Orientador: Kester Carrara / Banca: Camila Muchon de Melo / Banca: Jair Lopes Junior / Resumo: A Reforma Psiquiátrica Brasileira é um processo que tem como objetivo garantir direitos de pessoas com transtornos psiquiátricos por meio da substituição gradativa do modelo de tratamento historicamente destinado a essa população, baseado em internações em hospitais psiquiátricos, por um modelo de atenção de base comunitária, como é o caso dos Centros de Atenção Psicossocial (CAPS). O processo de reorganização da assistência psiquiátrica envolve mudanças de práticas culturais em relação à assistência prestada às pessoas com transtornos psiquiátricos e nesse contexto está inserida a atividade profissional do psicólogo. Essa pesquisa de caráter descritivo teve como objetivo descrever e analisar práticas culturais componentes da assistência em saúde mental que se propõe como substitutiva às internações psiquiátricas por meio de uma avaliação de legislação e relatos verbais de profissionais da área. Para tanto foram selecionadas como fontes de dados uma lei e duas portarias que dizem respeito à implantação dos serviços substitutivos, em especial em relação aos CAPS. Também foram realizadas quatro entrevistas com psicólogas inseridas nesses contextos. A legislação analisada institui parâmetros para a instalação de uma nova prática cultural de assistência psiquiátrica que se desenvolva prioritariamente no território do usuário do serviço. A análise dos documentos permitiu a inferência de 25 contingências relacionadas à nova prática cultural a ser instalada, a partir das quais se po... (Resumo completo, clicar acesso eletrônico abaixo) / Abstract: The Brazilian Psychiatric Reform is a process which aims to guarantee the rights of people with psychiatric disorders through the substitution of the treatment model that is historically designated to these people, based on long term hospitalization in asylums, for a model based on community care, as in the institutions called Psychosocial Attention Centers. The process of reorganization of the psychiatric attention involves changes in cultural practices related to the assistance given to people with psychiatric disorders and this context involves the professional activity of psychologists. This descriptive research aimed to analyze, through an evaluation of contingencies in legislation and by interviews with professionals, the cultural practices that compose the mental health assistance that aims to replace the psychiatric hospitalization. To do so, were selected as data sources three legal documents that treats about the description of guidelines for the implantation of the substitutive services especially on the Psychosocial Attention Centers. Also were realized four interviews with psychologists that works on these contexts. The legislation analyzed establishes parameters for the installation of a new cultural practice of psychiatric care. An analysis of the documents provided the interpretation 25 contingencies related to the new cultural practice. Based on this analysis it could be interpreted that the documents were not precise on the descriptions of parameters of situ... (Complete abstract click electronic access below) / Mestre

Schizophrenia is a serious mental illness affecting millions of Americans. It is characterized by positive and negative symptoms; cognitive impairments; and sensory, motor, and process skill deficits; as well as compromised motor learning, functional difficulties, and diminished quality of life. Neuroscientists attribute the above deficits to abnormal brain development, exaggerated synaptic pruning, and neurodegenerative processes, causing disrupted connectivity and diminished plasticity in the brain, neurotransmitter dysfunction, and impaired sensory processing. Presently, there is no cure for schizophrenia. Numerous medications and rehabilitation modalities exist; however, many of the affected individuals continue to struggle daily. Recovery of these individuals implies symptom management and environmental supports to foster integration into the society and improved quality of life. Occupational therapists (OTs) utilize occupation-based assessments and interventions to evaluate and treat functional impairments in clients with various conditions, including schizophrenia, and provide their clients with environmental adaptations/modifications to enhance function. An improved understanding of the skill deficits and their relationship with schizophrenia symptomatology is necessary to refine treatment and rehabilitation for this client population, and so far, several OT scholars have attempted to research this topic. This study employed the Adolescent/Adult Sensory Profile (AASP), Assessment of Motor and Process Skills (AMPS), and Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale (BPRS) to examine the sensory, motor, and process skills of stabilized adult patients with schizophrenia spectrum disorders in relation to their symptoms. It was hypothesized that the participants would present with deficient sensory, motor, and process skills, and significant relationships would be revealed between these skill deficits and the severity of psychiatric symptoms. Analysis of the data confirmed sensory, motor, and process skill deficits in the participants. It discovered correlations between low registration and sensory sensitivity, and anxiety/depression. Relationships were also found between sensory avoidance and motor and process skill deficits. Additional findings included correlations between sensory sensitivity and sensory avoidance, between motor and process skill deficits, and between different categories of psychiatric symptoms. Study findings support the idea that schizophrenia rehabilitation necessitates addressing the skill deficits with which it comes. The concept of impaired sensory processing underlying schizophrenia symptomatology and skill deficits needs further investigation.

