EAB 3764: Applied Behavior Analysis

Course Syllabus, Spring 2008

General

Section: 0183 Instructor: Jennifer N. Fritz

Class: M,W,F period 2 (8:30-9:20) Email:

Fine Arts Bldg. B - Rm. #105 Phone: (352) 870-3662

Office Hours: Wed 3-4, Thurs 4:30-5:30 Office: Psych. Bldg. Rm. #329

Overview

This is an introductory course in applied behavior analysis (ABA). Topics to be covered include:

• Basic principles of learning

• ABA research methods and techniques

• Applications of ABA across a wide range of populations, settings, and behaviors.

All course-related information will be posted on the course website: plaza.ufl.edu/jnfritz

Therefore, please check this website frequently.

The best way to contact me is via email at the address above.

Objectives

The goal of this course is to introduce students to the methodology and philosophy of applied behavior analysis. Students will have opportunities to learn about basic principles of learning as they apply to socially-relevant problems via readings from the course textbook as well as research published in peer-reviewed journals. Lectures and discussions will provide additional opportunities for students to explore the ways in which ABA has been applied across diverse populations, settings, and behaviors. Quizzes and tests will allow students to practice effective use of new vocabulary and sharpen their responses with respect to course material.

Text and Readings

Miltenberger, R.G. (2008). Behavior modification: Principles and procedures. (4th ed.). Belmont, CA: Thomson Wadsworth.

Additional readings will be assigned from the Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis and can be downloaded from the UF library system (Ares). Instructions for downloading articles are posted on the course website.

Format and Schedule

A lecture/discussion format will be used. Chapters and readings will be assigned for each class (see schedule). Lectures will supplement the reading material or will present new information related to, but not contained in, the readings. Lecture notes will be posted on course website one day in advance of class.

Please Note: Schedule deviations may occur and will be announced in class and posted on the course website and/or on the bulletin board outside of Rm #329.

Quizzes and Tests

Quizzes: A one-question quiz will be given at the beginning of each class on the material assigned for that day. If a text chapter (or part of a chapter) was assigned, the question will be based on the summary and study questions at the end. If a reading was assigned, the question will be based on the accompanying study objectives. Each quiz will be worth 5 points and will be graded as 5 (correct), 3 (partially correct), 1 (incorrect), or 0 (absent).

Tests: See the class schedule for test dates. Questions will consist of short-answer, true/false, and matching items, and will be drawn from material covered in the text, readings, and lectures. Each test will be worth 50 points. Students may qualify to “exempt” certain tests based on their previous test and quiz grades.

Misc.: Grades will be posted using the e-learning system and students will be able to access their own grades only. You should consult e-learning to determine your status in the course on a weekly basis. Missed quizzes or tests cannot be made up. There are two opportunities for students to recover points lost due to missed quizzes/tests or poor scores.

1.  A 15-pt "allowance" is built into the formula for determining final grades (see below).

2.  There will be two versions of the last test (Test #6). Form "A" will be similar to other tests, worth 50 pts and covering material since the previous test. Form "B" will be an optional comprehensive exam covering all material in the course and will be worth 100 pts. If you elect to take Form "B," your lowest grade on previous tests will be thrown out and replaced with the points earned on the comprehensive exam.

Grading Final Grade Points %

Tests: 6 @ 50 pts = 300 A 419 (92%)

Quizzes: 34 @ 5 pts = 170 B+ 396 (87%)

Total: 470 B 373 (82%)

Allowance (free points) - 15 C+ 350 (77%)

REVISED TOTAL: 455 C 328 (72%)

D 296 (65%)

Student Information

All students can expect to be treated with respect by the Instructor and by other students. Every effort will be made to show consideration to all students and to create a classroom environment in which every student is made to feel that their contribution is valued. Students requesting classroom accommodation must first register with the Dean of Students Office. The Dean of Students Office will provide documentation to the student who must then provide this documentation to the Instructor when requesting accommodation. All properly requested accommodations will be respectfully and discreetly granted.

EAB 3764: Spring 2008 Course Schedule

Date / Topic / Date / Topic
1-7
1-9
1-11 / Course Overview
Ch1: Introduction to behavior modification
Baer et al. (1968) / 3-3
3-5
3-7 / Ch 17: Response Cost (399-end)
McSweeny (1978)
Group contingencies: Marholin & Gray (1976)
TEST #4
1-14
1-16
1-18 / Ch 2: Measurement & Reliability
Ch 3: Graphing & Experimental design
Ch 4: Reinforcement (p. 73-86)
Miller & Miller (1970) / 3-10
3-12
3-14 / Week of Spring Break - NO CLASS (M, W, or F)
1-21
1-23
1-25 / Martin Luther King Day - NO CLASS
Ch 4: Schedules of reinforcement (p. 86-end)
DeLuca & Holborn (1992)
TEST #1 / 3-17
3-19
3-21 / Ch 22: Token economy
Phillips et al. (1971)
Ch 23: Behavioral contracts (p. 521-526)
Mann (1972)
Ch 20: Self management
Wallace & Pear (1977)
1-28
1-30
2-1 / Ch 5: Extinction
France & Hudson (1990)
Ch 7: Stimulus control
O’Neill et al. (1980) / 3-24
3-26
3-28 / Ch 24: Fear and anxiety reduction
Leitenberg et al. (1968)
TEST #5
2-4
2-6
2-8 / Ch 8: Respondent conditioning
Whitehead et al. (1976)
Ch 9: Shaping (p. 185-196)
Smeets et al. (1985)
TEST #2 / 3-31
4-2
4-4 / Developmental disabilities: Azrin & Foxx (1971)
Behavioral medicine: Iwata & Becksfort (1981)
Organizational behavior: Johnson & Fawcett (1994)
2-11
2-13
2-15 / Ch11: Chaining
Neef et al. (1989)
Ch19: Generalization (p. 433-445)
Poche et al. (1981)
Ch13: Functional analysis
Iwata, Dorsey, et al. (1994) / 4-7
4-9
4-11 / Community applications: Van Houten et al. (1985)
Graduate School & Careers (Dr. Brian Iwata)
Gerontology: Bourgeois (1990)
2-18
2-20
2-22 / Ch 15: Differential reinforcement (p. 327-344)
Liberman et al. (1973)
Ch 16: Antecedent control
Vollmer et al. (1993)
TEST # 3 / 4-14
4-16
4-18 / Sports: McKenzie & Rushall (1974)
Substance abuse: Stitzer et al. (1982)
Grade Review & Course Evaluation
2-25
2-27
2-29 / Ch 6 & 18: Punishment
Linscheid et al. (1990)
Ch 17: Time out (p. 389-398)
Porterfield et al. (1976) / 4-21
4-23 / In-class Review
TEST #6

