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Prayer as a Behavior Modification
This study will be to increase the frequency of intentional prayer sessions throughout
each week for the participant through methods of behavior modification. For this study, an
intentional prayer session will be defined as at least 10 minutes of undistracted and uninterrupted
time in which the participant spends speaking with God. The participant may either speak out
loud or silently during prayer sessions. Prayer sessions may take place in any location, so long as
the previously stated requirements are met, although it is preferred that the sessions be held in a
place where the participant will certainly be alone.
The participant for this study will be a married, male, college student in their mid-
twenties that is in the United States Army. The participant has ample opportunities to ensure
sessions are completed. The participant will be in a behavioral deficit for this study which will be
displayed in the baseline phase. The purpose of the study is to increase the behavioral deficit of
prayer when a treatment is implemented.
The participant in this demographic will be chosen because the lifestyle that the
participant lives may be considered generally stressful and overwhelming, and the behavior of
praying may reduce the symptoms of said lifestyle. Nearly all college students surveyed in the
United States reported that college was the main stressor in their lives and that stress has been
linked to several mental health illnesses (Barbayannis et al., 2022). A study also showed that
those in the United States military contribute a lot of the stress they feel to the demands of the
military (Bray et al., 2001). The act of praying can reduce feelings of stress, anxiety, depression,
and other forms of mental illness (Stefanek, 2020).
As prayer sessions increase in frequency, overall quality of life is expected to improve.
The participant’s stress and anxiety levels, no matter what their cause, should decrease.
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Satisfaction in other parts of life such as in his job and his marriage should increase as well.
When behavior modification is implemented, results are expected to create increased life
satisfaction and decrease feelings of stress and anxiety.
Research on the Target Behavior
Countless studies have been conducted on the behavior of prayer. Researchers have studied the
effects of prayer on people’s lives, why people do it, how it impacts specific aspects of people’s
lives, and many other reasons. Reviewing the research provides a foundation for understanding
of why prayer sessions may be beneficial for the participant.
Research conducted by Bray et al. (2001) surveyed over 16,000 active-duty military personnel
serving in the United States military. To ensure the sample was diverse, service members were
selected from all different branches of the military (Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force) from
installations both inside and outside of the continental United States. The sample was also
diversified by rank and gender, from junior enlisted to high-ranking officers and men and women
(Bray et al., 2001). The analyses from the study are drawn from a 1995 Department of Defense
(DoD) Survey of Health Related Behaviors Military Personnel. Through examination of and
analysis of the survey, Bray et al. concluded that regardless of branch, location, rank, or gender
military personnel feel high levels of work-related stress and that that stress negatively impacts
their work (2001). The authors ultimately suggested that the military intervene on behalf of its
service members and provide forms of therapeutic measures to mitigate the stress that service
members feel. Although the authors suggest that the organizational military intervene, it is also
the responsibility of the individual soldier to take initiative to reduce stress with meditation or
prayer.
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Similarly, Barbayannis et al. utilized surveys to gain an understanding of stress in college
students (Barbayannis et al., 2022). The surveys included the Short Warwick-Edinburgh Mental
Well Being Scale (SWEMWBS) and the Perception of Academic Stress Scale (PAS) to survey
over 800 college students across the United States. They found that nearly 90% of the students
surveyed were experiencing academic stress (Barbayannis et al., 2022). The stress was hindering
their motivation and was negatively impacting their mental health.
The participant is in both demographics listed above meaning that he is at a higher risk of feeling
stressed, anxious, and depressed. However, integrating daily prayer sessions may relieve a great
amount of stress. A study conducted by Andrade and Radhakrishnan showed that people who
were unknowingly prayed for different medical procedures showed greater success than those
who were not (2009). That is the focus of their study, but Andrade and Radhakrishnan include a
portion in which they explain that prayer for oneself produces all the same medical benefits as
traditional meditation and with superior results (2009).
