We share our world with many people who ignore the principles of justice and who regularly take advantage of others by breaching trust or breaking agreements. This dissertation is about the irrationality of the actions of these covenant-breakers. A covenant-breaker typically believes that unjust behavior is to his advantage and that only a fool would act in any other way. Would it not be disturbing if this were true? My central claim will be that adherence to the precepts of justice is a rational strategy for a self-interested actor. I intend to demonstrate that con men and covenant-breakers do not act rationally when violating an agreement. I will trace the concept of justice as it evolves through philosophical history and show that, while the concept of justice changes as the underlying concept of human nature and psychology changes, the argument in favor of the rationality of just behavior remains coherent throughout. Each historical interpretation will advance some form of the claim that the consistent observance of cooperative agreements is a rational strategy, and at each point an interlocutor will object. I will show that these interlocutors are mistaken. My motivating goal is to show that justice, understood as the consistent observance of cooperative agreements, is rational. I want to respond to the clandestine cheaters and other skeptics who believe that just behavior is for suckers, because, if the skeptics are right, and justice is indeed irrational, then those among us who are acting in a just manner are paying an unnecessary cost.

Abstract Verbal behavior encompasses a wide range of aspects in our everyday lives and in the activities of a society. Many verbal behavior interventions often include programs to teach answering questions, these responses are referred to as intraverbals. Previous research has demonstrated a higher rate of acquisition of verbal targets such as mands and tacts for children with a limited verbal repertoire when a presentation of both sign and vocal prompts occur simultaneously (Total Communication), in comparison to sign-alone or vocal-alone trainings. However, an important variable not often examined in the literature is the comparison of Total Communication (TC) and Prompt Delay (PD) to further evaluate which leads to higher rates of acquisition. The current study extends previous research by evaluating the relative effectiveness of TC and PD in teaching intraverbal skills to three children who have been diagnosed with autism. During the TC condition the participants were required to emit a vocal and sign response simultaneously during training. During the PD condition, participants were required to emit only a vocal response during training. The results suggest that there was no clinically relevant difference between the two conditions in the acquisition of intraverbals for these participants.

Teaching using matrix programming has been shown to result in recombinative generalization. However, this procedure has not been compared to more standard discrete trial training formats such as DTT. This study compared acquisition and recombinative generalization of two-component tacts using each procedure. Matrix training was found to be more efficient than the DTT format. Half the amount of teaching was required to teach roughly the same number of targets using matrix training as compared to DTT.

Research on the functional independence of tacts and mands is mixed. The conditions under which tact training transfers to mands are unclear. The current study evaluated whether multiple exemplars of tact training followed by mand training would result in the independent transfer from tacts to mands. It was shown that all three participants started manding for the item independently during tact training after one sequence of tact training followed by mand training.

This study evaluated the use of video self-evaluation and video feedback procedures to enhance the accuracy of yoga poses. In the self-evaluation intervention participants watched their behaviors via video and scored task analyses for feedback for each pose. In the video feedback intervention, the participants and the researcher together scored the task analyses for the behaviors along with practice during video recordings. The interventions were assessed in a multiple baseline across behaviors design. Results showed that both video self-evaluation increased the accuracy of all poses and video feedback further increased the accuracy on one pose for one participant

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is one of the leading diagnoses for children. Children diagnosed with ADHD often have difficulty in many settings including at school as well as in the home. Medication is often a common treatment for these children, however, it has been often shown ineffective when used alone. A review of behavioral interventions, including various self-regulation interventions has been studied. Self-regulation interventions have been shown to be effective for children diagnosed with ADHD primarily in school or academic settings. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of a self-management intervention on the on-task behavior of children diagnosed with ADHD. Specifically, this study aimed to examine the impact a self-management intervention would have on the on-task behavior of children during various routines, both academic and non-academic, in the child's home setting. Participants were trained to use a self-management intervention. As a result of the accurate use of the self-management intervention all three participant's on-task behavior increased. For one participant, the duration of the targeted routine also substantially decreased.

Individuals experiencing extended homelessness face multifaceted risks in physical health, nutrition, substance use, mental health, continuing unemployment, and incarceration. Some of these adults may benefit from learning a problem-solving decision-making method to assist them in dealing with everyday problems they encounter. This study taught three men with extensive histories of homelessness, but who were currently housed, the SODAS problem-solving decision-making method, and assessed their ability to learn it and guide another adult in the use of the method in simulated role-play problem situations. The acquisition of SODAS from behavioral rehearsal training was evaluated using a multiple-baseline design across participants' role plays during the baseline, and post-training SODAS conditions. After demonstrating their ability to successfully guide another adult through the SODAS process when role-playing problem situations relevant to this population, the participants were instructed and provided SODAS forms for applying this method to their own every day lives' social and non-social problem situations. Social validity follow-up meetings were conducted weekly with each participant, and assessed the extent to which he reported the use and helpfulness of the SODAS method in addressing everyday life issues.

