Personal, Interpersonal and Community-Reinforcement Perspective on Deviant Behaviour (PIC-R)

• NCJ Number: 89816
• Author(s): D Andrews
• Date Published: 1982
• Length: 69 pages
• Grant Number(s): 410-80-0729; 410-78-0027
• Sponsoring Agency: Ontario Ministry of Correctional Services; Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada
• Sale Source: National Institute of Justice/; Ontario Ministry of Correctional Services
• Language: English
• Country: Canada

Annotation

The personal, interpersonal, and community-reinforcement (PIC-R) perspective on deviant behavior considers factors which actively encourage as well as discourage deviant activity, using knowledge from life and the social sciences.

Abstract

A fundamental principle of the PIC-R perspective is that factors responsible for variations in human conduct are to be found in the immediate situation of action, specifically rewards and costs, and those antecedents to action which signal the delivery of rewarding or costly consequences for particular acts. The immediate contingencies of action account for variations in human conduct, but various personal, interpersonal, and community factors are responsible for the development, maintenance, and modification of these critical contingencies. Since many forms of deviant behavior are multifunctional, PIC-R emphasizes the density of the rewards and the density of the costs. Density relates to the number, variety, quality, and magnitude of rewards and the immediacy, frequency, and regularity with which rewards are delivered. The chances of a deviant act occurring increase with the density of the rewards derived from the act. The chances of a deviant act occurring decrease with the density of the costs flowing from the act. The density of the rewards and the costs for nondeviant alternative behaviors are also important. When nondeviant alternative behaviors are highly rewarded, the motivation for many forms of deviance is greatly reduced. Comprehensive assessment involves reviews of the indicators of both the reward and the cost contingencies for both deviant and nondeviant behaviors. Such indicators include (1) behavioral history; (2) personal attitudes, values, and beliefs; (3) personal skills and competencies; and (4) social supports. Within the ethical and sociopolitical context of any agency, effective interventions are those which produce and maintain changes in the contingencies of action. Sixty-three references are provided, and the 15 principles of the PIC-R perspective are appended. (Author summary modified)