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The Behavioral Observations Podcast with Matt Cicoria

This is a podcast about the field of Behavior Analysis. Each episode will feature an interview with a Behavior Analyst where we discuss a specific topic in the field of Applied Behavior Analysis. Some of these topics include functional behavioral assessment, treating severe behavioral disorders such as aggression and self-injurious behavior, acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), behavioral ethics, autism treatment, parenting, and the history of Applied Behavior Analysis.
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The Behavioral Observations Podcast with Matt Cicoria
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Now displaying: October, 2018
Oct 26, 2018

Dr. Matt Normand graciously accepted my offer to be a test subject for the first live-audience taping of The Behavioral Observations Podcast. In this episode we discussed his entry into the field of Behavior Analysis, his line of research in helping children in schools engage in vigorous physical activity, and his thoughts on the development of our profession.  Matt referenced a number of his studies and rather than duplicate them here, you can visit his website, where he has links to many of his publications. I also recommend following him on Twitter. We taped this interview at the 10th Annual Hoosier Association for Behavior Analysis conference. This was a fantastic conference, and I am very grateful to HABA board members, Danyl Epperheimer and Kyle Steury, for inviting me to participate in this event. It was my first time visiting Indianapolis, and I really loved the city. If you're in the general area next year, I would strongly consider attending for sure! Back to this episode... the conference committee set us up at the Skyline Club, which is on the 36th floor of a building that overlooks the city. The interview took place during the evening social, and to add to the overall mirth of the occasion, Stephen Foreman from Clinical Behavior Analysis brought a very special bottle of Kentucky Bourbon to share with us as well as the audience. Long story short, when compared to doing interviews from my basement, this was definitely a special event.  I also had the chance to talk with numerous listeners as well as former podcast guests, and to list them all would be to risk forgetting someone, so instead, I will say that it was really quite a treat to connect with everyone at the conference.  Here are some pictures of the taping of the podcast, and I may have some more on my Instagram account: This episode is sponsored by the following: The Precision ABA Workshop, by Dr. Rick Kubina of Chartlytics. This will be held on November 15th and 16th in Indianapolis, Indiana. This 2-day workshop will guide you through the steps of precision measurement and help you obtain superior ABA outcomes. You will learn evidence-based science and practical techniques that you can implement in your own ABA service delivery. If you're going to attend and want to save 10% on registration, use the coupon code Matt. The Next Gen Revolution Summit, taking place on November 10th & 11th in Las Vegas. Attend in person, or live-stream so you can watch it in your Jammies. If you're interested in seeing talks from instructional luminaries like Janet Tyman and T.V. Joe Layng, hearing what podcast guests Megan Miller and Sara Gershfeld Litvak have to say, or learning about the latest in technological innovations in our field, this is the event for you. If you do decide to attend, use offer code Matt to save 10%.

Oct 21, 2018

OK, so to be honest, I'm writing these show notes while on the road after an amazing Hoosier ABA conference (more on that in a subsequent episode or two ;-).  As such, I'll be uncharacteristically brief. To risk hyperbole, I think that just about anyone can benefit from listening to this episode. My guest, Dr. Jim Moore, talks about his ups and downs (followed by more ups and downs... and ups) with weight loss. What I like about Jim is that he shares these deeply personal struggles in order to, in my estimation, help others who have similar problems. Jim has gone from being overweight, to super fit, to morbidly obese... to now, where he is on a trend of fairly sustainable success.  He acknowledge he still has room to improve, but check these pictures out, and you'll get an idea of how much progress he's gained: And because I'm on the road, I unfortunately do not have my notes from our interview. That said, I do recall discussing an article titled, The Shame of American Education, by B.F. Skinner himself. If there are other references I missed, visit the Contact page and let me know what it was, and I'll update these show notes. This episode is sponsored by the following: The Precision ABA Workshop, by Dr. Rick Kubina of Chartlytics. This will be held on November 15th and 16th in Indianapolis, Indiana. This 2-day workshop will guide you through the steps of precision measurement and help you obtain superior ABA outcomes. You will learn evidence-based science and practical techniques that you can implement in your own ABA service delivery. If you're going to attend and want to save 10% on registration, use the coupon code Matt. The Next Gen Revolution Summit, taking place on November 10th & 11th in Las Vegas. Attend in person, or live-stream so you can watch it in your Jammies. If you're interested in seeing talks from instructional luminaries like Janet Tyman and T.V. Joe Layng, hearing what podcast guests Megan Miller and Sara Gershfeld Litvak have to say, or learning about the latest in technological innovations in our field, this is the event for you. If you do decide to attend, use offer code Matt to save 10%. HRIC, which brings 30 years of recruiting experience to help BCBA's find their dream jobs. Click here to schedule your confidential inquiry.

