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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: 2020
Dec 23, 2020

My friends over at ABA Inside Track - Robert Parry-Crews, Diana Parry-Crews, and Jackie Macdonald, got together for our third annual year-in-review collaboration.

And suffice to say, what a year it has been. In this episode, we discuss the events of 2020, both in the world of Behavior Analysis and beyond. We spoke at great length about the impact of the Coronavirus pandemic on the provision of services, as well as how Behavior Analysis responded to the challenges of racism, policing, and the like. Finally, we round out the episode by honoring the memories of some of the pioneers in our field who passed away in 2020.

So grab a beverage of choice, put your earbuds in, and join us in kicking 2020 to the curb and look forward to a hopefully more reinforcing 2021!

Here is a very likely incomplete list of links to things we discussed:

On a final note, I'd be remiss if I didn't say how grateful I am for everyone who listens to and supports the show. I was raised to not discuss money in public, but the pandemic has cut the revenue of my consultation practice by more than half, and despite that, we managed to get through the worst of it because of the support from the audience. So whether you've purchased CEU's, subscribed to the membership community, patronized my wonderful sponsors, or simply shared favorite episodes with friends and minded behavior peeps, you've really come through and helped me avoid what could have been a financial disaster.

For all of this and more, to say that I am thankful doesn't even scratch the surface. I'm looking forward to 2021, and I'm excited to continue to produce and share these conversations. And from my family to yours, please have a happy and safe holiday!

Special thanks to the following (apologies in advance, as they're likely to be folks that I forgot to mention):

Dec 17, 2020

In Session 141 I speak with Sasha Shtern and Dr. Eric Moody about using the Goally Learning Device with families. Sasha is the CEO of Goally and Eric holds the title of Research Professor at the Wyoming Institute for Disabilities.

Goally is an Android-based stand-alone device that allows users to program visuals schedules, create task analyses, manage token economies, and even log problem behaviors.

In this episode we talk about the conditions that motivated the creation of this device, the research and implementation science that's been conducted with it, and how both clinicians and parents have been using it to support children across their day.

If you'd like to learn more about Goally, click here to check them out. While there, be sure to check out their blog (I found the articles on supporting kids in remote learning situations particularly interesting... here is one of them).

In the spirit of transparency, I'd like to make clear that as of this writing, Goally is not a sponsor of Behavioral Observations, nor is there any affiliate relationship. However, this episode is brought to you with the support of the following:

  • How-to-ABABeing a BCBA can be lonely and overwhelming.  At howtoaba.com, we help BCBA’s feel supported and confident by providing easy to access printables, CEU's and a collaborative community. Imagine, having an all-in-one resource to save you time and help your clients, having getting your toughest questions answered, and being part of a collaborative group of professionals to share ideas. Plus, your monthly pro membership includes CEU’s! Along with over 1000 ABA professionals, howtoaba.com will help you save time, feel confident and master what you love! For more information, Go to howtoaba.com/joinbxresource.  When you join today and use code BOP, you’ll receive 10% off a yearly subscription (includes CEU’s!).
  • The Whoop Strap! I've been wearing the Whoop Strap for just a few weeks and I can't tell you how much I've enjoyed getting quantitative information on all aspects of my health, including sleep analytics, heart rate, along with heart rate variability, calorie burn, exercise intensity, and Whoop's proprietary "strain" score. I could extol this neat device's virtues indefinitely to you, but instead, you can go check it out for yourself. To get your first month free, just click here!
  • HRIC Recruiting. Barb Voss has been placing BCBAs in permanent positions throughout the US for just about a decade, and has been in the business more generally for 30 years. When you work with HRIC, you work directly with Barb, thereby accessing highly personalized service. So if you're about to graduate, you're looking for a change of pace, or you just want to know if the grass really is greener on the other side, head over to HRIColorado.com to schedule a confidential chat right away.

Dec 9, 2020

In Session 140, Dr. John Michael Guercio joins me to talk about best practices for supporting adults with Autism. He is well suited to do just this, as John has been working with adults with various developmental disabilities for decades.

He is currently the Clinical Director for Benchmark Human Services in St. Louis, Missouri, and is the author of the recently published book, "Assessment of Adult Core Competencies: Teaching Skills to Adults with Autism and Severe Behavioral Challenges."

As you'll likely tell, I really enjoyed talking with John, and I think you're likely to learn a lot from his knowledge and expertise in the area of serving adults.

