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Behavior Modification

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Encyclopedia of Geropsychology
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Synonyms

Behavior change; Behavioral change

Definition

Behavior modification means the change of a current behavior by adopting a new behavior or by increasing or decreasing the current behavior.

Understanding, predicting, and evoking behavior modification is a key topic in all areas of psychology. It is a crucial means to reaching personal, organizational, and societal goals across the lifespan, including the major goal to stay healthy and well. With chronic disease on the rise, partly due to an increasing aging population, promoting and stabilizing health and well-being is more topical than ever (cf. Scholz et al. 2015). Behavior modification is a major factor to prevent and manage chronic diseases, such as diabetes and cardiovascular diseases (e.g., Ornish et al. 1998), be it, for example, to normalize blood pressure levels by exercising or eating more healthily or by better adherence to medication regimes; behavior modification and long-term maintenance are crucial at any time...

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Correspondence to Jennifer Inauen .

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Inauen, J., Scholz, U. (2015). Behavior Modification. In: Pachana, N. (eds) Encyclopedia of Geropsychology. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-287-080-3_171-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-287-080-3_171-1

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  • Online ISBN: 978-981-287-080-3

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