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We all like our efforts to be recognised and acknowledged, which is why praise is such an important tool when it comes to effective behaviour support.
Praise plays a fundamental role in creating and maintaining a positive culture in our settings. It can act as one of our primary strategies to support de-escalation and encourage positive behaviour habits. Praise is a simple way to reinforce behaviours we would like to see, both with the individuals we support and with staff teams.
Recognising and commenting on another person’s strengths, efforts and successes can be extremely motivating, and can help an individual feel confident in their own abilities. Used effectively, praise can raise self-esteem and self-belief, boost morale, and motivate both those in our care and members of our staff teams.
However, while there’s no doubt using praise can be effective, if it lacks sincerity, then its impact will be limited. Individuals can often discern whether praise is genuine or not, and if they feel it is not authentic, it can undermine relationships and exacerbate behaviour that needs support.
Vague, ambiguous praise can also be problematic as individuals may not understand what, specifically, we are praising them for. This can lead to feelings of confusion and make it tricky for a person to identify and repeat desired behaviour.
We need to take individual preferences into account, as some children, young people and adults can feel uncomfortable being praised, especially if it is done in front of other people.
Over-use of praise can also be problematic. If we are congratulated all the time for everything we do, it can soon become meaningless and, over time, lose its impact.
According to the Cycle of Influence model, we know that experiences drive feelings and behaviour, which in turn drives a response. While this is true for behaviours we want to discourage, it is also true for behaviours we want to encourage.
As a response to desired behaviour, praise is a great vehicle for reinforcing positive experiences and feelings, which increases the likelihood of a behaviour being repeated.
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