In this episode we obviously get into John's formative experiences in the field of Behavior Analysis and talk about his book for a bit. But we also spend quite a bit of time discussing Behavioral Relaxation Training, escalation, crisis management, and so much more. I really think there's something in here for just about anyone in the field.

Also, early on in the conversation, John and I discover that we both saw the original line up of The Grateful Dead back in the day. Don't worry though if you're not interested in this because we got back on topic right away. However, after the official interview concluded, we resumed this discussion on our favorite jam bands for about 15 minutes, and this bonus footage is available to those who are signed up in the Behavioral Observations Membership group.

John mentioned numerous resources during our chat, and I have attempted to note them all here:

This show is brought to you with support from the following:

  • Gateway Learning Group, and their Autism Leadership Academy. Designed for new Regional Directors, the Autism Leadership Academy develops motivated BCBAs into successful leaders in the autism field. If you’re interested in running your own regional center and want to learn the skills to do so successfully, check out gatewaylg.com/BOP.
  • Behavior University. Their mission is to provide university quality professional development for the busy Behavior Analyst. Learn about their CEU offerings, including their brand new 8-hour Supervision Course, as well as their RBT offerings over at behavioruniversity.com/observations.
  • The Whoop Strap! I've been wearing the Whoop Strap for just a few weeks and I can't tell you how much I've enjoyed getting quantitative information on all aspects of my health, including sleep analytics, heart rate, along with heart rate variability, calorie burn, exercise intensity, and Whoop's proprietary "strain" score. I could extol this neat device's virtues indefinitely to you, but instead, you can go check it out for yourself. To get your first month free, head over to behavioralobservations.com/whoop!
Nov 30, 2020

A few months ago, a few BCBA's from the Boulder Valley School District reached out to me and offered to share the story of how they are fielding a team of Behavior Analysts in the public school setting.

As someone who has spent a career consulting to public schools, I was instantly sold. I believe that as if this recording, the BVSD employs about 10 BCBA's, and in Session 139, I'm joined by four of them: Kelly Miller, Cosmina Barbat, Stephanie Gregory, and Shelly Roberts.

We were also fortunate enough to be joined by their fearless leader, their Director of Special Education, Joy Larson. Someone who understood the value of developing internal behavior-analytic resources to support the district's students.

In this episode we cover the following:

  • How the district decided to invest in the hiring of internally placed behavior analysts.
  • How the district BCBA's work collaboratively with professionals in other disciplines.
  • How BCBA's support students not just with specialized educational and behavioral needs, but also in mainstream educational settings.
  • How working as a public school employee is different than working in an at-home or clinic setting.
  • And advice for schools that want to hire their own BCBA's, as well as advice for BCBA's who want to dip their toes into the public school waters.

Lastly, I think the argument for having more Behavior Analysts in school settings speaks for itself. As we discuss in the interview, these amazing BCBA's have contributed to reducing Boulder Valley's out of district placements by 70%!

Here are the links for Session 139:

Session 139 is brought to you with generous support from:

  • How-to-ABABeing a BCBA can be lonely and overwhelming.  At howtoaba.com, we help BCBA’s feel supported and confident by providing easy to access printables, CEU's and a collaborative community. In the howtoaba.com membership, Shira Karpel and Shayna Gaunt share their best resources from years of practice in the field.  Whether you’re a beginner or a long time practitioner, you will benefit from both these resources as well as a supportive community.  Imagine, having an all-in-one resource to save you time and help your clients, having getting your toughest questions answered, and being part of a collaborative group of professionals to share ideas. Plus, your monthly pro membership includes CEU’s! Along with over 1000 ABA professionals, howtoaba.com will help you save time, feel confident and master what you love! For more information, Go to howtoaba.com/joinbxresource.  When you join today and use code BOP, you’ll receive 10% off a yearly subscription (includes CEU’s!).
  • The Whoop Strap! I've been wearing the Whoop Strap for just a few weeks and I can't tell you how much I've enjoyed getting quantitative information on all aspects of my health, including sleep analytics, heart rate, along with heart rate variability, calorie burn, exercise intensity, and Whoop's proprietary "strain" score. I could extol this neat device's virtues indefinitely to you, but instead, you can go check it out for yourself. To get your first month free, just click here!
Nov 23, 2020

Shortly after I published Session 124 on Police Academy training with John O'Neill, Tina Long, a BCBA from Northern Virginia, emailed me to share the outreach work that she has done with her local police department in Fairfax County.

