Reviews the systemic and philosophical problems surrounding government funding for behavioral research. Discusses the relationship between Congress and the National Institutes of Health (NIH), lists specific requests to NIH, and prognosticates the future of behavioral-research funding. (EMK)

Cultural differences in the form of dichotomous distinctions do not meet the challenge of globalization and its implications for a psychology of culture and self. An alternative approach that is sensitive to the process of cultural interchange, the cultural complexity of self and identity, and the experience of uncertainty is described. Contains…

Presents a general class of single-case statistical procedures derived from previously developed nonparametric randomization tests. Designs are illustrated that focus on the general and comparative effectiveness of alternative interventions, multiple units with differentiable characteristics, and multiple outcome measures. Provides operational…

Evaluates the concept of "establishing operation" (EO) in the functional analysis of problem behavior in people with developmental disabilities. Suggestions for detecting "conditioned establishing operations" are offered. Also discusses the development of treatment strategies that seek to modify EOs, extinguish EOs, and modify…

This discussion of positive behavior support for people with disabilities identifies four themes: (1) behavior support should reduce problem behavior and affect how a person lives; (2) functional assessment is the foundation for understanding patterns of problem behavior; (3) behavior support should be comprehensive in structure and scope; and (4)…

Describes a genetic engineering project to build an intelligent mouse. Cites understanding the molecular basis of learning and memory as a very important step. Concludes that while science will never create a genius mouse that plays the stock market, it can turn a mouse into a quick learner with a better memory. (YDS)

Tests predictions based on reactance theory, postdecisional regret, and language expectancy theory in a study altering logical style (inductive versus deductive) and language density in messages to parents advocating family sun safety. Finds influence of message varies by stage of progression to action, which has implications for tailoring health…

This introductory article to this special issue on the use of applied behavior analysis (ABA) with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) notes the 40-year history of ABA strategy development, verification, and generalization. It briefly introduces the following articles, which are intended to illustrate the range of ABA applications and the depth of…

This article examines applied behavior analysis (ABA) based communication instruction for students with autism. It offers an historical context for ABA in speech-language pathology and reviews the literature on the use of ABA as a treatment method for communication impairment in autism, comparing contemporary ABA with the developmental…

This response to four papers on the nature of reinforcement focuses on the implications for application of theory to practice. The response addresses: reversibility of single-incentive selective associations; response deprivation, reinforcement, and economics; the substitutability of reinforcers; and delay reduction. (DB)

Indices of happiness and unhappiness were defined, and a corresponding observation system was developed and implemented with five students in an adult education classroom. Results indicate the definitions and the observation system reliably identified frequencies of happiness and/or unhappiness indices for each student across separate activities.…

Examines social-cognitive theories predominating in research on determinants of health behaviors. Although the theories predict health behaviors with some success, the social-cognitive perspective is restricted to a unidirectional, non-dynamic view of behavioral change, neglecting the fact that individuals may differ in life goals. The health…

Choice typically is studied by exposing organisms to concurrent variable-interval schedules in which not only responses controlled by stimuli on the key are acquired but also switching responses and likely other operants as well. In the present research, discriminated key-pecking responses in pigeons were first acquired using a multiple schedule…

From its inception in the 1930s until very recent times, the cumulative recorder was the most widely used measurement instrument in the experimental analysis of behavior. It was an essential instrument in the discovery and analysis of schedules of reinforcement, providing the first real-time analysis of operant response rates and patterns. This…

Preference between forced choice and free choice in concurrent-chain schedules of reinforcement was investigated in pigeons after exposure to particular combinations of terminal links. In Experiment 1, in which terminal links always ended with reinforcers, one of three pairs of terminal links was arranged as preexposure: (a) both terminal links…