COMPORTAMENTO VERBAL E ESQUIZOFRENIA: ESTRATÉGIA OPERANTE DE INTERVENÇÃO

Abstract

The objective of this study was to investigate the verbal behavior of a person diagnosed as a chronic schizophrenic, in a mental health unit, using the principles of behavior analysis. The participant was a person male, 24 years old, single, with level of education fundamental incomplete, with low socio-economic level, retired on disability, with a history of hospitalizations in various institutions specialized in psychiatric treatment. The participant was continuous use high doses of psychiatric medication since the 19-year-old, when was the first psychotic outbreak. All the sessions were recorded on video and transcribed in full, which allowed the verbal behavior analysis of the participant and their categorization into words appropriate and inappropriate. For the control of the procedures were used two experimental design. In the design of elements multiple the verbal behavior of the participant were exposed to four differents conditions: attention (comment standardized contingent to inadequate talk), alone (the participant was in the room experimental alone), attention-no-contingent (of 30 in 30 seconds the researcher read a sentence from a list) and demand (the participant was led to perform an activity), these conditions were replicated in an reverse sequence. Subsequently, the reversion design of type ABAB, followed by follow-up was implemented. The design was started with the collection of data from the baseline I, followed for phase of intervention I, this sequence was repeated (baseline II e intervention II), and concludes with sessions of follow-up. In intervention was used differential reinforcing of alternative behavior (DRA), being made available reinforcing social for the adequate talk and extinction for the inadequate talk. The results demonstrated that the social environment strongly influenced the verbal behavior of the participant and demonstrated that the procedures of the applied behavior analysis were effective to reduce the frequency of inadequate verbal behavior and increase the frequency of verbal behaviors considered adequate. The results were discussed in terms of the methodology applied, of the behavioral principles, the effects achieved and the corroboration of the data with the literature. These studies indicate that the behavioral changes submitted by the participant were relevant.