Hello all!

Up until about a year ago, I feel ashamed to admit, I really did not have a good understanding of the process of change. When I say change, I am referring to behavioral changes (e.g., quitting smoking, stop biting your nails, stop playing video games, stop texting, decreasing Internet use). I was one of those who honestly thought that it was completely dependent upon the person to change and if they were unable to, then they were not ’strong or committed enough’. Harsh, I know. And even worse coming from a psychology major! However, then I took a class about changing addictive behaviors, it was here that I learned and now think, as well as understand, otherwise.

What I learned about was called The Stages of Change Model (Prochaska, Norcross, & DiClemente, 1995). This model, with no exaggeration, has completely changed my world view, and so explains why I will be sharing it with you all :) .

The Stages of Change Model is comprised of six parts, of which are the following:

1. Precontemplation

2. Contemplation

3. Preparation

4. Action

5. Maintenance

6. Termination

Below, I will describe each stage in hopes it will provide a better understanding for each :) .

In the first stage, precontemplation, people aren’t ready to change their maladaptive, or problem, behavior. They are not critically thinking about changing nor do they feel it is a problem behavior. All in all, people in this stage do not see themselves as having any kind of problem, and so you will notice they typically will not point out that they have anything wrong with them. To give you a better idea of what someone in this stage might say, or think, about their behavior could be: 1) “How can I get others to quit nagging me about my texting? I don’t text that much- GEEZ (or any other behavior can be inserted here)!” or 2) “I only came to therapy because my spouse said that she is worried about me, I have no idea why though? I know I don’t play that much WoW.”.

The second stage is contemplation. During this stage, people are more aware of their problem behavior and tend to think more about their bad habit(s). Here, they are able to consider the possibility of changing their behavior; however, they tend to have mixed feelings about it. This meaning, they are not yet sure if they are ready to change, or want to take the necessary steps to alter their bad habits. Typically, they are able to compare the pros and cons of altering their behaviors. Yet, when evaluating each side, they may feel that all the work it would take to change [in the immediate future] may not be beneficial in the long run. A good thing about this stage is that people are generally more open to talking about their problem or bad habit. They are usually able to take advice, and reflect on their own thoughts, feelings and/or concerns that may result from their problem behavior. An example of what you might hear from someone in this stage, or think about, includes the following: 1) “I want to stop feeling stuck, how could I move on with my life?” or 2) “I know I am headed down the wrong path, but I just don’t know if I am ready to turn around and head down the right one.”.

Stage three is called preparation. It is during this stage that you are able to see a commitment to making a change. This is where you see individuals wanting to do research, seek out resources (e.g., clinics, psychotherapy) and try to figure out which strategies will behoove them to try. People in this stage typically have set up a plan to take action within a month, and are making the final adjustments before ‘the big change’. Now, don’t be fooled, people in this stage still show some ambivalence, but they are willing to set goals and consider making a huge change in their behavior. An example of statements or thoughts individuals will typically think or say during this stage are as follows: 1) “I will stop eating junk food, like eating potato chips and drinking Mountain Dew, on October 1, 2009.” or “I have just got to do something about my texting, this is pretty serious and it is not very appealing. I have to change, but what can I do to change it? Maybe I can start on Monday, I won’t text much after that day.”.

The fourth stage is called action. During this stage, you are able to overtly see changes! People here are modifying their behavior and/or their surroundings to alter their maladaptive behaviors. For example, they will stop smoking, stop playing a video game, stop sending 300 text message a day, or stop biting their nails. This stage requires the most time and energy because you will have to be consciously aware of the changes you are making and be alert enough to execute the changes on a daily, hourly, or even on every minute basis. It’s rough and it’s important to note that action does not equate to change. This meaning, unfortunately, just because someone stops texting today, doesn’t mean tomorrow they will not text or even in 3 months. A relapse can occur at any moment. People in this stage also tend to be open to receiving feedback and are more inclined to seek support from others, such as in support groups or therapy. It is also important to note that this stage can be quite sporadic. This meaning, the action that an individual takes to change their behavior can last anywhere up to one hour, several days or a few months (as aforementioned, a relapse can occur at any moment or time). Typically, an individual in this stage will think or say the following: 1) “I feel great! I just exercised for 30 minutes- this was my new years resolution, so far, I have done it for 3 days straight!” or 2) “Can you believe it, I have been abstinent from texting for 5 days?!”.

