The identification of preferred and reinforcing stimuli has long been a focus of behavior analysts in applied settings. Research has primarily focused on different methodologies for assessing whether stimuli are preferred and there has been additional research on identifying under what conditions those stimuli will function as reinforcers. Recently, research has begun to examine responses and reinforcers from a behavioral economic perspective. The present study compared responding in a situation where the price of one item was increased, but the price of alternative items remained the same, to a situation where the price of all available items increased. Multiple stimulus with replacement (MS) preference assessment methodology was used and price was altered by increasing the distance of the stimuli from the participant. During the first assessment, the item chosen most frequently in the first session was systematically moved 6 - 24 inches beyond the other items during subsequent sessions. During the second assessment, all items were systematically moved 6 - 24 inches beyond the starting point in front of the participant during subsequent sessions. Results for the first assessment indicated that for four of the five participants, consumption of the target item decreased as a function of increased price for that item. Results for the second assessment indicated that at high costs, clear preference for one item was observed for three of the five participants. Taken collectively, these results suggest that response effort is a variable that should be taken into consideration when evaluating effective treatments for individuals with disabilities. Preference and reinforcer effectiveness may shift as individuals are presented with tasks that require increased response effort in terms of reaching or moving about their environment. / Educational Psychology

In this study, 2-minute and 5-minute free operant preference assessments were conducted. Preference hierarchies and the order of item selection were both identified and compared. The preference assessments were administered in alternating order and the resulting differentially preferred items were utilized in subsequent reinforcer assessments to determine if the items selected were reinforcing. The reinforcer assessments were conducted using an initial baseline and an alternating treatment design. Social validity was assessed with both the families and the participants. Treatment fidelity and inter-observer agreement data were also collected. The 2-minute free operant preference assessment was shown to be effective at identifying effective reinforcers for two out of the three participants. The third participant did not respond consistently to the free operant preference assessment at any length and responded aversively to the presentation of the free operant preference assessment, one which is known for yielding few problem behaviors. For the two participants that responded to the preference assessment, items that were identified functioned effectively as reinforcers. There was also a strong correlation using the Spearman’s Rank-Order Correlation Coefficient between the preference hierarchies and the order of selection list. This study supports the usage of the shortened free operant preference assessment but requires expansion and repetition. The author discussed the limitations of the current study and directions for future research. / Applied Behavioral Analysis

The concept of "creativity" has been studied under the perspective of variability in behavior analysis. Creativity and variable responding contributes to problem solving in novel situations, learning new responses in different environments, and promote interactions that would otherwise be prohibited by repetitive behaviors and routines. During childhood, play contributes to the emergence of creativity and variability. Children develop many skills that are important to their lives while engaging in play behaviors. Some of those skills include self-advocacy, communication, and problem solving. Researchers have investigated different methods to promote variable play skills in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). There is limited research on prompting as an isolated variable in increasing variability in play responses. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of prompting on variable play skills. Results indicated that verbal instructions and modeling were effective in increasing variable play responses. Both participants displayed a sustained increase in novel item engagement when exposed to prompting.

Intelligent transportation systems data collected on drivers who presumably participated in a study of cognitive mapping and way-finding were evaluated with two basic procedures for data coding, including analysis of video data based on the occurrence or non-occurrence of a) critical behaviors during consecutive 15 second intervals of a driving trial, and b) the safe alternative when a safe behavior opportunity was available. Methods of data coding were assessed for practical use, reliability, and sensitivity to variation in driving style. A factor analysis of at-risk driving behaviors identified a cluster of correlated driving behaviors that appeared to share a common characteristic identified as aggressive/impatient driving. The relationship between personality and driving style was also assessed. That is, analysis of the demographics and personality variables associated with the occurrence of at-risk driving behaviors revealed that driver Age and Type A personality characteristics were significant predictors of vehicle speed and following distance to the preceding vehicle. Results are discussed with regard to implications for safe driving interventions and problem behavior theory. / Ph. D.

The purpose of this investigation is to study a given secondary school with which the investigator is familiar in order to determine as objectively as possible what conditions, relationships, and experiences are exercising unwholesome influences on the youngster's actions, and to determine how the school can provide opportunities for developing social behavior that will make an integrated personality.

