In praise of ... not praising?

Recently I received a question via email from someone who is studying Intensive Interaction as part of the overall classroom communication strategies used with children with autism. She had done a classroom observation of a teaching assistant, and was seeking clarification on her view that using overt 'praising' within Intensive Interaction exchanges isn't recommended practice (in this case the teaching assistant giving verbal praise to a child for some 'good' eye contact being made).

Of course, she is right; overtly praising our partner within an Intensive Interaction exchange isn't recommended Intensive Interaction practice - as she correctly pointed out herself in the email: using praise is not recommended II practice 'because it is not natural to praise people for taking their turn in an interaction'. Below is my answer to her query:

'Yes, externally applied/delivered praise is not recommended as Intensive Interaction practice as this can become a reward (one in the gift of the practitioner), rather than any mutual enjoyment created being the implicit reward generated by the act of engagement itself. 

I also think giving praise can reinforce the power imbalance that many learners exist and communicate within i.e. praise indicates a prescribed correctness of response from someone else, and is either given or withheld by an external agent. We want to develop the feeling of an equitable power relationship with interactions i.e. being partners during Intensive Interaction engagements rather than having a hierarchical teacher-pupil relationship (even though in reality that is what it is). 

Indeed, for some students with demand avoidant behaviours, externally applied praise can be very disaffecting and negatively affect the behavioural response of the learner.'

I think that this is an interesting area, and the more I think about it the more I think that any praise clearly acts as an indicator of hierarchical positioning (which is obviously a position we will sometimes need to take); when we praise other people we are taking a judgemental stance over them - albeit a positive one. Indeed, I personally don't like being praised by someone if I deem it to be a deliberate indication of their perceived authority over me (managers take note!) - and I do think that praise is sometimes deliberately used in this way.

But, in a school classroom praise will be given, and it will also be an effective way of positively managing the behaviours of most of the children in many normally occurring school circumstances - so we don't stop praising, but we just use it when it is an appropriate and effective strategy. 

However, we should always remember that the driving motivational force of Intensive Interaction is not just to please others, but it is to please ourselves and our communication partners, both at the same time, by the positively affirming 'mutual pleasure' generated in and by an equitable social engagement.

Oh, and very well done to everyone for reading this Blog!