Course Articles

Azrin, N. H., & Foxx, R. M. (1971). A rapid method of toilet training the institutionalized retarded. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 4, 289-99.

Baer, D. M., Wolf, M. M., & Risley, T. R. (1968). Some current dimensions of applied behavior analysis. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 1, 91-97.

Bourgeois, M. S. (1990). Enhancing conversation skills in patients with Alzheimer's disease using a prosthetic memory aid. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 23, 29-42.

DeLuca, R. V. & Holborn, S. W. (1992). Effects of a variable-ratio reinforcement schedule with changing criteria on exercise in obese and non-obese boys. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 25, 671-679.

France, K. G. & Hudson, S. M. (1990). Behavior management of infant sleep disturbance. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 23, 91-98.

Iwata, B. A. & Becksfort, C. M. (1981). Behavioral research in preventive dentistry: Educational and contingency management approaches to the problem of patient compliance. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 14, 111-120.

Iwata, B. A., Dorsey, M. F., Slifer, K. J., Bauman, K. E., & Richman, G. S. (1994). Toward a functional analysis of self-injury. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 27, 197-209. Reprinted from Analysis and Intervention in Developmental Disabilities, 2, 3-20, 1982.

Johnson, M. D. & Fawcett, S. B. (1994). Courteous service: Its assessment and modification in a human service organization. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 27, 145-152.

Leitenberg, H., Agras, W. S., Thompson, L. E., & Wright, D. E. (1968). Feedback in behavior modification: An experimental analysis in two phobic cases. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 1, 131-137.

Liberman, R. P., Teigen, J., Patterson, R., & Baker, V. (1973). Reducing delusional speech in chronic paranoid schizophrenics. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 6, 57-64.

Linscheid, T. R., Iwata, B. A., Ricketts, R. W., Williams, D. E., & Griffin, J. C. (1990). Clinical evaluation of the Self-Injurious Behavior Inhibiting System (SIBIS). Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 23, 53-78.

Mann, R. A. (1972). The behavior-therapeutic use of contingency contracting to control an adult behavior problem: Weight control. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 5, 99-109.

Marholin II, D. & Gray, D. (1976). Effects of group response-cost procedures on cash shortages in a small business. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 9, 25-30.

McKenzie, T. L. & Rushall, B. S. (1974). Effects of self-recording on attendance and performance in a competitive swimming training environment. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 7, 199-206.

McSweeny, A.J. (1978). Effects of response cost on the behavior of a million persons: Charging for directory assistance in Cincinnati. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 11, 47-51.

Miller, L. K. & Miller, O. L. (1970). Reinforcing self-help group activities of welfare recipients. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 3, 57-64.

Neef, N. A., Parrish, J. M., Hannigan, K. F., Page, T. J., & Iwata, B. A. (1989). Teaching self-catheterization skills to children with neurogenic bladder complications. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 22, 237-243.

O'Neill, G. W., Blanck, L. S., & Johner, M. A. (1980). The use of stimulus control over littering in a natural setting. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 13, 379-381.

Phillips, E. L., Phillips, E. A., Fixsen, D. L., & Wolf, M. M. (1971). Achievement place: Modification of the behaviors of pre-delinquent boys within a token economy. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis 4, 45- 59.

Poche, C., Brouwer, R., & Swearingen, M. (1981). Teaching self-protection to young children. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 14, 169-176.

Porterfield, J. K., Herbert-Jackson, E., & Risley, T. R. (1976). Contingent observation: An effective and acceptable procedure for reducing disruptive behavior of young children in a group setting. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 9, 55-64.

Smeets, P. M., Lancioni, G. E., Ball, T. S., & Oliva, D. S. (1985). Shaping self-initiated toileting in infants. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 18, 303-308.

Stitzer, M. L., Bigelow, G. E., Liebson, I. A., & Hawthorne, J. W. (1982). Contingent reinforcement for benzodiazepine-free urines: Evaluation of a drug abuse treatment intervention. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 15, 493-503.

Van Houten, R., Malenfant, L., & Rolider, A. (1985). Increasing driver yielding and pedestrian signaling with prompting, feedback, and enforcement. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 18, 103-110.

Vollmer, T. R., Iwata, B. A., Zarcone, J. R., Smith, R.G., & Mazaleski, J.L. (1993). The role of attention in the treatment of attention-maintained self-injurious behavior: Noncontingent reinforcement and differential reinforcement of other behavior. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 26, 9-21.

Wallace, I. & Pear, J. J. (1977). Self-control techniques of famous novelists. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 10, 515-525.

Whitehead, W. E., Lurie, E., & Blackwell, B. (1976). Classical conditioning of decreases in human systolic blood pressure. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 9, 153-157.