Choi Suet Yung Jasmine. / "Running head: Development of team player behavior inventory." / Thesis (M.Phil.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2001. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 57-63). / Abstracts in English and Chinese. / ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS --- p.2 / ABSTRACT --- p.5 / TABLE OF CONTENTS --- p.3 / INTRODUCTION / Prevalence of teamwork --- p.7 / Objective of the present paper --- p.7 / Definition of team --- p.8 / Definition of good team-player --- p.8 / Criterion for measuring team functioning --- p.9 / Literature review on effective teams --- p.10 / Profile of a good team-player --- p.14 / Group assessment as the assessing method --- p.15 / Validation Procedures --- p.16 / METHOD / Participants --- p.17 / Item Development / Literature research --- p.17 / Empirical interviews --- p.18 / Item categorization --- p.19 / The seven dimensions --- p.20 / Rating method and observer training / Behavioral observation scale --- p.21 / Rating scale --- p.22 / Observer training --- p.23 / Procedure of the workshop / Two tasks / Build-a-tower --- p.25 / NASA Moon Survival Task --- p.25 / Personality assessments --- p.26 / Other measurements --- p.30 / Development workshop evaluation --- p.31 / Dependent variables --- p.31 / Control variables --- p.33 / RESULTS / Inter-rater reliability --- p.33 / Construct validity / Construct validity ´ؤ convergent and discriminant validity --- p.34 / Comparisons of observers ratings and participants mutual ratings --- p.35 / Construct validity - personality measurements --- p.37 / Correlational analyses of CPAI and TPBI --- p.40 / Predictive validity / Tower height --- p.42 / Completion time for tower task --- p.43 / Group score in NASA Moon Survival Journey --- p.43 / Completion time for NASA task --- p.44 / Project grade --- p.44 / Individual Criterion / NASA individual score --- p.45 / Process satisfaction --- p.48 / Process satisfaction controlled group acquaintances rating --- p.49 / Development workshop evaluation --- p.51 / GENERAL DISCUSSION / Brief summary --- p.51 / The seven dimensions --- p.51 / Possible uses of TPBI --- p.53 / Further research --- p.54 / REFERENCES --- p.57 / LIST OF TABLES --- p.64 / LIST OF FIGURES --- p.74 / APPENDIX / Appendix I Detail definitions of the 38-items --- p.78 / Appendix II Experimental procedures --- p.86 / Appendix III Standard script for the experiment --- p.87 / Appendix IV Experimental materials for NASA task --- p.92 / Appendix V Self-report measure --- p.94 / Appendix VI Correlation analyses of CPAI and TPBI --- p.103

