Association for Behavior Analysis International

The Association for Behavior Analysis International® (ABAI) is a nonprofit membership organization with the mission to contribute to the well-being of society by developing, enhancing, and supporting the growth and vitality of the science of behavior analysis through research, education, and practice.

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34th Annual Convention; Chicago, IL; 2008

Program by Invited Tutorials: Tuesday, May 27, 2008


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Invited Tutorial #499
CE Offered: BACB
Tutorial: A Molar View of Behavior
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
9:00 AM–9:50 AM
Grand Ballroom
Area: TPC; Domain: Theory
BACB CE Offered. CE Instructor: William M. Baum, Ph.D.
Chair: Sam Leigland (Gonzaga University)
Presenting Authors: : WILLIAM M. BAUM (University of California, Davis)
Abstract:

Two propositions about behavior seem uncontroversial: (a) all behavior takes time; and (b) all behavior entails choice. The first, because it implies that duration is universal, suggests that all behavior is measurable on the scale of time. The second, which arises from the recognition that every situation allows the occurrence of more than one activity, suggests that all behavior may be viewed as the allocation of time among activities. Every activity is composed of parts that are other activities of lesser time scale and is also a part of an activity on a more extended time scale. The parts of every allocation function together to produce results which accompany or are correlated with the activity. Every activity-part produces such results and contributes to the whole results, which may be greater than the sum of the part-results. The time allocations inherent in activities are shaped by phylogenetically important events (PIEs), both as results and as inducers of behavior. An activity is defined by its results, the job it gets done. Results at different time scales sometimes conflict with one another, in the sense that local results may be higher or lower in value than extended results. These conflicts lead either to impulsiveness or self-control, depending on whether the resolution favors local or extended control. This molar view allows us to re-cast many familiar concepts, such as reinforcement, punishment, stimulus control, and verbal behavior.

 
WILLIAM M. BAUM (University of California, Davis)
Dr. William M. Baum received his A.B. in psychology from Harvard College in 1961. Originally a biology major, he switched into psychology after taking courses from B. F. Skinner and R. J. Herrnstein in his freshman and sophomore years. He returned to Harvard University for graduate study in 1962, where he was supervised by Herrnstein and received his Ph.D. in 1966. He spent the year 1965-66 at Cambridge University, studying ethology at the Sub-Department of Animal Behavior. From 1966 to 1975, he held appointments as post-doctoral fellow, research associate, and assistant professor at Harvard University. He spent two years at the NIH Laboratory for Brain, Evolution, and Behavior, and then accepted an appointment in psychology at University of New Hampshire in 1977. He retired from there in 1999. He currently has an appointment as Associate Researcher at University of California – Davis and lives in San Francisco. His research concerns choice, molar behavior-environment relations, foraging, and behaviorism. He is the author of a book, Understanding Behaviorism: Behavior, Culture, and Evolution.
 
 
Invited Tutorial #547
CE Offered: BACB
Tutorial: The Tacts of Life: Accuracy, Science and Pseudoscience
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
11:00 AM–11:50 AM
Grand Ballroom
Area: VBC; Domain: Theory
BACB CE Offered. CE Instructor: Timothy D. Hackenberg, Ph.D.
Chair: William F. Potter (California State University, Stanislaus)
Presenting Authors: : TIMOTHY D. HACKENBERG (University of Florida)
Abstract:

Correspondence relations play a key role in everyday verbal functioning. Describing a weekend outing, classifying a musical piece, categorizing a type of insect, and interpreting a behavioral episode all involve correspondence between a verbal response and some aspect of the world. Such correspondence relations lie at the heart of Skinners analysis of the tact, defined as a verbal response evoked by some event or property of some event, maintained by generalized reinforcement (e.g., social approval). The degree to which a tact truly or accurately reflects some event depends on its correspondence with the contingencies, and can range from high (when contingencies permit precise tacting) to low (when contingencies arranged for tacting are weak or detective, or when special interests of the speaker intrude). Accuracy and truth are therefore products of contingencies arranged by verbal communities which place a premium on correspondence. This is of more than idle theoretical interest. Correspondence relations bear on distinctions between facts and opinions, and more generally, to differences between scientific and pseudoscientific claims. In this presentation, I will discuss some general areas of research relevant to distorted tacts, the conditions under which people are especially prone to their disruptive influences, and how such relations can be studied with traditional behavioral methods. Some implications for scientific accuracy, and for distinguishing science from pseudoscience, will also be considered.

