Three experiments examined the use of feedback to improve performance in a circuit court. Three areas of performance, adopted from the Trial Court Performance Standards, were selected as targets for intervention: Expedition and Timeliness, Access to Justice, and Independence and Accountability. Specific target behaviors included timely processing of criminal cases, time to calendar appointments with judges, and costs to start a trial. / The feedback systems significantly increased the number of cases disposed of monthly by two judges serving in the criminal division, reduced the number of days required to calendar an appointment with one circuit judge, and greatly reduced the average cost to start a trial in an urban county. / A behavioral analysis of the judiciary system is provided and specific difficulties encountered while working in a political environment are discussed. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 53-07, Section: B, page: 3761. / Major Professor: Jon S. Bailey. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1992.

<p> A common treatment that is implemented to decrease problem behavior and increase appropriate behavior in individuals diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is functional communication training (FCT; Carr &amp; Durand, 1985). Although demonstrated to be highly effective, it is possible that procedures will not be implemented with fidelity by caregivers in the natural environment. In these situations, functional communicative responses (FCRs) are likely to undergo extinction, increasing the likelihood of the reemergence of problem behavior (e.g., Fisher et al., 1993; Hanley, Iwata, &amp; Thompson, 2001), known as resurgence. In applied contexts, the resurgence of problem behavior during temporary lapses in procedural fidelity represents a reality for which there are currently few solutions (Lambert et al., 2017). One possible treatment for resurgence of problem behavior in the face of extinction challenges is multiple mand training during FCT. The purpose of this study is to evaluate what effect teaching multiple FCRs as outlined in serial FCT by Lambert, Bloom, Samaha, and Dayton (2017) has on resurgence of problem behavior and FCRs during extinction challenges. We will then evaluate what effect implementing a lag schedule of reinforcement following serial FCT will have on resurgence of problem behavior and FCRs during extinction challenges compared to serial FCT.</p><p>

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abstract: Existing theories suggest that evidence is accumulated before making a decision with competing goals. In motor tasks, reward and motor costs have been shown to influence the decision, but the interaction between these two variables has not been studied in depth. A novel reward-based sensorimotor decision-making task was developed to investigate how reward and motor costs interact to influence decisions. In human subjects, two targets of varying size and reward were presented. After a series of three tones, subjects initiated a movement as one of the targets disappeared. Reward was awarded when participants reached through the remaining target within a specific amount of time. Subjects had to initiate a movement before they knew which target remained. Reward was found to be the only factor that influenced the initial reach. When reward was increased, there was a lower probability of intermediate movements. Both target size and reward lowered reaction times individually and jointly. This interaction can be interpreted as the effect of the expected value, which suggests that reward and target size are not evaluated independently during motor planning. Curvature, or the changing of motor plans, was driven primarily by the target size. After an initial decision was made, the motor costs to switch plans and hit the target had the largest impact on the curvature. An interaction between the reward and target size was also found for curvature, suggesting that the expected value of the target influences the changing of motor plans. Reward, target size, and the interaction between the two were all significant factors for different parts of the decision-making process. / Dissertation/Thesis / Masters Thesis Biomedical Engineering 2019

abstract: Features of the built environment (BE) are related to a wide range of health factors, including leisure-time physical activity (PA) and active forms of transportation. For working adults, worksite neighborhood is likely an important BE to better understand the impact of various factors on PA patterns. Compared to home neighborhood walkability research, worksite walkability has received relatively less attention. The objective of this project was to identify if worksite walkability was significantly associated with PA behavior. Aims: to evaluate 1) the PA variation explained by work walkability, 2) the moderating effects of person-level characteristics to the relationship between PA and work walkability, and 3) the differences in the rate of change in PA over time by worksite walkability. Methods: self-report and accelerometer measured PA at baseline (aim 1, 2); longitudinal accelerometer PA during the initial 56 days of a behavioral intervention (aim 3). Adults were generally healthy and reported part- or full-time employment with a geocodeable address outside the home. Geographic Information Systems (GIS) measured walkability followed established techniques (i.e., residential, intersection, and transit densities, and land-use-mix). Results: On average, worksite walkability did not show direct relationships with PA (aim 1); yet certain person-level characteristics moderated the relationships: sex, race, and not having young children in the household (aim 2). During 56 days of intervention, the PA rate of change over time showed no evidence of a moderating effect by worksite walkability. Discussion: Worksite walkability was generally not shown to relate to the overall PA. However, specific subgroups (women, those without young children) appeared more responsive to their worksite neighborhood walkability. Prior literature shows certain demographics respond differently with various BE exposures, and this study adds a potentially novel moderator of interest regarding young children at home. Understanding who benefits from access to walkable BE may inform targeted interventions and policy to improve PA levels and foster health equity. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation Exercise and Nutritional Sciences 2019