Two experiments were conducted to test the effectiveness of a peer-monitoring procedure on the induction of observational learning and observational performance of preschoolers via a combined experimental-control group design with a “nested” multiple probe across participants design (Greer & Du, 2015; Greer, Stolfi, & Pistoljevic, 2007). Six participants in Experiment 1 were split into matched pairs; one participant in each pair was assigned to the in-vivo condition, and one assigned to the video condition. All were assessed on their correct responding to in-vivo observational learning and performance probes prior to and following the peer-monitoring intervention. The peer-monitoring intervention consisted of two stages; the first was a training stage, in which participants monitored responses of peer confederates that were previously in their repertoire, and the second stage required participants to monitor responses not in their repertoire. The results of Experiment 1 showed that five of the six participants demonstrated that they had observational performance following the intervention. However, the emergence of the observational learning capability was only found with participants originally assigned to the in-vivo intervention condition. Upon completing the intervention again, but in the in-vivo condition, all participants originally assigned to the video intervention condition did demonstrate observational learning. In Experiment 2, the same procedures were implemented, however the observational performance and learning pre-and post-intervention probes were conducted in both the video and in-vivo conditions. In addition, I also tested the effects of the peer-monitoring procedure on the emission of social contact in a free play setting between experimental conditions. The findings remained constant in Experiment 2; the video condition was not effective in inducing observational learning, but was for observational performance. Therefore, the peer-monitoring intervention led to the emergence of observational performance, but the presence of a peer audience was required in order for observational learning to emerge. Furthermore, participants originally assigned to the in-vivo condition emitted higher numbers of social contact in a free play setting than the participants originally assigned video condition.

In two experiments, I arranged the environment to determine if a relation existed between the social setting, which was defined by the presence of a peer or multiple peers and measured by the participants’ verbal behavior, and the learning of new reinforcers for the participants and the confederate peers. The peers were used to establish an intervention setting that fostered interaction between individuals but did not require it. In both experiments, two pre- and post- intervention tests of the dependent variables were used to measure the learning of new reinforcers. In Experiment 1, two intervention conditions were counterbalanced across participants to identify if a neutral stimulus would attain reinforcing value by observation if it was simultaneously delivered to both participant and peer for responding to previously learned math equations (Condition 1) or if the conditioning phenomenon was only observed when the neutral item was delivered to the peer (while the participant was present but denied access to the stimulus) for responding to previously learned math equations (Condition 2). Participant behavior was measured for all variables across all phases of the experiment and peer behavior was measured during the pre- and post-intervention screening test. The results from Experiment 1 showed that the participants did not learn new reinforcers when the neutral stimulus (NS) was delivered simultaneously to both participant and peer as they completed math worksheets. However, the previously neutral stimulus did become a reinforcer when the participant did not receive the NS but observed the peer receive the NS as they completed the math worksheets. Peer behavior was also measured during the pre- and post-intervention screening test and was consistent with the participants’ results; peers acquired new reinforcers during Condition 2 but not Condition 1, even though they were never denied access to the stimulus. In Experiment 2, I tested whether reinforcers would be conditioned through observation regardless of the role that the participant was assigned during the intervention. Pre- and post-intervention tests for the dependent variables measured the behaviors of all nine participants regardless of the participant’s intervention role (e.g. peer, recipient). In Experiment 2, participants were randomly put in groups of three that included two participants (peers) who observed the third participant (recipient) receive the NS as a reinforcement operation as all three were completing math worksheets. The setting was arranged in this manner to test the effect of the reinforcement operation when two peers observed one recipient receive the stimulus. The results are discussed as an analysis of social contingencies, reinforcement operations including deprivation and other implications that can be drawn from the changes in the participants’ and confederates’ behavior during the pre-and post-intervention measures.