 
TIMOTHY D. HACKENBERG (University of Florida)
Dr. Timothy D. Hackenberg received a B.A. degree in Psychology from the University of California, Irvine in 1982 and a doctorate in Psychology from Temple University in 1987, under the supervision of Philip Hineline. He held a post-doctoral research position at the University of Minnesota with Travis Thompson from 1988-90. He joined the faculty in the Behavior Analysis program at the University of Florida in 1990, where he is currently a Professor of Psychology. He has served on the Board of Directors of the Society for the Experimental Analysis of Behavior, of the Society for the Quantitative Analysis of Behavior, as Associate Editor of the Journal of the Experimental Analysis of Behavior, as President of Division 25 of the American Psychological Association, and is currently serving as the Experimental Representative to the ABA Council. His major research interests are in the area of choice and conditioned reinforcement in humans and other animals. In work funded by the NSF and the NIH, he and his students have developed procedures for comparing adaptive choice in different species, showing that species differences are frequently a product of procedural differences. Reducing or eliminating procedural differences brings cross-species continuities into sharper focus. He is blessed with a talented cadre of graduate students, and has the good fortune to teach courses he cares about, including Theoretical Foundations of Behavior Analysis, Verbal Behavior, and Interpretive Systems.
 
 
Invited Tutorial #550
CE Offered: BACB
Tutorial: Building a Transactional Systems Model of Services for Children with Autism
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
12:00 PM–12:50 PM
Grand Ballroom
Area: DDA/OBM; Domain: Applied Research
BACB CE Offered. CE Instructor: Anthony J. Cuvo, Ph.D.
Chair: Mollie J. Horner-King (Southern Illinois University)
Presenting Authors: : ANTHONY J. CUVO (Southern Illinois University)
Abstract:

There has been an escalation in the number of children identified with autism spectrum disorders in recent years. To increase the likelihood that treatments for the children be effective, interventions should be derived from sound theory and research evidence. Absent this supportive foundation, intervention programs could be inconsequential if not harmful to children. Although atypical, the development of children with autism should be considered initially from the perspective of the same variables that affect the development of typical children. In addition, the developmental deviations that characterize autism must be considered when developing intervention programs. Behavioral systems models describe both typical as well as atypical development, and emphasize dynamic multidirectional person-environment transactions. The environment is viewed as having multiple levels, from the individuals with autism, themselves, to larger societal and cultural levels. Behavioral systems models of human development can be generalized to a transactional systems model of services for children with autism. This model is the foundational theoretical position of the Southern Illinois University Center for Autism Spectrum Disorders. The Centers programs are described to illustrate the application of the model to multiple levels of the social ecology.

 
ANTHONY J. CUVO (Southern Illinois University)
Dr. Anthony J. Cuvo is Professor of Behavior Analysis and Therapy and Director of the Center for Autism Spectrum Disorders at Southern Illinois University. His academic history includes degrees in psychology from Lafayette College (BA Psychology, 1965), Kent State University (MA Clinical Psychology, 1967), and University of Connecticut (Ph.D. Child and Developmental Psychology, 1973). Dr. Cuvo is a former Distinguished Research Fellow of the National Institute of Handicapped Research, and Fellow of the American Psychological Association, the American Psychological Society, and American Association of Mental Retardation. He was the recipient of his College's Outstanding Teaching Award, first recipient of the College Outstanding Researcher Award, and the Phi Kappa Phi Outstanding Scholar Award. Dr. Cuvo worked as a clinical psychologist in Pennsylvania and Connecticut before assuming his faculty position at Southern Illinois University in 1973. He is the Founding Director of the Center for Autism Spectrum Disorders at Southern Illinois University and a founding partner in Illinois’ The Autism Program. Dr. Cuvo has obtained approximately four million dollars in external funding. He has edited two books, authored 14 book chapters, over 100 journal articles and other publications, and made more than 200 professional presentations. Dr. Cuvo has served as Associate Editor for five professional journals, and regular board member for 10 journals. He has been a grant proposal reviewer and site visitor for several federal agencies. He has given invited addresses and workshops in England, Italy, Costa Rica, and Brazil on numerous occasions.
 

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