REHB 509B Behavior Analysis Research Designs: Group Experimental Designs Fall 2015 COURSE SYLLABUS

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1 1 REHB 509B Behavior Analysis Research Designs: Group Experimental Designs Fall 2015 COURSE SYLLABUS Course Title: Behavior Analysis Research Designs: Group Experimental Designs Course Number: REHB 509B Credit Hours: 3 Location & Dates: Trinity Services Fri: 6:00 pm 9:00 pm Sat: 9:00 am 4:00 pm Weekend 1: 9/5-6 Weekend 2: 10/10-10/11 Weekend 3: 11/14-11/15 Online Chats: Every Thursday 6:30 PM-7:30 PM Instructor: TA: John Pingo, Ph.D., BCBA Phone: (cell)/ (office) drjohnpingo@gmail.com Virtual Office Hours: meetings by appointment N/A Course Description and Goals: The purpose of this course is to provide a foundation in applied research methods pertinent to program evaluation, group experimental design, and related data analysis. After completing the course you should be able to do the following: a) Be a knowledgeable consumer of group design and the related statistical analysis literature (i.e., understand and critically evaluate research in journal articles and other research presentations). b) Have intermediate level skills for generating group design studies, knowing which data analysis techniques are appropriate, using computer software for basic statistical analyses, and drawing appropriate conclusions. Text & Assigned Readings: Huck, S. W., (2004). Reading statistics and research (6 th ed.). New York: Addison Wesley Longman.

2 2 Additional readings are also required. These readings, indicated by asterisks in the syllabus, supplement and are equally important to those in the textbooks. You are responsible for all assigned readings on the due date. It is strongly encouraged that you keep up with the reading assignments and complete each reading assignment on the due date shown on the attached calendar. Class Sessions: Class attendance is expected at all times. This class will be presented as both lecture and seminar. Class participation is expected and thus will be graded. Evaluations: 1. Three exams (300 points total): Exams will emphasize the material covered in the assigned readings and lectures presented directly prior to the exam ONLY. Exam 2 will be in a take-home format that will require you to conceptualize the methodology and data analysis for a hypothetical experimental project. Specifically, Exam 2 will require you to complete portions of a hypothetical research project. Exams 1 & 3 will be administered in-class. No make-up exams will be given. Point totals are as follows: Exam 1: 100 pts., Exam 2: 150 pts., Exam 3: 50 pts. Late take-home exams will not be accepted. 2. Four 10-point statistics assignments (40 pts.): These assignments will require you to run statistical analyses on a set of data with which you will be provided. You will also be required to interpret the results of the statistical analyses. Assignments are to be completed using some version of SPSS software. You may have access to a computer with a copy of SPSS already or you may need to download a free trial version from the internet. You will be provided with explicit, task analytic instructions for how to complete each of the analyses using SPSS however, the TA s written for the assignments may differ slightly from very recent versions of SPSS. Instructions for how to download SPSS and completion of the first assignment will be presented during the second class meeting. Assignment 1: t - test; Assignment 2: One-way ANOVA & post-hoc; Assignment 3: Two-way ANOVA; Assignment 4: correlation coefficient. Late assignments will not be accepted.

3 3 3. Brief lecture/discussion (10 pts). You will be responsible for leading the class (in pairs) in a brief discussion of one supplemental assigned article for approximately a 10-minute duration, depending on the length of the article. Your discussion should be of an advanced, scholarly nature and include commentary on the specific methodological strengths and weaknesses of the article. Articles available to choose from are those shown with a ** on the attached calendar (11 articles total). You will have the opportunity to sign up for one of the articles the first weekend and the actual discussions will begin during the 2 nd weekend. 4. Participation (30 pts.) This class will often be conducted as a seminar. You are encouraged to speak in class and participate in small group exercises; indeed your contributions (or lack thereof) will be graded. We will discuss questions that you have about the material and any related issues, as well as the assigned journal articles for the course. With a total of 30 points possible, you have the opportunity to earn around 10 points per weekend of class. Be aware that missing days or whole weekends of class will cause you to forfeit participation points for the class. Also be aware that exams will be given the second 2 Fridays and last Saturday of the class. Make-up exams will not be given except in EXTREME situations and by prior approval from your instructor. PLEASE NOTE: If you need to miss a class period, there is no need to check with your instructor beforehand. The calendar of events and participation point breakdown is enough for you to be able to inform your own decision about missing class time. Letter grades will be determined as follows: A = B = C = D = F = < 226 Academic Dishonesty Each student is responsible for making himself or herself aware of the policies and procedures in the Graduate Catalog (pp ) that pertain to Acts of Academic Dishonesty. These policies cover such acts as plagiarism, preparing work for another student, cheating by any method or means, falsifying or manufacturing data, furnishing false information to a university official relative to academic matters, and soliciting, aiding, concealing, or attempting conduct in violation of this code.

4 If you wish to drop this course, you must do so after the date designated by the university. A grade of Incomplete will be given under the conditions specified in the university catalog ONLY. The instructor is committed to equal opportunity in education for all students, including those with documented disabilities. It is the responsibility of students with documented disabilities to contact the instructor during the first week of class to discuss appropriate accommodations to ensure equity in grading, classroom experiences, and outside assignments. Documentation is to be provided and accommodations are to be arranged with Disability Support Services. 4