In three experiments, I tested for the presence of the naming capability, the participants’ drawing responses of the stimuli learned in the absence of the visual stimulus, and the participants’ comprehension of texts with and without pictures present. In Experiment 1, I tested for the presence of naming and the drawing responses for the stimuli presented during the naming experience in the absence of the visual stimulus in 44 third and fourth grade participants. Results demonstrated that fewer instances of the naming capability, as well as the drawing response, were seen in students performing below grade-level in reading, than students performing on or above grade-level. I hypothesized that differences in reading performance may be due to the absence of a strong production response repertoire, which include behaviors such as drawing and speaking. Experiment 2 assessed whether or not the presence of visual stimuli during reading has an effect on the target participants’ comprehension of a story, as well as if the presence of the speaker component of naming and the drawing responses had an effect on comprehension. Results demonstrated that there were significant differences in comprehension scores between the three groups during the with pictures condition χ2(2, N=44) = 24.38, p = 0.00 and the without pictures condition χ2(2, N=44) = 33.47, p = 0.00. Furthermore, there was a significant correlation between mean comprehension scores and the number of components drawn correctly ρ (44) = .412, p = .005. These results are consistent with the theory that the visualization of events and characters in a story is necessary to facilitate reading comprehension. Experiment 3 employed a multiple probe design across 3 groups of 2 participants to test the effects of sequencing and producing narrative components of a story on the participants’ responses to comprehension questions for texts without pictures present. The participants were 6 third grade students who demonstrated below-grade-level comprehension skills for texts without pictures present. Prior to the intervention, all participants exhibited lower comprehension scores for texts without pictures present than for texts with pictures present. Following the intervention, all participants’ comprehension scores for texts without pictures present increased, and 5 of the 6 participants showed increases in comprehension for texts with pictures present as well. Furthermore, following the intervention all participants demonstrated increases in the conditioned seeing repertoire, with 4 of the 6 participants meeting criterion level responding.

I conducted 2 experiments investigating the relations between speaker-as-own-listener cusps and responding to bidirectional or reverse intraverbals. Speaker-as-own-listener cusps include, Naming, Say-Do Correspondence and Self-Talk Fantasy Play. During a pilot experiment, I found the source of the problem in 2 participants’ learning was their deficient speaker-as-own-listener repertoires. Although both participants in the pilot study had the Full Naming capability in repertoire, they lacked Say-Do and Self-Talk. Following a Self-Talk Immersion intervention, Say-Do was induced for both participants and coincidentally, correct responses to bidirectional or reverse intraverbals emerged. In Experiment I, I continued examining relations between the speaker-as-own-listener (SOL) repertoire and intraverbal responding with a statistical analysis of 35 Early Intervention (EI) and Preschool students recruited from CABAS® model schools who functioned at listener and speaker levels of verbal behavior. Findings from Experiment I indicated that the presence of Say-Do Correspondence and Self-Talk were significantly correlated to correct responses to reverse intraverbals. Experiment II was a functional analysis, during which 4 participants were selected from an EI classroom due to their similar levels of verbal behavior, deficient SOL repertoire, and because they could not respond to reverse intraverbals. Results indicated a functional relation between the presence of Say-Do Correspondence and Self-Talk and correct responses to intraverbal probes for all 4 participants.

The current study investigates basic, relational concept development, as measured by the Boehm Test of Basic Concepts 3rd Edition – Preschool Version (BTBC3-P), in 51 preschool aged children (Mage = 49.26 months; SD = 8.53 months) with and without Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) attending the same Comprehensive Application of Behavior Analysis to Schooling (CABAS©) preschool. Relational concepts represent spatial, dimensional, temporal, quantitative, and class relationships between objects or people (i.e., above and behind). They predict academic achievement in grades two and three and are essential for following directions, making comparisons, sequencing, and classifying—the foundational skills for more complex problem solving (Boehm, 2013; Steinbauer & Heller, 1978). Relational concepts are difficult to learn, represent less tangible and stable relationships, and are often acquired incidentally (Boehm, 2001). Research in Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) has found that incidental learning generally does not occur until a child masters the naming capability (Greer & Longano, 2010). Naming is a phenomenon that involves a circular understanding whereby a child can see a nonverbal term (i.e., a picture or a word), name that term, hear themselves naming the term, and then select the appropriate representation of that term without direct instruction (Horne & Lowe 1996). Naming is the mechanism through which success in traditional classroom settings is possible, such that once a child has attained the naming capability, that child can learn through observation or by asking questions if he/she sees or hears something novel (i.e., “What is pesto?” Greer & Longano, 2010; Greer & Speckman, 2009). Considering the widespread use of ABA to help children with ASD develop language, this study investigated relational concept acquisition using an ABA (i.e., Verbal Behavior Development Theory [VBDT]) framework. Overall, preschool children with ASD knew significantly fewer total concepts, quantitative concepts, and spatial concepts than their typically developing (TD) counterparts. In addition, the more VBD cusps and capabilities a child attained, the more concepts he/she correctly identified (R2 VBD= .054 with diagnosis held constant). Further, regardless of diagnosis and student progression of VBD, naming was a significant predictor of total concepts known (R2 naming = .114), as well as of concepts known not covered in the C-PIRK© curriculum (R2 naming = .099) used at the preschool. The latter finding supports previous studies that identify naming as a prerequisite to incidental learning. A secondary aim of this dissertation investigated the actions of the examiner required to keep children motivated and on task by creating an Assessor’s Tactic Checklist that lists a number of behavioral techniques to build motivation and increase assessment validity. Overall, diagnosis and naming were related to the number of assessor’s tactics used, with those children with ASD and children without naming requiring significantly more types of tactics than those without (approximately two more types for ASD and two and a half more types for those without naming). Implications for future studies include exploring the rate of concept learning pre and post naming acquisition as well as working to uncover the mechanisms through which naming affects concept acquisition. There is also an identified need for continued exploration into the usefulness of an Assessor’s Tactic Checklist. Strengths and weaknesses of the study are also addressed.

