ABA I: Applied Behavior Analysis   [Archived Catalog]
2012-2013 Academic Catalog and Student Handbook
   

AB 521 - ABA I: Applied Behavior Analysis


Prerequisite(s): AB 520 . Applied behavior analysis is a discipline devoted to the understanding and improvement of human behavior. This course teaches students how to produce socially significant behavior change in applied settings using basic concepts and principles from the experimental analysis of behavior. Students learn how to apply basic principles and concepts of behavior analysis to produce effective, ethical, and meaningful change in the behavior of people they support through readings, lecture, discussion, and practice exercises. Some topics covered include how to select, identify, and effectively use reinforcers; how to manipulate reinforcement schedules and dimensions of reinforcement to produce the desired effects on behavior; and how to assess the functions or causes of behavior and develop function-based interventions. Students are also introduced to applications of verbal behavior, extinction, shaping, transfer of stimulus control, and stimulus equivalence. (3 credits)