Maintenance is the fifth stage. It is here that we see individuals that have successfully stuck to their action stage, and have stayed on the path to achieving the goals they set forth for themselves. People during this stage typically will remind themselves of how far they have come, how much work they have put into their changed behavior, and how much progress they have made. People during this stage may have temptations to return to their old habits, however, they will work hard and resist those temptations and stay on the path they have set forth for themselves. Common themes in people’s thoughts during this stage may consist of the following: 1) “I keep the box my WoW disc came in, to remind me of how far I have come from remaining abstinent from playing.” or 2) “It is easy to stop texting! I used to text 12,000 texts a month and now I don’t text at all! I have not texted for 4 months. Wahoo- GO ME!!! :) ”.

Termination is the final and sixth stage. This stage is, of course, the ultimate goal and point at which all individuals that are seeking to change a maladaptive behavior, want to strive for and eventually reach. It is here that your former addiction, habit or maladaptive behavior will not longer tempt or threaten you. This behavior that you set out to change, and did change, will never return and you will have complete confidence that you will never go down that path again. It is important to note here that it has been suggested that some problem behaviors cannot be terminated, but only kept at a moderated level for all life. An example of this would be for an individual with an eating disorder. If someone were to have anorexia, and was recovering from it, they would not strive for abstinence from food- this would cause death of course. So for them, they would have to simply modify their behaviors and try to increase food intake, instead of decreasing or ceasing it. This also goes for Internet use. It is my personal opinion that Internet use has become an integral part of functioning in society. I feel that it would be highly difficult and improbable to completely never use a computer or write an email ever again. So for individuals suffering from an Internet Addiction Disorder, it may be possible for them to modify their behaviors and set boundaries and limits on their use, decreasing their use so that they can function in society (e.g., sending an email at work to your co-workers, using an Internet database to conduct research for school).

Now, something vitally important to understand with all of these stages is that a lapse (e.g., being abstinent from WoW for 6 months, and deciding to play for 10 minutes, even though your behavior change plan said you would not, then, simply returning to being abstinent for another 2 years. ) or relapse (e.g., being abstinent from texting for 1 year and then going 3 full months, non-stop, of texting everyone you know and not trying to be abstinent- at least not in the near future) is OK and is actually normal, as most individuals may actually go through several stages in just one day! It is normal and natural to regress, to achieve success in one stage and then fall back to the previous stage. This is fine and is considered to be a completely normal part of making changes in your life and changes in your behavior. So just to let you know, it is ok to fall off the wagon, for a little bit that is ;) .

Also, it is important to consider environment and surrounding. Everyone is reinforced and tempted by different stimuli. What may trigger a relapse in me, may not in you. Taking into consideration what an individual’s surroundings are is also important, as this is also a contributing factor to whether or not an individual will be able to change and maintain their changed behaviors. For example, saying that an individual should simply stop playing WoW and shut off their computer is not as simple as it sounds. They most probably have created friendships during playing and perhaps all of their friends are also playing with them, and thus rely on them to keep playing each day, for several hours at a time. Also, it is important to note that brain chemistry changes, which is what makes Video Game Addiction a disease. They are addicted to playing and have set such a higher tolerance level that simply stopping cold turkey will be extremely hard to do! So you see, changing a behavior involves a lot, it’s a complicated task, one I did not understand (and am still learning about to this day and will continue to) up until about a year ago.

One last thing I learned was a term called “hitting rock bottom”. It is important to note that what your rock bottom is may not necessarily be what mine is. Losing your girlfriend, house, kids and car may not make you stop your maladaptive behavior. Yet for me, losing my boyfriend may be the first indication that I have hit rock bottom and thus prompt my immediate need to make changes in my life. Everyone is different, it is important to understand this, and what is really, really bad for me, may just be the ‘tip of the iceberg’ for you.

I truly hope this blog was helpful for you, I know it was for me- it was also a quick review :) . If you have any questions or comments, or want to discuss a personal behavior change that you recognized in yourself, and the accompanying stage, that would be awesome! Remember, all comments are welcome here folks.

More later,

-Anna DiNoto

*Note: The opinions are my own, Anna DiNoto’s, only. Thank you and I hope you enjoy and keep on reading as well as commenting- it is greatly appreciated !*

References:

Prochaska, J. O., Norcross, J. & DiClemente, C. (1995). Changing for good: A revolutionary six-stage program for overcoming bad habits and moving your life positively forward. HarperCollins: New York.