Specifically, in the wake of the nationwide re-examination of the role of policing, Tina felt compelled share what she has learned about the ACT Matrix with local law enforcement personnel, and after leaning more about her story, I thought it was definitely worth sharing on the podcast.

Tina and I had a brief conversation that we recorded back in August. At the time, she had the opportunity to do a training with the police department, but unfortunately, due to circumstances beyond her control, her allotted time was cut to 20 minutes.

As such, we made plans to connect later on and record another segment once Tina was able to get deeper into the material. So this podcast consists of both the original conversation from August, and our follow up, which was recorded in November 2020. 

For Part 2 of this conversation, Tina was able to get Officer Joe Schlenz, the lead crisis intervention training instructor, from the Fairfax County Police Department to join us as well. In this segment, Joe provides a wide-ranging perspective on the role of empathy and compassion in policing, de-escalation, triaging and managing risk, officer burnout and suicide, and so much more.

If you're concerned about policing in America, I hope that the work he and his colleagues are doing will give you a sense of optimism. And as I've said in previous shows, it is always great to talk about how people from different fields consume and apply concepts from the behavioral sciences. 

Here are some of the resources we discussed:

I think this is really the first podcast where we talk about the ACT Matrix. If you're a long time listener, we've done many shows on ACT itself, but I'm looking forward to learning more about the ACT Matrix itself, so you can probably expect to hear more about it in 2021. 

This podcast is brought to you with the support of the following:

  • HRIC Recruiting. Barb Voss has been placing BCBAs in permanent positions throughout the US for just about a decade, and has been in the business more generally for 30 years. When you work with HRIC, you work directly with Barb, thereby accessing highly personalized service. So if you're about to graduate, you're looking for a change of pace, or you just want to know if the grass really is greener on the other side, head over to HRIColorado.com to schedule a confidential chat right away.
  • The Whoop Strap! I've been wearing the Whoop Strap for just a few weeks and I can't tell you how much I've enjoyed getting quantitative information on all aspects of my health, including sleep analytics, heart rate, along with heart rate variability, calorie burn, exercise intensity, and Whoop's proprietary "strain" score. I could extol this neat device's virtues indefinitely to you, but instead, you can go check it out for yourself. To get your first month free, head over to behavioralobservations.com/whoop!
  • CEU's from ... Yours Truly... or, more specifically, podcast guests such as Greg Hanley, Steve Hayes, Mark Dixon, Megan Miller, Pat Friman, and much more. Head over to behavioralobservations.com/get-ceus to learn more about which trainings are available, as well as some pretty steep discounts for multiple event purchases. 

*denotes Amazon Affiliate link

Nov 12, 2020

I can't believe it's been over two years since Andy Bondy of PECS fame came on the show! How time flies...

This episode was inspired by a Facebook post Andy made a few weeks ago talking about how mand repertoires go beyond simply requesting preferred items. There were some interesting exchanges that followed Andy's post, and upon reading them, it occurred to me that this would make for a fun and educational podcast chat.

(IMAGE CREDIT J. MCANINCH)

So in this episode, we talk about what inspired Andy to write the post in the first place, and discuss teaching mand repertoires across a variety of contexts, many of them beyond requesting preferred items.

We also take some excellent questions that were generated by The Behavioral Observations Membership Group. Specifically, Andy gets asked about autoclitic frames, core versus fringe vocabulary, and why prompts - from Andy's perspective - are like knives (you'll have to listen to understand what this means).

Here are links to resources, etc... that we discussed:

This podcast is brought to you by:

  • Gateway Learning Group, and their Autism Leadership Academy. Designed for new Regional Directors, the Autism Leadership Academy develops motivated BCBAs into successful leaders in the autism field. If you’re interested in running your own regional center and want to learn the skills to do so successfully, check out gatewaylg.com/BOP.
  • Behavior University. Their mission is to provide university quality professional development for the busy Behavior Analyst. Learn about their CEU offerings, including their brand new 8-hour Supervision Course, as well as their RBT offerings over at behavioruniversity.com/observations.
  • The Whoop Strap! I've been wearing the Whoop Strap for just a few weeks and I can't tell you how much I've enjoyed getting quantitative information on all aspects of my health, including sleep analytics, heart rate, along with heart rate variability, calorie burn, exercise intensity, and Whoop's proprietary "strain" score. I could extol this neat device's virtues indefinitely to you, but instead, you can go check it out for yourself. To get your first month free, head over to behavioralobservations.com/whoop!
Oct 28, 2020

Dr. Kim Berens (@KimberlyBerens5) joins me for a third time to discuss her new book, Blind Spots: Why Students Fail and the Science That Can Save Them.* In this show, we talk about her motivation to write this book, what she believes is wrong with the current approach to educating children in the United States, and what can be done to remedy this situation.

