VANGUARD UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA PSYC : Behavior Modification Instructor: Steve Cuffari M.A., M.A., MFC #44845 Fall Semester 2015

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1 VANGUARD UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA PSYC : Behavior Modification Instructor: Steve Cuffari M.A., M.A., MFC #44845 Fall Semester 2015 Class Meeting: 2:30 3:45 Monday Wednesday ONLY Office Hours: M W 12:00 1:30 p.m. and by appointment only Office: Department of Psychology Teaching Assistant: Luke Hart luke.hart@vanguard.edu Please send all to my TA. He will answer your questions or forward them to me. Put B. Mod 420 in the subject line of the to ensure a prompt response. Course description: Behavior Modification examines the applications of cognitive and learning theories to a broad range of problems and settings, including child rearing, education, psychotherapy, and industrial settings. Integration of theological aspects of this perspective is also addressed. Prerequisite: General Psychology (PSYC 103) Course Fulfillment: This course meets elective upper division requirements for all students, regardless of major. It is a requirement for the Major in Psychology. Required texts: Martin, G. & Pear, J. (2011). Behavior Modification: What It Is and How To Do It (9th Edition). Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice Hall. Watson, D. L., & Tharp, R. G. (2014.) Self-directed Behavior, (10th ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.

2 Student Learning Outcomes (SLOs) Course-Specific SLOs The student will demonstrate a competent knowledge base in the following areas. 1. Understand and evaluate behavioral research. Students will understand behavioral research methods and both interpret and evaluate the results of behavioral research. 2. Conduct a case study behavior modification project. Students will design, conduct, analyze, and evaluate an intervention designed to modify a selfbehavior; this will be presented in a term paper. 3. Understand classical conditioning and fear reduction techniques. Students should understand the principles of classical conditioning and be familiar with fear-reduction strategies. 4. Understand operant conditioning and behavioral management procedures. Students should understand operant conditioning principles and be familiar with strategies for behavior management. 5. Understand social learning theory. Students should be familiar with social learning techniques for behavioral change associated with modeling and observational learning. 6. Understand cognitive behavior modification techniques. Students should understand and be able to use cognitive behavior modification techniques including cognitive restructuring. 7. Understand behavior assessment procedures. Students should understand methods of assessment. 8. Understand behavioral and cognitive treatments for clinical application. Students should be familiar with behavioral and cognitive intervention strategies for the following: anxiety disorders, depression and suicide, sexual dysfunction, eating disorders, and addictive disorders. 9. Understand marital and relational interventions. Students should understand theories, assessment techniques, and interventions used in behavior marital therapy. 10. Understand theories, assessment techniques, and treatments used for behavior disorders of childhood. Students should understand theories, assessment techniques, and interventions used for behavioral disorders. 11. Demonstrate critical thinking. Students should demonstrate their ability to think critically as they react to materials presented in class (text, videos, and research).

3 PSYCHOLOGY SLOs VUSC Psychology graduates should be able to: 1. Use knowledge of major concepts in psychology as relevant to cognitive, behavioral, biological, socio-cultural, and spiritual perspectives on human nature. Reading, classroom discussion, and essay questions reflect knowledge across all of these areas of psychology as they apply to behavior modification principles and techniques. 2. Apply core principles of empirical research, including research design, data analysis, and interpretation, to evaluation of knowledge. Students utilize research and the scientific method to both conduct and present a self-modification research project. 3. Use critical thinking to evaluate scholarly research and its popular interpretations rationally, in light of valid evidence and the scientific approach. Critical thinking is used to evaluate research related to specific psychological disorders as presented in weekly assessments. 4. Apply psychological principles to practical issues (including personal, social and/or organizational issues). Students apply psychological principles to the personal issue of their own self-behavior modification. 5. Practice professional ethics in Psychology as defined by American Psychological Association, with the focus on core principles of beneficence, responsibility, integrity, justice, and respect Students are required to maintain ethical standards in classroom interactions, written assessments, and an oral presentation. 6. Demonstrate communication skills through writing in an established scientific format (APA), and gain practice in oral communication. Students present their self-modification research project in written form. 7. Practice cultural competency and citizenship as defined in Institutional Learning Outcomes with in-depth disciplinary focus on appreciation of diverse psychological aspects of culture. Students are exposed to diversity issues as applied to the behavioral treatment of psychological problems and disorders. 8. Integrate Christian worldview with knowledge of psychology. Students integrate faith and psychology throughout the course. 9. Apply psychological knowledge, skills and values to various occupations/careers and/or postgraduate study. Through reading and classroom discussion, students become familiar with the types of domains in psychology, and the jobs held by psychologists within these subfields.