Another study consisting of 44 women who exhibited signs of depression and anxiety
underwent prayer intervention consisting of 1-hour prayer sessions for 6 weeks (Peter et al.,
2012). One-way repeated measures ANOVAs were used to compare findings pre-prayer,
immediately following the six prayer sessions, and 1 month and again 1 year following prayer
interventions (Peter et al., 2012). The results showed substantial decline in feelings of depression
and anxiety and more feelings of optimism (Peter et al., 2012).
Research on the Treatment Method
The treatment method that will be implemented for this study will consist of a token
economy. Miltenberger (2008) defines token economy as “a reinforcement system in which
conditioned reinforcers called tokens are delivered to people for desirable behaviors: the tokens
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are later exchanged for backup reinforcers”. Desirable behaviors may be increased through the
reception of tokens and undesirable behaviors may be decreased through the removal of tokens.
For the purposes of this study, tokens will be recorded on a record sheet in the form of
tally marks that are given for each prayer session. The participant and his accountability partner,
in this study his wife, will keep a record of all tokens gained. The backup reinforcer for the
participant include time allotted to play video games each week. The participant is currently
allotted an hour of video games each weekend. But if the participant accumulates the required
number of tokens for the week, he will be granted an additional 30 minutes.
The reason for an accountability partner can be found in a study conducted by Matthews
(2007). In the study, participants were assigned to one of 5 different groups and were assigned a
degree measure of accountability to achieve their goals (write goals, think about their goals,
formulate action steps, send action steps and goals to a friend, and send progress report of action
steps to a friend weekly). The study found that the participants who were required to send their
weekly progress to a friend showed far greater success in reaching their goals than the other
groups (Matthews, 2007).
Conclusion
The modification of prayer session frequency has been chosen for the participant because
of the disposition for greater feelings of stress and anxiety due to his current circumstances. The
implementation of frequent and consistent prayer sessions should significantly decrease those
feelings and increase feelings of satisfaction, optimism, and spiritual connection. This will result
in overall improvement of quality of life for the participant.
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The method of treatment is the token economy. The token economy method will be used
to promote an increase of desirable behaviors. This system allows the participant to earn tokens
and exchange them for backup reinforcers. In this study, the backup reinforcer for the participant
is extra time allotted to play his favorite video game. This treatment method was chosen because
it will strengthen positive behaviors and weaken negative ones.
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References
Andrade, C., & Radhakrishnan, R. (2009). Prayer and healing: A medical and scientific
perspective on randomized controlled trials. Indian journal of psychiatry, 51(4), 247–253.
https://doi.org/10.4103/0019-5545.58288
Barbayannis, G., Bandari, M., Zheng, X., Baquerizo, H., Pecor, K. W., & Ming, X. (2022).
Academic Stress and Mental Well-Being in College Students: Correlations, Affected
Groups, and COVID-19. Frontiers in psychology, 13, 886344.
https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.886344
Bray, R. M., Camlin, C. S., Fairbank, J. A., Dunteman, G. H., & Wheeless, S. C. (2001). The
Effects of Stress on Job Functioning of Military Men and Women. Armed forces and
society, 27(3), 397–417. https://doi.org/10.1177/0095327X0102700304
Matthews, Gail, "The Impact of Commitment, Accountability, and Written Goals on Goal
Achievement" (2007). Psychology | Faculty Presentations. 3.
https://scholar.dominican.edu/psychology-faculty-conference-presentations/3
Miltenberger. R. (2016). Behavior Modification Principles and Procedures. (6th ed.) Cengage
Learning.
Boelens, P. A., Reeves, R. R., Replogle, W. H., & Koenig, H. G. (2012). The Effect of Prayer on
Depression and Anxiety: Maintenance of Positive Influence One Year after Prayer
Intervention. The International Journal of Psychiatry in Medicine, 43(1), 85–98.
https://doi.org/10.2190/PM.43.1.f
Stefanek, M. (2020). The Science of Prayer. The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved September 2017,
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