A family with two sets of twins (5 and 7 years) has a problem with behavior. The children ignore the parents and fight and play in such a way that the children could hurt one another. Furthermore, because it is 4 children, the parents feel outnumbered. Upon further inspection, the parents serve highly processed food (chips, soda, mac and cheese from a box, chicken nuggets, corn dogs, and pizza) with sugary treats for dessert and snacks.
The children are so aggressive and out of control that they have been kicked out of private schools and preschools. When parents attempt to put one of them in time out, they hit, throw things, and run away from the spot in which they are placed. The parents are particularly concerned with hitting behaviors. What would you recommend as a treatment plan to help the parents with changing maladaptive behavior? Would you use reinforcers, punishers, or both? What other strategies would you recommend to make the aggressive and destructive behavior extinct?