Like our recent episode with Amelia Bowler earlier this month, this is another great example of people trained in Behavior Analysis stepping out of our community and speak directly to a broader community. In short, it's an excellent model of dissemination, and should be applauded for this reason, along with all the other excellent attributes of the book.

I was honored to write a blurb for the promotion of the book, and if you'll indulge me, I'll share it here:

In 1984, B.F. Skinner wrote The Shame of American Education, in which he described how the American educational system failed to incorporate scientifically validated instructional practices. Sadly, this paper is just as relevant after almost four decades since its publication. In Blind Spots: Why Students Fail and the Science That Can Save Them, Dr. Kimberly Berens courageously picks up where Skinner left off by shining a light on the dysfunctional practices of the American educational establishment. In doing so, she debunks many popular myths that pervade current educational practices. More importantly, Dr. Berens offers concrete solutions for helping all students learn through the application of the natural science of behavior. This is a book that should be read by every parent, school board member, administrator, and teacher.

I could go on and on both about this book as well as the interview I'm about to play. But instead, I'll just ask you to give the show a listen, and if you're so moved, to pick up a copy of the book. Or even better, gift a copy of the book if you happen to know a teacher, school administrator, and so forth.

Here are the links for the references that came up in Session 136:

Today's episode was brought to you with support from:

  • Market Your ABA Practice Like a Pro! A Digital Masterclass with Rich Brooks! Is your ABA practice located in a highly competitive area? Do you struggle with name-recognition and visibility among Autism service providers in your community? Do you wish more parents and stakeholders knew about the awesome services you provide? During this event, you'll discover marketing strategies that will allow you to get your ABA practice to get in front of ideal community stakeholders (parents, guardians, etc…) and referral sources (pediatricians, etc…), by using the digital tools that everyone is being forced to use these days. This can help to attract new clients, families, schools, and even employees! The price of the event is $149, but if you register by Halloween, you can attend the event for just $99. Click here to sign up!
  • The Whoop Strap! I've been wearing the Whoop Strap for just a few weeks and I can't tell you how much I've enjoyed getting quantitative information on all aspects of my health, including sleep analytics, heart rate, along with heart rate variability, calorie burn, exercise intensity, and Whoop's proprietary "strain" score. I could extol this neat device's virtues indefinitely to you, but instead, you can go check it out for yourself. To get your first month free, head over to behavioralobservations.com/whoop!

*denotes Amazon Affiliate Link

Oct 22, 2020

The latest issue of JABA starts off with an editorial by the Society for the Experimental Analysis of Behavior's (SEAB) board in which it issued a statement of concern for the controversial paper titled, Behavioral treatment of deviant sex-role behaviors in a male child. This paper described a case study conducted by George Rekers and Ivar Lovaas, and was published in the pages of JABA in 1974.

To get right to the point, let me read you the editorial's abstract:

In an early study in the Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, Rekers and Lovaas (1974) evaluated the Behavioral Treatment of Deviant Sex-role Behaviors in a Male Child. They investigated the use of reinforcement and punishment to target non-gender conforming behaviors of a 5-year-old male child. This study was considered by some to be controversial and concerning, even near the time of publication (Nordyke et al. 1977; Winkler, 1977). The concerns focused on the ethicality of selecting non-gender conforming behavior as a target response and the use of punishment for this type of response, particularly at the behest of parents when the young child was not seemingly distressed. The study has subsequently been used as empirical support for conversion therapy creating concerns about misinterpretation of the original article and harm to the LGBTQ+ community. This editorial reviews the concerns originally presented by Nordyke et al. and Winkler and issues an official Expression of Concern about the various harms that have been associated with this paper.

I first heard about this paper many years ago, but it was to my attention again at the 2019 NH ABA conference. At that event, Dr. Sarah Campeau did a great job reviewing this paper, along with cataloging the devastating effects the study had on the participant later on in his life.

So in this episode of the podcast, Drs. Linda Leblanc and Henry Roane discuss the rationale behind the statement of concern. In doing so, they talk about why the statement was written now versus earlier in the history of JABA, and what exactly a Statement of Concern is, and why issuing the statement was the specific action taken instead of other options, such as retracting the paper altogether.

