1. Welcome!!!

2. Let’s start with introductions Introduce yourself, stating your name, and your some of your favorite books or movies. My name is Alyssa and I am your instructor. Some of my favorite movies are Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Napoleon Dynamite, and Little Miss Sunshine. I love comedies!

3. Seminar Rules A few things to remember: Once we begin, lets try and stay on track. Please be respectful of one another in your comments. When you do have a question use ????? to get my attention as it helps me to see your questions, and keep things a little more organized.

4. Potential Technical Problems In the past, it has not been unusual for someone to get booted out of a seminar, so please don’t panic if this happens to you. In fact, this happens to me from time to time as well. If you get booted out, just do your best to get right back into the class. Contact me through AIM or course mail if you miss more than 15 minutes. If I get booted out, please keep the discussion on track while you wait for me to get back in.

5. More Introductions Applied Behavioral Analysis is a fascinating topic and I believe this will be a great class! What do you hope to gain from the course?

6. More introductions What is your experience and/or future plans in the ABA field?

7. Prior experience? Have any of you had prior experience working with applied behavioral analysis?

8. Overview of Syllabus The syllabus covers course policies and expectations. Be sure to read it thoroughly. The syllabus is your guide to the class.

9. Office hours By appointment I will be using the AOL Instant Messenger (AIM) system for office hours; however, if these time slots do not work for you and you would like to chat with me directly, contact me to set up an appointment. My AIM sign-in is AlyOland. If you are not an AIM Member you can download the free service at: http://www.aim.com http://www.aim.com

10. Project Submissions Projects are worth a lot of points and significantly affect your grade Projects are expected to be submitted on or before the due date. Late submission could result in loss of points Read the directions. While you are writing, refer to them. Make sure you are within the required page limits. If the assignment calls for 3-5 pages, try to stay within those limits. The page requirements refer to the actual essay, not the title page or reference page. Follow proper grammatical rules, and take advantage of the writing center if needed. It is there to help you.

11. Discussion Board Responses should: Make frequent, informed references to unit material. Be clearly written. Meet posted length requirements (200 word minimum per discussion question: 75 word minimum on peer responses). Be on topic, original, and contribute to the quality of the discussion. (Note: posts that are done earlier in the unit advance the discussion more than posts that are all completed on the final day of a unit; advancing the discussion is a graded aspect of DB work). You should post two or more responses per thread that advance the discussion.

12. Seminar If you choose not to attend the seminar then you must complete Option 2 of the unit to receive a satisfactory grade for that week’s seminar. Do not do both. It does not earn you more points! Do one or the other. One tip…if you think, or have found in the past you may have trouble typing fast or keeping up with the pace of seminar, consider typing your answers to the questions ahead of time and save the answers in a Word document. When I ask the questions, copy and paste the answers on to the seminar. Pasting is much easier than trying to type fast.

13. Final Project As we move through the course, please start thinking about your Final Project, which is due by the end of Unit 9. Your Final Project will consist of an analysis of questions related to two separate case studies. Each case covers the theories, concepts and research that we will have discussed this term. Your answers to the questions should consist of information from the text and supplemental readings. Your primary sources should be the readings assigned for the course.

14. Final Project Your Final Project will consist of an analysis of questions related to two separate case studies. You'll also design an effective behavioral modification program as well as a plan to evaluate this modification program. Answers to the questions should be typed up in a Word document, double-spaced in 12 point font. Your answers should be 3 to 4 pages for each case in order to address all required parts of the Final Project. Please make sure to use proper APA format to credit the sources you use in your case study analysis. For additional information, refer to the APA Quick Reference on the Course Home Page or to the Kaplan Writing Center. You must credit authors when you:

15. Introduction to Applied Behavioral Analysis

16. Applied Behavioral Analysis Applied Behavior Analysis aims to modify behaviors that are negatively affecting one's social, emotional and physical health. Thus, behavior modification is the cornerstone of ABA.

17. Behavior Analysts Behavior analysts study behavior – the activity of living organisms. Although the study of behavior includes single responses, applied behavior analysts are interested in larger sets of socially significant behavior referred to as response classes.

18. Definition of Applied Behavior Analysis Applied behavior analysis is: A scientific approach to improving socially significant behavior… In which procedures derived from the principles of behavior are systematically applied to improve socially significant behavior… And to demonstrate experimentally that the procedures employed were responsible for the improvement in behavior

19. Discussion Question Do you think you have free will over your actions or that your behaviors are pre-determined and outside your control? Explain.

20. Free will vs. determinism There are two conflicting viewpoints on behavior. One is the idea that behavior stems from an individual’s free will. The other is the idea that behavior is pre- determined and the acting individual has no control over his/her behaviors. How might this fit in to the work of ABA practitioners?

21. Behaviors Behaviors of interest include both respondent and operant behaviors. Respondent behaviors do not involve learning For example, blinking to clean the eye or salivating when hungry Operant behavior is any behavior whose future frequency is learned through prior consequences. Ex., not putting hand on burner because was burned in past or working hard in school to earn high grades

22. Operant Conditioning Operant conditioning includes both reinforcement, the effect of which is a behavior increase and punishment, the effect of which is a behavior decrease.

23. Wrap-Up You will learn more about applied behavioral analysis through this week’s core readings. Any questions?