4 INSTITUTIONAL/CORE SLOs 1. Integration of Faith and Learning: Students will develop and articulate a Biblical worldview informed by a Pentecostal perspective, integrating faith with learning. Students integrate faith and psychology throughout the course, through classroom discussions and written assessments. 2. Cultural Competency and Citizenship: Students will understand and practice effective local, national and global citizenship and demonstrate appreciation of diverse psychological, social, historical and artistic aspects of culture. Cultural competency and citizenship is demonstrated through diverse approaches to cognitive and behavioral treatment. 3. Communication: Students will demonstrate effective, college-level written and oral communication skills. Students demonstrate communication skills through the submission of written assessments. Oral communication is demonstrated through a classroom oral presentation. 4. Critical Thinking: Students will develop and apply qualitative and quantitative critical thinking skills. Students apply qualitative and quantitative critical thinking skills through critical analyses and an understanding of behavior modification internet sites; students evidence critical thinking through all submitted written assignments. 5. Holistic Living: Students will appreciate and demonstrate a holistic view of health and living. Students are encouraged to maintain a healthy body, mind, and spirit, as they structure their time and energy for this course. Additionally, students read about these topics in the textbook for this course, and work toward self-improvement through a self-behavior modification project. 6. Information Competency: Students will demonstrate foundational technology skills that allow one to locate and evaluate the integrity of information, and to understand the ethical uses of information. Students are instructed in techniques to think critically about psychological science and participate in classroom discussions on these topics and skills. Additionally, students evaluate internet research and critically reflect on research through written assessments. MOODLE: The other piece of technology we will be utilizing is Moodle. You can access your Abnormal Psychology course from your MyVU account. The Moodle tab is in the upper right hand corner. You are already signed into the course and should be able to access the page. I will be using Moodle to post PowerPoint slides, study guides, handouts, and grades.

5 Description Of Evaluation: Students in this course will be evaluated by the College s 4.0 grading system. You should refer to the Student Handbook for further details on the grading system. The following criteria are used to determine the student s grade: Assignment Points Due Dates Exam /14 Exam /30 Assessments: 50pt each 200 9/2, 9/9, 9/16, 10,28 Self-Change Project Proposal 50 9/23 Self-Change Project Maintenance 50 11/4 Self-Change Project Early Bird 50 11/18 Self-Change Project /23 Writing Center Extra Credit 25 Optional Final Exam 12/2 TOTAL POINTS: 1025/1000 Attendance: Attendance will be taken at the beginning of every class. In some instances missing just one class time can translate into missing up to 20-25% of the information needed for the next exam. Please make sure you understand this as you decide on whether or not you should miss a lecture. According to college policy, any student missing more than six classes will receive an F. STUDENT EVALUATION Percent Points Grade Signifiance GPA % A Exceptional % A % B % B Above Average % B % C % C Average % C % D % D Below Average % D % F Failure 0.00 Non-Competitive Grading: Your grade is determined by the total number of points you earned by the end of the semester, regardless of the points of others. There is no curve. You should therefore feel free to help each other learn, study, and succeed in class.

6 How Final Grades Are Calculated: Your final grade is based on the total points earned in class not the percentage posted in Moodle. For example, let s say Moodle says that your final grade is 890/1000 total points which Moodle translates as 89%. Keep in mind that 89% of 1000 points can range from points. At first glance, some would reason that your professor should round up based on percentage points. Since your instructor uses the total points to calculate grades and not percentage points, then here is how it shall work. If you have total points, then your grade would remain a B+. If, however, you have 896 points, then your instructor will give you 4 additional points and round up your final grade to 900 points or an A- in the class. Exams: (200 points each) Both exams consists of 50 multiple-choice questions worth four (4) points each with two (2) extra-credit questions. Students can actually earn as much as 208 points on each exam! Final Exam: (Optional) A comprehensive final exam will be given, consisting of 50 multiple-choice questions worth four (4) points each with two (2) extra-credit questions. Once again, students can actually earn as much as 208 points on this exam! Students who are satisfied with their previous test scores may choose not to take the final exam. Students who wish to take the exam may replace their lowest test score with the final exam score. Therefore, taking the final exam cannot lower a student s course grade; it may only improve the grade. Assessments: (50 points each) There are four (4) assessments worth 50 points each. Simply download each assessment from Moodle. Then, read the chapters that correspond with each assessment of Watson s Self-Directed Behavior. Then, answer the questions located in the word document you downloaded from Moodle. See the class schedule for actual due dates. Self-Directed Behavior Project: (250 points) The self-directed behavior project is to be submitted in three (3) Parts. Use of the Self-Directed Behavior book in designing and implementing this project is strongly advised. We will discuss how to select a target behavior for this project in class.

