Hebert, E. R., Flynn, M. K., Wilson, K. G., & Kellum, K. K. (2021). Values Intervention as an Establishing Operation for Approach in the Presence of Aversive Stimuli. Journal of Contextual Behavioral Science, 20, 144-154. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcbs.2021.04.001
When individuals are engaging in behavior that is under aversive control, the behavior becomes relatively insensitive to changes in the environment except for escape or avoidance contingencies. Teaching individuals to increase behavioral and psychological flexibility in the presence of potentially aversive stimuli is a goal of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). ACT therapists use personal values to motivate clients to engage in meaningful behaviors despite ever-changing, and often aversive, contexts. The aim of the current study was to examine the effects of a values intervention on participant's willingness to approach established aversive stimuli. College students (n = 200) completed questionnaires and participated in behavioral approach tasks with aversive stimuli. Individuals were more likely to approach if approach was related to a personal value versus a relatively arbitrary reward (i.e. tickets) or without any specified consequence. Psychological inflexibility did not moderate the relationship between condition and approach. However, the values intervention condition did produce greater levels of approach than the control conditions. Previous studies have examined the impact of combined values and acceptance interventions. The evidence from this study suggests that values interventions alone may influence behavior.
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