These are the various ways in which information from this section will help both currently and in the future.