Breaking Bad depicts a man who is projected to die soon due to a terminal illness. This illness causes Walter to live life on the edge and try to set his family up financially for life after him. In the popular television series, Walter who starts as a chemistry high school teacher and is well known for he is well-mannered exhibits this kind of condition as he tries his best to maintain and sustain his family. Every step that one takes in life, results in rewards and punishments. According to nature, individuals are forced to live according to the consequences of the behaviors and actions they chose. In this case, they are forced to learn from the consequences. This concept was termed an operational conditioning disorder. In this paper, I will explore the symptoms, causes, lifestyle impacts, and treatments of operant conditioning through the main character Walter White, in the show Breaking Bad.
Due to his desire for power and stability in financials, Walter starts cooking and selling methamphetamine. The thrill drives him more which in turn makes him want to take more control and addicted to gaining more power. He aims to get more money and he starts getting involved in activities that are dangerous and harmful. He starts to commit murder and uses manipulation strategies to gain more. This pushes him into becoming a drug dealer and he starts distributing drugs in society, thus illustrating Walter’s operant conditioning disorder. Although receiving much money and control over society was positive according to Walter, there were also negative results that accompanied the situation. His desires overpower his morals and ethics as he is involved in murder, and also he gets addicted to methamphetamine. To maintain the kind of power he holds, Walter is involved in heinous activities which he is ready to terminate and destroy whatever comes in between his desires. His behavior later turns out to be violent and with time it increases to an extent where everybody around him is afraid to cross his paths. He also suffers from cancer which in most cases, is known to be a chronic condition and most of the time leads to death. The trajectory Walter chose, was dangerous and later led to his destruction. He has to suffer for the path he chose to lead. He was too much addicted to the rewards he received from the activities forgetting what mattered most in his life.
Since Walter appears to be addicted to his crime life, there is a clear illustration that he suffers from operant conditioning disorder as indicated by the film Breaking Bad. According to psychologists, individuals suffering from operant conditioning disorder, have difficulties in controlling themselves and they only care about what they receive forgetting the rule of nature. They tend to neglect the order of things and they might later involve in activities that are dangerous and can bring harm. They crave activities that can make them get and attain their desires. For instance, as illustrated in Breaking Bad, Walter’s desire to rise high in societal status pushes him in involving in activities that are more dangerous and bring him harm. For instance, throughout the series, Walter is obsessed and addicted to his criminal activities and he even pushes his family away. He prioritizes his drug dealing business an indication that he cannot control his emotions and behaviors in relationship with his surroundings. He fails to resist the temptation to do all evils to attain his desires. He neglects his family to get hold of a high position and control over everything. According to researchers, individuals who exhibit difficulties in controlling their emotions, are at one time in their lives suffering from addictions. Walter is addicted to methamphetamine, thus engaging in all dangerous activities to fill the emptiness that comes along with addiction.
Breaking Bad is an excellent example of an illustration of one suffering from operant conditioning disorder. Due to the fact that Walter developed cancer and was looking for a way that he can sustain and maintain his family, he started using and producing methamphetamine which later resulted in him being a drug lord in the society. At first, Walter was afraid of his actions but due to the rewards and benefits he collected from his activities, he was encouraged to continue. Despite being a high school chemistry teacher who was respected and knew that dealing with drugs was dangerous, he was enticed to the activities without giving it a thought. To understand his behaviors, psychologists advise him to use psychological concepts and understand why he chose to follow the trajectory. Being that he was in a very critical situation that needed family support and their presence. One of the most used concepts by psychologists and can be applied in the film is Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. Walter’s decision to use and produce methamphetamine was based on his need to be stable and take care, maintain, and sustain his family. Walter believed that it was only through financial success that he would gain that all. Although family provision was his main aim when he started the activities, it is also evident that the aim changed in between and the desire to gain control and more power gave him the thrill to continue with the activities. He was even ready to get rid of whatever came across to hinder the success.
Secondly, cognitive dissonance theory is another concept that can be applied and used in the film. As a respected former teacher and family man, Walter uses the situation to convince himself that he is only involved in the activities due to them. On the central, being that he is educated, he is aware of all the ethics and morals. However, he chooses to oppose them and move according to his conviction. He believes that whatever action he is taking, he is doing it for the future of his family which contradicts the ethics and morals of being a father and a teacher. Despite all the values and attributes that he taught his students, the conviction drives him into getting in deeply into the activities forgetting the ethics and ethos of his occupation. Initially, everybody in society would term Walter as a respectable family man who cared for and maintained his family. However, the situation later changes as the only respect he received only came because he was powerful and dangerous. This is against the rule of nature as respect is only supposed to be granted to those who deserved it.
In conclusion, operant conditioning disorder is psychological and most individuals find themselves suffering from it. In most cases, they are forced to make decisions based on the benefits and consequences of their activities. Breaking Bad a popular television series is a good example that can be used to exhibit the condition and how the activities the character is involved in shaping his path. Walter’s increasing desire to continue with the criminal activities is triggered and encouraged by the financial success and power he receives from them. However, despite that there are positive outcomes that are recorded from his behavior and activities, he is negatively affected as he loses his family and is open to emotional distress as there is nobody to cater to him and physical harm. Nevertheless, this does not stop him from heinous activities as he only concentrates on what he gains. In addition, operant conditioning disorder leads to behaviors that are not easily broken. Instead, individuals suffering from this condition always find themselves wanting more thus getting involved in more dangerous activities. Therefore, it is the responsibility of each individual to take a look and learn to control their emotions. They should not lose track of their morals and neglect ethics just because they focus only on rewards for the paths they chose ring them.
References
Gilligan, V. (Director). (2008). Breaking Bad (Motion Picture). AMC.
Perrotta, G. (2019). Tic disorder: definition, clinical contexts, differential diagnosis, neural correlates and therapeutic approaches. J Neurosci Rehab, 2019, 1-6. http://www.giulioperrotta.com/
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