As adolescents transition into young adults, many changes take place within family relationships as young adults move away from home. Young adults may be living away from parents and siblings for the first time and will establish communication patterns that can affect the rest of their life (citation). Relationships largely rely on communication in which young adults and their siblings with autism may experience changes in communication patterns as they move away from home. This study examined six young adults who all have a sibling with autism with whom they are no longer living. An examination of how close these young adults felt to their sibling with autism was performed along with an examination of the amount of days contact was held with the sibling with autism. The use of digital reminders was used to increase communication in the sibling relationship The study found that when participants were able to successfully increase their communication with their sibling with autism, perceptions of how close participants felt to that sibling increased.

Research in scholarly communication is usually limited to the use and dissemination of scientific material by scholars. This excludes the transfer of knowledge from research producers to service providers. Some may argue the primary function of science is to investigate the conditions in the lab so everyday interactions with the environment are more effective and efficient. This is the underlying philosophy of the science of behavior analysis. Comprised of a basic science, an applied science and a philosophy the field of behavior analysis relies on research developments to inform effective practice. Guided by dissemination processes studied in information science, this investigation revealed the content layer in behavior analysis is primarily comprised of journal articles. Ninety four percent of the research artifacts cited in the current content layer are from journal articles. Other dissemination channels used to develop the behavior analytic content layer included scientific magazine articles, oral reports, dissertations and theses, and unpublished manuscripts. The information use environment for professionals in this field is very different than that of the scholars; most professionals do not have access to a university library. Therefore, the research producers are disseminating developments via communication channels some service providers cannot access. This investigation reveals the only dissemination channel that provides continuous access to the content layer is reaching out via informal communication; All other dissemination channels do not provide access to the entire content layer, do not provide the entire scholarly work, and/or include a barrier to access (often an associated cost). This is a concern for the field of behavior analysis as professional recommendations cannot be based on the best available evidence if the evidence is not accessible. This is a concern for the field of information science as the study of scholarly communication should not be limited to scholars alone. The process of scholarly dissemination should be extended to include alternate information use environments of other populations.

This thesis analyzes how prospective Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) professionals are enculturated through their educational pathways at one public university in Mississippi. I surveyed 24 current and prior students of the ABA program, as well as interviewed 1 prior and 10 current ABA students. Findings captured their perceptions of the field they are entering, through their experiences within the program. Results found that the ABA field appears to be split in a dual identity, existing in both educational and clinical spaces. Results showed that external perceptions of the institution viewed the ABA program as more clinical, while the students were preoccupied with the educational applications. The implications of these findings suggest that the ABA field’s role and circumstances are variable, given that they are outsourced as consultants to provide a medical service to an educational setting. Thus, students could benefit from more explicit cultural norms and setting-tailored practicum preparation.

Functional analysis is considered best practice for behavior analysts who work with people who have intellectual and developmental disabilities and engage in problem behavior. Unfortunately, a majority of practitioners do not complete functional analyses. The purpose of the present study was to train 10 practitioners to implement a practical functional assessment (PFA) decision making model and to evaluate the ecological validity of the model. Pre- and Post-training overall test scores increased, on average, by 38.18%. Testing subsections increased by 60.0% for foundations and concepts, 5.0% for graphical interpretations, and 40.0% for decision making. A job needs survey showed the greatest gains in reports of antecedent environmental supports, behavior supports in the environment, and antecedents related to the behavior repertoire. A post-training survey indicated that 8 of 8 trainees would recommend the training to others. Finally, at the conclusion of follow-up progress data collection, 3 of the 5 locations were progressing through the PFA model in their regular job duties whereas the other 2 locations experienced professional staffing issues that interfered with their workloads. These results indicate that the training was effective at increasing testing responses related to foundations and concepts as well as decision making. Additionally, when professional staffing was stable, participants reported using the PFA model effectively, suggesting that the model had ecological fit under these conditions.

According to results from Aquino and Reed (study 5, 2002) and Hall and Derryberry (2010), high means and very low standard deviations of the average score for each question for both the internalization and symbolization scales of the Moral Identity Scale (MIS) are common. This study attempts to measure the extent to which a person considers morality to be a central part of his or her self-concept. Because participants may feel pressure to respond in a certain way on the MIS, the role of social desirability to respond favorably is very plausible. The current study, therefore, attempts to reduce socially desirable responding on the moral identity construct. The hypothesis of this study was that the revised Moral Identity Scale—compared to the original Moral Identity Scale—would display a reduction in skewness, a reduction in social desirability effects, and an increase in the ability to predict moral functioning. Analyses partially supported a reduction in social desirability and supported an increase in the ability to predict moral functioning. However, analyses did not support a reduction in negative skewness.