Traditionally economics is based on very narrow presumptions about human behavior, namely selfishness. In the last 20 years, however, experimental research has accumulated overwhelming evidence that is at odds with these classical assumptions. It has been shown that people very often care about the distributional consequences of their actions and intentions. Against this background, in this thesis the impact of broader models of human behavior on decision making and human interactions is studied, for example the impact of indirect reciprocity on human relationships. If educational expenditures of parents into children depend on grandparents' investments into the parent’s education, then private educational spending is inefficiently low and should be supported by the state. This finding stands in contrast to earlier results that show that parents might invest optimally into the education of their children out of pure altruism or strategic transfer motives.

This thesis analyzes the interplay between natural disasters, human behavior, and insurance markets. Prospect theory can help us understand how fundamental behavioral biases in human nature affect insurance purchases and can begin to explain previously exhibited irrational behavior in regards to earthquake insurance. The Great East Japan Earthquake presents a useful case study to examine the performance of Japanese residential earthquake insurance in light of a devastating major catastrophe. Analysis suggests that prospect theory can explain low earthquake insurance penetration rates, and that insurance policies can be improved by taking into account behavioral biases. Examination of the disaster insurance market highlights the debate of government intervention, and brings into question long-term sustainability of the private insurance market.

This is a substantially revised version of an earlier paper with the same title written by co-authors Mark Gertler and Simon Gilchrist written in 1994. The goal of this paper is to further understand the importance of financial propagation mechanisms for aggregate behavior and build upon their results. A large portion of economic research on the topic has concluded, with convincing evidence, that credit market frictions may influence business cycles, as well as the direction of changes to monetary policy moving forwards. It also shows that the change in business cycle behavior should be evident across all firms, with the level of effect being dependent on access to credit markets. Because of these conclusions, this paper will look to explore the differences in behavior between small firms and large firms regarding their sales, inventory, and short-term debt.

<p> Many people in the United States do not engage in the recommended levels of physical activity. Self-management strategies, including self-monitoring and goal setting, are among the interventions that have been used to increase physical activity in adults. Visual feedback has also been incorporated into interventions to increase physical activity. Minimal research has focused on increasing swimming behavior. The current study investigated the effectiveness of self-management strategies to increase swimming activity in adults. An automated recording device (watch) was used to collect data on participants&rsquo; swimming behavior. The effect of self-monitoring in the form of a self-graphing intervention to increase swimming activity was evaluated. If self-graphing alone was not effective, goal setting was added to the intervention. Three participants showed an increase in swimming activity when self-graphing was implemented. Two participants showed little or no change in activity across all phases. This study did not include any reinforcement contingencies for engaging in an increase in swimming activity. Future research directions are discussed.</p>