5 5 **readings available for group presentation Calendar Weekend 1: Topic Assigned Readings Course Introduction Science vs. Pseudoscience; The Scientific Process Video: Facilitated Communication Variables used in Experimentation Drawing Reliable and Valid Inferences Subject Selection/Assignment and True Experimental Group Designs Christensen Chap. 1 (Intro to Scientific Research) Shermer (1992) Kazdin, Ch. 1 (Intro to Methodology/Research Design) Christensen, Chaps. 4 (Problem ID and hypothesis formation) & 6 (Variables used in experimentation) Kazdin Ch. 5 (Selection of research problem and design) Christensen, Ch. 7 (Reliability and Validity) pgs Kazdin Chaps. 2 (Internal/External Validity), 3 (Construct/Statistical Conclusion Validity), & 4 (Sources of Artifact and Bias) Kruger et al. (1999) Kazdin Ch. 6 SKIP pg. 169 to 172 on Quasi-Experimental Designs (Experimental Research) Kazdin Ch. 7 (Control and Comparison Designs) O Leary & Borkovec (1978) **Sturmey (2005) **Chan et al., (2011) Quasi-Experimental Designs Christensen Ch. 10 (Quasi-Experimental Designs) Kazdin Ch. 6 pg. 169 to 172 on Quasi- Experimental Designs **Holden & Neff (2000) **Slate & Jones (1989)

6 6 Weekend 2: Topic Assigned Readings EXAM 1 (100 pts.) Basics of Inferential Statistics Huck, Ch. 5 (Foundations of Inferential Statistics) & 6 (Estimation) **Aman et al. (2008) **Eikeseth et al., (2002) **Jackson et al., (2011) Hypothesis Testing and t tests Huck Chs. 7 (Hypothesis Testing), 8 (Adding ES, Power, CI s, and Bonferroni), & 10 (Inferences Concerning One or Two Means) Huck, Chs. 11 (Tests on 3 or More Means Using a One-Way ANOVA) & 12 (Post One-Way ANOVAs; Post-hoc Analyses Hoc and Planned Comparisons) **Meier et al., (2009) Huck Ch. 13 (Two-Way Analyses of Two-Way ANOVAs Variance) **Kennel & Agresti (1995) Repeated Measures Factorial Designs & Repeated Measures ANOVAs Huck Ch. 14 (Analysis of Variance with Repeated Measures) STOP at pg. 377 **Navarick (2009) Weekend 3: Topic Mixed Factorial Designs & Mixed ANOVAs Huck Ch pg Assigned Readings (take home) EXAM 2 and Assignments 1-3 due at the beginning of class Huck Chs. 3 (Bivariate Correlation) & 9 (Statistical Inference Concerning Bivariate Correlation Coefficients Correlations) **Wilson & Huff (2001) Statistical vs. Clinical Significance Factor Analysis Kazdin Ch. 14 (Assessment and Evaluation of Interventions) & Ch. 20 (Factor Analysis) Kazdin Ch pg Jacobsen et al. (1984) Prentice & Miller (1992) Gonzalez (1994) Ator (1999)

7 7 EXAM 3 & Assignment 4 completed and due by the end of class Supplemental Readings Aman, M. G., Hollway, J. A., McDougle, C. J., Scahill, L., Tierney, E., McCracken, J. T.,... Posey, D. J. (2008). Cognitive effects of risperidone in children with autism and irritable behavior. Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychopharmacology, 18, Ator, N. A. (1999). Statistical inference in behavior analysis: Environmental determinants? The Behavior Analyst, 22, Chan, S. S. C., Leung, D. Y. P., Abdullah, A. S. M., Wong, V.T., Hedley, A. J., & Lam, T. H. (2011). A randomized controlled trial of a smoking reduction plus nicotine replacement therapy intervention for smokers not willing to quit smoking. Addiction, 106, Christensen, L. B. (2004). Experimental Methodology (9th ed.). Boston: Allyn & Bacon. Eikeseth, S., Smith, T., Jahr, E., & Eldevic, S. (2002). Intensive behavioral treatment at school for 4- to 7-year old children with autism: A 1-year comparison controlled study. Behavior Modification, 26, Flick, S. N. (1988). Managing attrition in clinical research. Clinical Psychology Review, 8, Gonzalez, R. (1994). The statistics ritual in psychological research. Psychological Science, 5, Holden, P. & Neff J. A. (2000). Intensive outpatient treatment of persons with mental retardation and psychiatric disorder: A preliminary study. Mental Retardation, 38, Jackson, R. A., Stotland, N. E., Caughey, A. B., & Gerbert, B. (2011). Improving diet and exercise in pregnancy with video doctor counseling: A randomized trial. Patient Education and Counseling, 83, Jacobson, N. S., Follette, W. C., & Revenstorf, D. (1984). Psychotherapy outcome research: Methods for reporting variability and evaluating clinical significance. Behavior Therapy, 15, Kennel, R. G. & Agresti, A. A. (1995).Effects of gender and age on psychologists reporting of child sexual abuse. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 26, Kruger, J., Savitsky, K., & Gilovich, T. (1999). Superstition and the regression effect. Skeptical Inquirer, 23(2), Meier, E., Link, C., & Weatherly, J. N. (2009). Testing alcohol as a discriminative stimulus for gambling behavior. Analysis of Gambling Behavior, 3,

8 Navarick, D. J. (2009). Reviving the Milgram obedience program in the era of informed consent. The Psychological Record, 59, O Leary, K. D., & Borkovec, T. D. (1978). Conceptual, methodological, and ethical problems of placebo groups in psychotherapy research. American Psychologist, 58, Prentice, D. A., & Miller, D. T. (1992). When small effects are impressive. Psychological Bulletin, 112, Shermer, M. (1992). A skeptical manifesto. Skeptic, 1, Slate, J. R., & Jones, C. H. (1989). Can teaching of the WISC-R be improved? Quasiexperimental exploration. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 20, Sturmey, P. (2004). Secretin is an ineffective treatment for pervasive developmental disabilities: a review of 15 double-blind randomized controlled trials. Research in Developmental Disabilities, 26, Wilson, K. M., & Huff, J. L. (2001). Scaling Satan. The Journal of Psychology, 135,