7 Part 1. Self-Change Project Proposal (50 points). Due 9/23 must include the following: 1. A specific operational definition of the behavior you have decided to change. 2. Present an assessment of your behavior featuring observation and selfrecording. Your assessment should have two parts: Maintain a diary with an antecedent behavior consequences format. Present this in a table in your proposal. Collect baseline data with a frequency or duration count for at least 7 days or until baseline is stable. Present a graph of your baseline data. 3. Briefly describe a proposed intervention plan. State specifically the behavioral techniques you plan to use (i.e., reinforcement, punishment, shaping, etc.) Specify your strategies for antecedent control as well. 4. Indicate possible obstacles to changing the target behavior and ways of overcoming these obstacles. Include alternatives you will try if things don t work out the way you planned. 5. Write a short contract stating your goal(s) and intentions. (what, specifically you intend to do and how you intend to do it) Sign your contract. Use W & T, Chapters 2 and 3 and M & P page #335 to help write Part I. 6. State the 2-3 journal articles that you plan to integrate into your project. 7. This proposal should be no more than 3 double spaced pages: 1 page each for the content, Base line Graph and your signed behavioral contract. Next: Revise your plans using feedback given by your instructor and apply it to Part 3. Part 2. Self-Change Maintenance Report (50 points). Due 11/4 1. State the behavior you are trying to maintain and/or modify at this point (depending on if you have changed your target behavior). 2. Present a graph featuring your baseline data as well as your current level of functioning regardless of positive or negative results. 3. Describe how specifically you are preventing a lapse or relapse from occurring. Specify your strategies for antecedent control as well. 4. State the 3 journal articles that you have integrated into your project. 5. This assignment should be no more than 2 double spaced pages which includes a graph of your baseline behavior.

8 Part 3. Self-Change Project Report (250 points). Due 11/23 Early Bird Points: (Not to be confused with extra credit) Due 11/18 Students who turn in their Self-Change Projects one full week earlier than the actual due date receive 50 points for being early (positive reinforcement). Doing so, helps a student avoid losing 50 points that count toward getting an A in this class (negative reinforcement). Contents for the project: A. Title Page B. Abstract: Separate, stand-alone page C. Introduction. Introduce why you want to change your behavior D. Purpose Statement Shows the reader what you intend to do in the paper as well as how you intend to do it. Example: This paper will illustrate how a self-change project unfolded over a period of 10 weeks. The target behavior is to increase Bible reading to a frequency of 5 times per week, for a duration of 15 minutes per session, with an intensity level of a 7 or higher, by reflecting on a specific passage and the meaning of that passage. The author will describe, explain, and attempt to predict how the antecedents influence, and continue to influence, his ability to accomplish his target behavior. In section one, he will introduce why he deems this change necessary. In section two, he will provide an overview of the published research that was used to support this project. In section three, the actual methods used in the project will be listed and described. In section four, the results of the entire project will be provided. In addition, graphs will be provided to show baseline functioning as well as what changes took place after treatment was implemented. Lastly, a critical analysis of the project, with its strengths and limits, will be provided. E. Published research Used State the 3 journal articles that apply to your project. Give a brief summary of that research and how it applied to your project. Each journal article must be dated within the last 5 years. Research in developmental psychology is so active that you re the paper must reflect the current findings about the subject s development. No books are to be used. Also, articles from Psychology Today or Web M.D. and similar publications are written for the general public, rather than a professional audience, and so they too must not be used. Journal articles only.

9 F. Methods Please Note: 1. Assessment Discuss data collection, antecedent control, reinforcement, cognitive strategies, etc. A.B.C. model: antecedent behavior consequences format 2. Treatment Describe your intervention plan. Be specific. Describe how you dealt with problems and any changes you made. How did you reinforce your target behavior (positive or negative). G. Results Present data collected before, during and after intervention in graphs and/or tables Discuss your results and outcomes H. Discussion. Present a critical analysis of your project. Why (in behavioral terms) you thought it worked or didn t work. How you would do it differently next time. How you plan to maintain and generalize your results. How you could apply the skills you have learned to other behaviors. I. Graph These can be hand drawn. The axes must be labeled clearly, and the reader should be able to read your graph easily and determine the frequency of your behavior week by week. You should be including all of the data related to your project. I would like to see your baseline data (if applicable), your data that was collected each week, your list of positive self-talk statements (excuse list), and any other relevant materials. Since each project will be unique, then you decide the length of the paper as long as it fulfills all of the requirements of this assignment. Students who fail to turn their Self-Change Projects in on the actual due date will forfeit all of the total points earned for this project. No late work is accepted. Requirements for the final self-change project: 1. Your proposal and report shall comply with APA formatting. 2. Your proposal and report shall include 3 articles plus the class text books on the reference page. 3. You proposal and report shall be organized with the headings stated in Part 3 of the Self-Change Project Report.