Orientador: Kester Carrara / Banca: Jana Luíz Leonardi / Banca: Alessandra Turini Bolsoni Silva / Resumo: Os atendimentos e as estratégias tradicionalmente empregados na área da saúde parecem não ser suficientes para tratamento de forma adequada e efetiva dos sintomas. Neste sentido, dois aspectos chamam atenção: a limitação da perspectiva da doença enquanto uma patologia com base biológica e a centralidade do sujeito na explicação sobre o comportamento. Apenas a explicação biológica não parece ser suficiente para elucidação das "doenças mentais" e mesmo daquelas consideradas orgânicas, como patologias de pele, diabetes, hipertensão, cujos hábitos e experiências podem atenuar ou agravar os sintomas. Por outro lado, apesar de os determinantes sociais serem notados no plano aplicado, pouco se tem feito na área de saúde direcionado a esse aspecto e as propostas interventivas centram-se no nível individual, com frequência em uma perspectiva mentalista. Diante deste quadro, compreender a dimensão social da doença mental é de fundamental importância para a mudança de paradigma. Isto posto, compreendemos como objetivo interpretar, sob a perspectiva da análise comportamental da cultura, a influência de práticas culturais quanto à constituição e manutenção das psicopatologias. Com base nos pressupostos analítico-comportamentais na área da cultura e em dimensões aplicadas da atuação profissional na área da saúde mental, fundamentamos este estudo teórico na seleção, análise e interpretação de textos psicológicos. Discutimos a visão tradicional a respeito dos transtornos psiquiátricos, apont... (Resumo completo, clicar acesso eletrônico abaixo) / Abstract: The therapys and strategies traditionally employed in health care are not enough to treat symptoms of adequate and effective manner. In this sense, two aspects call attention: the limitation of the perspective of the disease as a biologically based pathology and the centrality of the subject in the explanation about the behavior. Only a biological explanation does not seem to be sufficient for elucidation of "mental illness" and even those considered organic, such as skin diseases, diabetes, hypertension, whose habits and experiences may mitigate or aggravate the symptoms. On the other hand, although the social determinants are seen in the applied plan, little has been done in the area of health directed to this aspect and the interventional proposals focus on the individual level, often in a mentalist perspective. In this context, understanding the social dimension of mental illness is of fundamental importance for paradigm change. That said, we understand as objective interpreting, from the perspective of behavioral analysis of culture, the influence of cultural practices as the establishment and maintenance of psychopathology. Based on the analytical-behavioral concepts in the area of culture and on the dimensions of professional activity in the area of mental health, we are based this theoretical study in the selection, analysis and interpretation of psychological texts. We discuss the traditional view regarding psychiatric disorders, indicating explanatory limitations of... (Complete abstract click electronic access below) / Mestre

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Nevada, Reno, 2005. / "May, 2005." Includes bibliographical references (leaves 198-218). Online version available on the World Wide Web.