Background: Driving while impaired (DWI) research has focused on younger males, the drivers who are at greatest risk for DWI. Consequently, much less is known about female and older offenders. Quebec population data demonstrate a bimodal distribution in first-time driving while impaired (fDWI) offences, a pattern also observed internationally. Male fDWI offending peaks between the ages of 18 to 25 years with a second smaller peak between 35 to 44 years. In contrast, females fDWI offending peaks between the ages of 36 to 47 years with a smaller peak between 20 to 27 years. These observations suggest that the trajectory to fDWI offending is influenced by interactions between sex and age. Research suggests that male DWI offending reflects impulsivity and risk-taking while female DWI offending reflects problematic drinking related to psychosocial stressors and symptoms of psychopathology. The heterogeneity among DWI offenders suggests that an approach involving examination of risk factors between subgroups rather than comparing offenders to non-DWI control group is more appropriate. This study adds to the literature by using a subgroup analysis design to compare fDWI offenders based on age and sex. Aims: To explore how sex and age may interact to influence the trajectory to fDWI through patterning of alcohol consumption, psychological adjustment and impulsivity. Methods: Younger and older males and females arrested for a fDWI offence within the past two years were recruited. Participants were administered a series of questionnaires assessing alcohol consumption, symptoms of psychopathology, and impulsivity. Two computer tasks assessing risk-taking were also administered. Results: Thirty-six participants were recruited: younger females (n = 9, Mage = 23.22 years, SD = 2.22), younger males (n = 12, Mage = 21.67 years, SD = 2.43), older males (n = 12, Mage = 40.08 years, SD = 6.31), older females (n = 3, Mage = 43.67 years, SD = 2.08). In partial support of hypotheses, results indicated that younger females engaged in more binge drinking, endorsed greater symptoms of alcohol misuse, and scored higher on urgency impulsivity than both younger and older males. No significant findings were observed between older females and all other groups.Conclusion: fDWI offending among younger females appear to be related to binge drinking and emotion-related impulsivity as compared to males. Younger females appear to be different than male offenders of all ages. These findings suggest that female fDWI is not analogous to male fDWI, a postulate that may need to be considered for targeting intervention/prevention efforts at female fDWI offenders. / Contexte: La recherche sur la conduite avec capacités affaiblies (CCA) a principalement été effectuée sur les jeunes hommes, les conducteurs ayant le plus haut risque de CCA, ce qui fait en sorte que nous avons peu de connaissances sur les femmes contrevenantes et les contrevenants âgés en général. Les données sur la population québécoise démontrent une distribution bimodale quant à l'âge lors des premières infractions de CCA, une tendance qui s'observe aussi au niveau international. Les premières infractions de CCA chez les hommes atteignent leur sommet entre 18 et 25 ans, puis un second pic est observé entre 35 et 44 ans. Au contraire, les premières infractions de CCA chez les femmes atteignent leur sommet entre 36 et 47 ans tandis qu'un pic moins élevé est observé entre 20 et 27 ans. Ces observations laissent supposer que la trajectoire vers la première infraction de CCA est influencée par des interactions entre le sexe et l'âge. La recherche sur le sujet suggère que la CCA chez les hommes serait associée à l'impulsivité et à la prise de risque tandis que la CCA chez les femmes serait plutôt associée à une consommation d'alcool problématique liée à des stresseurs psychosociaux et des symptômes de psychopathologie. Objectifs : Cette étude préliminaire explore comment le sexe et l'âge peuvent interagir pour influencer la trajectoire vers une première infraction de CCA en fonction des patterns de consommation d'alcool, de l'ajustement psychologique et de l'impulsivité. Méthodes: Nous avons recruté des contrevenants primaires de la CCA ayant commis leur infraction au cours des deux dernières années. Nous leurs avons administré une série de questionnaires portant sur la consommation d'alcool, les symptômes de psychopathologie et l'impulsivité. Deux tâches à l'ordinateur sur la prise de risque ont aussi été administrées. Résultats: Nous avons recruté trente-six participants: jeunes femmes (n = 9, âge moyen = 23.22, É.T. = 2.22), jeunes hommes (n = 12, âge moyen = 21.67, É.T. = 2.43), hommes plus âgés (n = 12, âge moyen = 40.08, É.T. = 6.31), femmes plus âgées (n = 3, âge moyen = 43.67, É.T. = 2.08). Les résultats indiquent que les jeunes femmes présentaient plus d'épisodes de consommation excessive d'alcool, davantage de symptômes de consommation d'alcool problématique et obtenaient des scores plus élevés à la sous-échelle d'urgence de l'échelle d'impulsivité que les hommes jeunes et plus âgés, ce qui soutient en partie les hypothèses de départ. Aucun résultat significatif n'a été observé entre les femmes plus âgées et les autres groupes.Conclusions: La première infraction de CCA chez les jeunes femmes semble liée à des épisodes de consommation excessive d'alcool et à l'impulsivité associée aux émotions, comparativement aux hommes. Les jeunes femmes contrevenantes semblent être différentes des hommes contrevenants de tous les âges. Les résultats suggèrent que la première infraction de CCA chez les femmes n'est pas analogue à celle chez les hommes, un postulat qui devrait être pris en compte dans les stratégies de prévention et d'interventions auprès des femmes contrevenantes primaires de la CCA.