10 Additional Web Resources For The Self-Change Project: 1. Intervention Central at 2. Great for graphs: 3. Great for graphs: 4. Great for graphs Monitor your Behavior: Writing Center Extra credit: A total of 25 extra credit points can be earned if students turn in an edited rough draft copy of their self-change project. Note: In order to receive extra credit students have two(2) options: a) Option one: Students turn in a hard copy of their rough draft that must be signed and stamped by the writing center on that hard copy. b) Option Two: An electronic copy of the edited rough draft must be sent to the T.A. s . This usually involves students forwarding the electronic (edited) version that the writing center sent to the student with corrections made on it. c) In either option, the morning after the due date(s), the TA will send the professor a spread sheet with a list of students who have met this criterion. d) Any final papers turned it without being edited by the writing center personnel will not receive extra credit. In other words, having your friend (even if they are an English major) edit the paper does not constitute extra credit. Classroom Diversity Statement: As students and faculty at Vanguard University of Southern California, and foremost as Christian believers, we endeavor to communicate with honesty and confidentiality, to speak with encouraging and edifying words, and to create a safe environment where we shelter one another with love when vulnerabilities arise. This classroom intends to foster a Christ-centered community that promotes appreciation and respect for individuals, enhances the potential of its members, and values differences in gender, ethnicity, race, abilities, national origins, and generation.

11 General Class Policies: 1. All exams must be taken on or before the exam date. 2. All writing assignments must be submitted through Moodle. 3. Papers not turned in (electronically) on the due date will be considered late and will not be read and the student will forfeit those points. 4. Incomplete grades will only be given in the event of a medical emergency or personal or family crisis (documentation is required). Unacceptable reasons include: course load too heavy, previous incompletes, regular job or ministry responsibilities, English problems, computer problems, etc." Disability Services: The Disability Services Office: The Disability Services Office offers resources and coordinates reasonable accommodations for students with disabilities. Reasonable accommodations are established through an interactive process between you, your instructor(s) and the Disability Services Office. If you have not yet established services through the Disability Services Office, but have a temporary or permanent disability that requires accommodations (this can include but not limited to; mental health, attention-related, learning, vision, hearing, physical or health impairments), you are welcome to contact the Disability Services Office at or disabilityservices@vanguard.edu

12 Behavior Modification Tentative Class Schedule: FALL 2015 Date Week Topic Reading & Assignments Introduction: M & P Ch 1 Aug 24 1 A-B-C Model of behavioral intervention M&P Ch 2 Aug 26 Overview of behavior modification projects W&T Ch 1 Aug 31 Sept 2 2 Willpower & self-control Direct Behavioral Assessment W&T Ch 8, 9 M& P 21 Assessment #1 due Wed Sept 7 Sept 9 3 Labor Day Holiday: No Class Antecedent Control, Behavioral Assessment, Token Economies M&P 19, 20, 25 Assessment #2 due Wed Sept 14 Sept 16 4 Reinforcement Conditioned reinforcement Extinction to decrease behaviors M&P Ch 3, 4, 5 Assessment #3 due Wed Sept 21 Sept 23 5 Intermittent reinforcement, Consequences Part I. Self Change Proposal due page #31 W& Tharp M&P Ch 6 W&T Ch 7 Part I. due Wed Sept 28 Sept 30 6 Film & Discussion: Treating Phobias In Class Vignettes Oct 5 Oct 7 7 Shaping behavior Film & Discussion: The Hunger Within M&P Ch 10 Oct 12 Oct 14 8 Review for exam Exam #1 Wednesday Exam 1 Wednesday Oct 19 Oct 21 9 Antecedent control Film: Children in Crisis W&T Ch 5 M&P Ch 9 Oct 26 Oct Punishment Existing stimulus control: rules, modeling, guidance, Vignette Conceptualization; Saving money M&P Ch 12, 17, 18, 24 Assessment #4 due Wed Nov 2 Nov 4 11 Relapse prevention, Vignette Conceptualization Part 2: Maintenance of Self Change Project Due W&T Ch 9 Part 2: Maintenance Wed Nov 9 & Cognition & Behavior Putting it all together: Theory based treatment plan goals M & P: Ch 27 Nov 16 Nov Film & Discussion 50 Points if Self-change project is turned in Wed 11/18 50 Points for early project Nov 23 Nov Self-Directed Project Due Monday 11/23 Review for exam #2 Project due Monday 11/23 Nov 30 Dec 2 15 Exam #2 Monday Consolidation: putting it all together Exam #2 Wednesday 12/2 Dec 11 FRI Optional Final FRIDAY 3:30