Oct 9, 2018

To say that I enjoyed my conversation with Chuck Merbitz is a colossal understatement. As you will see when you listen to this one, Chuck has a rare combination of humility and wisdom, and he generously shares many lessons learned in his over four decade career in Behavior Analysis.  This is one of our longer episodes, and I promise you it's worth listening to in its entirety! In Session 63, we discuss a wide range of topics that include the following: How to teach recovering alcoholic WWII veterans to get dates and find jobs (but not necessarily in that order!). What the Behavior Analysis scene was like in the early 70s when he began his graduate training. How to be a practitioner who is both pragmatic and compassionate (as well as how to avoid being the "ugly behaviorist!"). How and why he started the ABA program at the Chicago School of Professional Psychology. How collecting precise data on both communicative responses AND therapist prompts helped him identify barriers to a learner's progress. And of course, some discussion on the terms frequency and rate in our profession (see link to the Merbitz, Merbitz, & Pennypacker paper below). If you're not familiar with Chuck, you can check out his LinkedIn profile to get a sense of where he's coming from. In brief though, Chuck has had a long and storied career in our field, holding faculty appointments not only at CSPP, but also at the Illinois Institute of Technology, the Northwestern University Medical School, and Jacksonville State University. Chuck is also a pioneer in the development of digital tools for Behavior Analysts. Time did not permit us getting too deep into this part of his career, but I think it will make for a nice follow up interview. We touched on a few papers, and I've done my best to run them down here. Please let me know if there are any that I missed: Johnston & Pennypacker (1971). A behavioral approach to college teaching. Merbitz, Merbitz, & Pennypacker (2016). On terms: Frequency and rate in Applied Behavior Analysis. Merbitz, Miller, & Hansen (2000). Cueing and Logical Problem Solving In Brain Trauma Rehabilitation: Frequency Patterns In Clinician And Patient Behaviors. This episode is sponsored by the following: The Precision ABA Workshop, by Dr. Rick Kubina of Chartlytics. This will be held on November 15th and 16th in Indianapolis, Indiana. This 2-day workshop will guide you through the steps of precision measurement and help you obtain superior ABA outcomes. You will learn evidence-based science and practical techniques that you can implement in your own ABA service delivery. If you're going to attend and want to save 10% on registration, use the coupon code Matt. The Next Gen Revolution Summit, taking place on November 10th & 11th in Las Vegas. Attend in person, or live-stream so you can watch it in your Jammies. If you're interested in seeing talks from instructional luminaries like Janet Tyman and T.V. Joe Layng, hearing what podcast guests Megan Miller and Sara Gershfeld Litvak have to say, or learning about the latest in technological innovations in our field, this is the event for you. If you do decide to attend, use offer code Matt to save 10%. And while not technically a sponsor, if you're in the midwest and want to check out a cool event, consider attending the Hoosier Association for Behavior Analysis' 10th anniversary conference. I've interviewed almost everyone on the speakers' roster, so I know attendees are bound to hear some good stuff. I'll also be doing my first live, in-person podcast with HABA's keynote speaker, Dr. Matthew Normand. It should be a good time had by all, and I hope to see you there!

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