Obesity is a problem of vast social concern in the United States. One factor that has been linked to reduction in body fat and the health problems associated with obesity is increasing physical activity. Although in-person behavioral interventions have been shown effective at increasing physical activity, attention is now being placed on disseminating these interventions through the use of technology. Several internet-based interventions have been developed and are readily available. The purpose of this study was to evaluate "Fitbit," a web-based behavioral intervention for increasing physical activity and losing weight. Additionally, this study examined if the addition of contact from a behavioral coach through videoconference and email enhanced the effectiveness of this program. Through a multiple-baseline design across seven participants this research project evaluated the effectiveness of the "Fitbit" program with and without a behavioral coach. Step counts were recorded by a Fitbit sensor as a measure of physical activity. The Fitbit program alone increased physical activity for some of the participants, and the addition of the behavioral coach resulted in further increases in mean step counts.

Evidence suggests comorbidity of ADHD and eating disorders (EDs) among females. Capitalizing on the comorbidity of ADHD and EDs and subsequent obesity could lead to improved prevention and treatment of all three conditions. However, additional information regarding the comorbidity is necessary to develop such interventions, as little is known about how or why this co-occurrence exists. A comprehensive model of the underlying mechanisms associated with comorbid ADHD and EDs is needed to improve understanding of the development of the comorbidity. Moreover, while there are gender differences within each disorder, literature is limited regarding to the comorbidity among males, leading to a call for further investigation. Based on the literature, this study investigated three hypotheses of the underlying mechanisms of the ADHD/ED comorbidity, including: 1) ADHD and EDs are the expression of a common genetic or neurobiological dysfunction that manifests itself as binge eating and ADHD, 2) psychosocial factors common to both EDs and ADHD mediate the association between the two conditions, and 3) a third underlying mental health condition mediates the relationship between the two conditions. Underlying factors proposed within these three hypotheses include dopamine, serotonin, and monoamine oxidase A genes, family support, social support, neuroticism, conscientiousness, cognitive control, working memory, major depression, anxiety disorder, alcohol use and substance use disorders, and childhood abuse. In order to simultaneously investigate the three hypotheses, this study utilized secondary data analysis from 6,289 females and 5,248 males as part of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health. This data was used to test a model constructed via a combination of five theories, specifically, the Biopsychosocial Model, the Life Course Approach, the Risk Regulator Framework, the Research Domain Criteria Matrix, and the Person-Environment Transaction Theory. Findings of this study suggest that cognitive control, family support, and additional comorbid mental health illnesses such as depression, anxiety, and substance abuse disorder all mediate the relationship between ADHD and EDs. However, rather than leading to the comorbidity, ADHD led to other mental health issues which were then subsequently correlated to EDs; suggesting a comorbidity between these additional disorders and EDs with ADHD being a possible predictor of that comorbidity. In regards to genetics, the factors investigated in this study were not found to be directly associated with the comorbidity. Rather, these factors were connected to the psychosocial and psychiatric mediators, suggesting an indirect relationship between genetics and the comorbidity. With regards to males, differences were found between males with the comorbidity, ADHD alone, EDs alone, and neither disorder in regards to education attainment, BMI and obesity, delinquent behavior, and sexual behaviors were all observed. However, very few of the proposed underlying mechanisms among females were significantly associated with the comorbidity among males. Results provide initial support for continued research on the underlying mechanisms of the ADHD/ ED comorbidity. This research has potential implications in many areas including primary and secondary prevention of EDs, improved treatment plans, prevention of psychostimulant medication abuse, and prevention and treatment of obesity. Next steps include the use of advanced statistical techniques in order to explore multiple combinations of underlying factors to the comorbidity and direct interactions between factors, including gene x environment interactions. Additional study replications are also needed with the incorporation of additional genetic components.

Research incorporating behavior analysis to improve sports performance has shown that various feedback types (e.g., video feedback, public posting) can increase skills. Recently, auditory feedback has been shown to be effective. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the utility of auditory feedback to improve dance movements of children with disabilities using an ABAB design embedded in a multiple baseline across participants design. The target behaviors were fundamental dance skills, individualized to each student, and scored using a task analysis to calculate the percentage of correct steps. The results showed that auditory feedback was valuable in increasing the specific dance skill for each student. Although the skills decreased during the second baseline phase, the skills increased to their respective levels following treatment withdrawal.