Psych 581: Applied Behavior Analysis

PSYCH 581: APPLIED BEHAVIOR ANALYSIS

University of Massachusetts Amherst

Department of Psychological & Brain Sciences

Developmental Disabilities Program

Fall 2015

Tobin 307, Wednesday, 5:00-7:30pm

Instructor Office Hours

Candice Colón-Kwedor, M.S., BCBA, Doctoral Candidate Wednesdays 4:00 to 5:00

E-mail:

I. Course Description

This 3-credit elective course for undergraduate and graduate students will focus on the basic principles of Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) and practical issues regarding its use with individuals diagnosed with developmental disabilities.

II. Assigned Text / Readings

Cooper, J. O., Heron, T. E., & Heward, W. L. (2007). Applied behavior analysis.

Other supplemental readings may also be assigned and posted as pdf documents on Moodle.

III. Course Requirements

The course is conducted in various formats: lecture, group discussions, brief writing activities, pre-tests, post-tests etc. For course credit, students read the assigned material, and complete take- home assignments (20%), attend class, complete in-class assignments and group discussions (20%), write a literature review (20%), give an oral presentation (20%) and complete a final exam (20%).

I take the timely completion of the course requirements to be a matter of your priorities, both academic and personal. No late work may be handed in for credit where the reason is poor planning, competing requirements, or other interests. If you foresee having difficulties, we should discuss this beforehand. I am sorry if this sounds insensitive, but you will often be evaluated professionally by what you accomplish, not by what you say will (or you meant to) accomplish. More personally, I must set my own priorities for course management and time allocation so that I can meet my own college and professional obligations.

Attendance and participation (20%). Class attendance and participation need no definition, but your grade will be pro-rated each week by the percentage of time you attend class. It is expected that your participation in class is well-informed by any assigned readings.

Take-home and in-class assignments (20%). Several opportunities will arise for students to complete in-class and take-home assignments. These involve (a) pre-tests and post-tests (b) completion of guided noted and developing discussion questions from the readings, (c) in class group discussion and writing assignments. All take home assignments, which are described in the course schedule, are due at the start of class. Guided notes do not have to be handed in but their completion is highly recommended as ongoing preparation for the final exam.

Discussion questions are to be questions you have about some aspect of the reading that would benefit from clarification, explanation, elaboration, or discussion – or challenges to it. The assignment is meant to set the occasion for insightful and critical thinking and class commentary. The questions must come from the readings overall and the questions must include the citation and the citations page number(s) from which it is drawn so that we can consider its context. The questions need not be long; a sentence or two will often suffice.

* I may ask you to expand on your questions in class so please bring two copies of your questions to class.

Literature Review and Oral Presentation Project (40%) Each student is expected to write a page literature review (approximately 5 pages) on a topic of their choice in APA format and prepare a 10 minute oral presentation on the same topic. The paper and presentation must consist of at least 7 references. These references must be peer reviewed journal articles or books. The topic must be approved by me and an outline is to be provided for feedback purposes. *Students will receive extra credit for having their paper reviewed by the writing center and/or providing me a rough draft at least 3 weeks prior to the due date.

Final Exam (20%) Each student is expected to take a final exam to demonstrate comprehension of the major topics reviewed in the course

IV. Disabilities. If you have a disability that may prevent you from fully demonstrating your abilities to meet the course requirements please contact me as soon as possible so that we can discuss what accommodations can be made to ensure your full participation and facilitate educational opportunities. If you have a disability for which you may request accommodations at UMASS and have not contacted Student Disability Services please contact Ben Ostiguy at regarding registering with disability services, as soon as possible.

V. Academic Honesty. All students are expected to adhere scrupulously to the University policy concerning academic honesty. For more information on the University’s honesty policy, please visit this web address: http://www.umass.edu/dean_students/codeofconduct/acadhonesty/.

VI. Scheduling. During the semester, additional readings may be assigned in addition to those listed below. In addition, revisions to the syllabus may occur over the course of the semester.

Tentative Course Schedule and Assignments

Week and Date / Topic / Weekly Assignments
1
9/9 /
Course Overview
Introduction to ABA and Autism / Read Chapter 1 & 2 (Cooper, Heron and Heward) complete guided notes and compile discussion questions
2
9/16 / Definition and Characteristics of ABA
Basic Concepts of ABA / Read Chapter 29 (Cooper, Heron and Heward) complete guided notes and compile discussion questions
Read Bannerman et al., 1990 (posted on Moodle)
3
9/23 / Ethics / Read Chapter 3 & 4 (Cooper, Heron and Heward) complete guided notes and compile discussion questions
4
9/30 / Selecting and Defining Target Behaviors
Measuring Behavior / Read Chapter 6 & 7 (Cooper, Heron and Heward) complete guided notes and compile discussion questions
5
10/7 / Constructing and Interpreting Graphic Displays of Behavioral Data
Analyzing Behavior Change
Literature Review Outline due / Read Chapter 11 & 12 (Cooper, Heron and Heward) complete guided notes and compile discussion questions
6
10/14 / Positive Reinforcement
Negative Reinforcement / Read Chapter 24 (Cooper, Heron and Heward) complete guided notes and compile discussion questions
7
10/21 / Functional Behavior Assessment
Functional Analysis / Read Chapter 14, 15 & 21 (Cooper, Heron and Heward) complete guided notes and compile discussion questions

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Week and Date / Topic / Weekly Assignments
8
10/28 / Positive Punishment
Negative Punishment
Extinction / Read Chapter 17, 18, 19 & 20 (Cooper, Heron and Heward) complete guided notes and compile discussion questions
9
11/4 / Antecedent Variables: Stimulus Control
Developing New Behavior:
Imitation, Shaping & Chaining
Last day to turn in draft for extra credit / Read Chapter 26 & 27 (Cooper, Heron and Heward) complete guided notes and compile discussion questions
10
11/11 / Veteran’s Day / No Class
11
11/18 / Contingency Contracting, Token Economies and Group Contingencies
Self-management / No Assignment
12
11/25 / Oral Presentations
Literature review papers due / Review guided notes for final exam prep and email review discussion questions
13
12/2 / Oral Presentations
Review discussion questions due via email / Prepare for small group discussion/final exam prep
14
12/9 / Final Exam prep/review / Study for Final Exam
15
12/16 / Final Exam / Have a great Winter Break!

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