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Creating Cooperative Interactions With People and the Past |
Tuesday, May 28, 2013 |
9:00 AM–10:20 AM |
M100 J (Convention Center) |
Area: TBA |
Chair: Thomas C. Mawhinney (University of Detroit Mercy) |
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Applied Behavior Analysis Goes to School: Training Regular Education Teachers on the Use of Evidence-Based Strategies |
Domain: Applied Research |
FRANCESCA CAVALLINI (University of Parma), Fabiola Casarini (Universita degli Studi di Parma), Vanessa Artoni (Universita degli Studi di Parma), Gianluca Amato (TICE Learning Centre) |
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Abstract: As a result of many actions to disseminate the analysis of behavior within regular education environments in Italy, Parma University's researchers were contacted by Italian Public School representatives to conduct Applied Behavior Analysis-based courses for teachers from kindergarten to secondary school. Data collected for the first course, which included lectures and in situ supervision and was mostly based on public school courses guidelines and regular school training routines, showed no or little improvement in students' behavior and high rates of avoidance behaviors in teachers. After a data analysis, a new behavioral-based course was started, and data showed that 3 lecture sessions training verbal behavior about the science and two supervision sessions using Learn Units (Greer, 2002; Greer & Ross, 2008) could significantly improve students and teachers behavior. We then conducted a third course, based on the implementation of 4 different evidence-based tactics during everyday teaching practice. The experiment showed to have a socially significant impact, as demonstrated by the number of further request for more courses from different Public Education national districts. |
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The Current State of Graduate Training in Behavior Analysis |
Domain: Theory |
PAUL MALANGA (West Tennessee Resource Center) |
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Abstract: In the past couple years Ive begun to notice through talking with former and current graduate students of behavior analysis programs that very few have read B.F. Skinners original works. One student commented we read a lot of journal articles but nothing by B. F. Skinner. Getting a healthy dose of Skinner is important because Skinners work forms the philosophic foundation of what behavior analysts do. Its the why not just the how. One could even argue mastering the philosophy is crucial to becoming more than just a tactician. A brief survey was sent to BACB approved graduate programs inquiring the extent to which B. F. Skinners writings were required reading. A case for the importance of incorporating Skinners works into graduate training will be made, the results will be discussed and a method for incorporating Skinners writings throughout the graduate training experience will be outlined. |
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Efficiently Demonstrating Evolution of Contingencies of Cooperation, Competition, Leadership, and the Role of Trust |
Domain: Theory |
THOMAS C. MAWHINNEY (University of Detroit Mercy) |
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Abstract: B. F. Skinner expressed his empirical theory of behavior in the following adaptation of his behavioral equation: B = f(S,H) where B is behavior, S is a stimulus or stimuli making up prevailing environmental contingencies, and H is individuals observed history with respect to S (Skinner, 1931, 1938, 1966). These relations can apply to each member of a dyad. For dyad member D-1 S would include behavior of the other member, D-2, and H would be the history of social interactions between D-1 and D-2. Social behavior also involves interactions among two or more people in terms of histories they bring to their interactions and other elements of their shared environment, e.g., a cooperative task that must be completed in order for each person to receive some reinforcing consequence(s). Mechner (2008) has made the critical observation that while independent contingencies of social interactions can evoke and maintain interactions among dyad members, dyad members themselves can create and change their own dependent social contingencies or rules they adopt or create in response to changes in environmental contingencies. The academic and practical implications of live demonstrations of evolution of cooperation, competition, leadership and theory underpinning social interactions, and particularly the phenomenon called trust (Matthews, 1977) are discussed in this paper. |
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