We also get into the actual shortcomings of the study, particularly in light of the ethical and moral standards of modern times. Linda and Hank close the podcast by giving some advice for practitioners on how to respond to concerns of stakeholders if or when they bring up this or other studies that are not consistent with more modern ethics and values.

I should also note that our Zoom connection was spotty here and there, and I apologize if it interferes with the audio quality that you've come to expect from the show. That said, I don't think it poor connection detracted from the substance of the conversation.

Dr. Roane is a new voice in the Inside JABA Series, so by way of introduction, Hank is the Gregory S. Liptak MD Professor of Child Development in the Department of Pediatrics at Upstate Medical University in Syracuse NY. In this capacity, he serves as the Chief of the Division of Development, Behavior and Genetics where he directs medical and behavior analysis clinics that provide treatment services for children affected by autism and related disorders. Hank is also the Chair of the Behavior Analysis Studies program in the College of Health Professions at Upstate. As we mention during the conversation, Hank is also the Treasurer of SEAB.

In keeping with the previous Inside JABA Series podcasts, there are no ads or sponsors on this episode. However, this episode is eligible for BACB Continuing Education. We also felt that the conversation touched on many code elements in the Professional and Ethical Compliance Code, and as such, it can be counted as an Ethics CEU.

Lastly, 50% of the proceeds from sales of the Inside JABA Series CEUs are donated to SEAB. So for more information on the Inside JABA Series CEUs, or any other CEUs that are available through Behavioral Observations, click here.

I've also set up a Link Tree across all my social media platforms where you can access all the different podcast offerings, including episode shownotes. For example, if you follow the show on Instagram (@behavioralobservations), just go to the link in the bio, and you'll have many podcast-related links at your fingertips.

Here are the links to the resources that were discussed in this episode:

Oct 16, 2020

Amelia Bowler, author of The Parent's Guide to Oppositional Defiant Disorder: Your Questions Answered, joins me in Session 134 to talk about her work and personal experiences in supporting individuals with ODD.

In this podcast, Amelia demystifies the term ODD and distinguishes it from other emotional/behavioral disorders. She also discusses the importance of developing relationships with individuals with ODD prior to applying first/then or if/then contingencies.

We finish the show by discussing some strategies that may be more successful for individuals with ODD, as well as provide suggestions for further reading.

Here are the links to the resources that were discussed:

Session 134 is brought to you by the following sponsors:

  • Behavior University. Their mission is to provide university quality professional development for the busy Behavior Analyst. Learn about their CEU offerings, including their brand new 8-hour Supervision Course, as well as their RBT offerings over at behavioruniversity.com/observations.
  • Gateway Learning Group, and their Autism Leadership Academy. Designed for new Regional Directors, the Autism Leadership Academy develops motivated BCBAs into successful leaders in the autism field. If you’re interested in running your own regional center and want to learn the skills to do so successfully, check out gatewaylg.com/BOP
  • Market Your ABA Practice Like a Pro: A Digital Marketing Masterclass with Rich Brooks. That's right, our favorite marketing guru, Rich Brooks and I are teaming up for a fantastic learning opportunity. During this event, you'll discover marketing strategies that will allow you to get your ABA practice get in front of ideal stakeholders. Rich and I are still working out the details and I'll have a site to direct you to shortly. What I can tell you is that you're going to want to block off some time on November 9th.

*denotes Amazon Affiliate link

Oct 7, 2020

Behavioral Karma: The 5 Scientific Laws of Life and Leadership* is the book that was just recently published by Brett DiNovi and Dr. Pauli Gavoni.

In this episode, we talked about what these five laws are, and how one can apply them to just about anything in life, and see positive outcomes as a result.

Because both of these gentlemen are previous guests on the show, we started off by catching up a bit. Paulie talked about joining up with Brett's company, Brett DiNovi and Associates, and Brett talked about how he and the rest of the folks at BDA responded to the challenges brought on by the coronavirus pandemic.

I also had a chance to pick their brains on a topic that I'm fascinated with: Compensating employees in a Pay-for-Performance model, an idea pioneered by William Abernathy (you can find all the books he wrote on this topic here*).

All and all, this was a fun and wide ranging discussion, and I think listeners will be able to get some neat takeaways from it.

Here are some links to some of the things that came up in conversation:

Today's episode is brought to you by the following:

  • If you want to study ABA and Positive Behavior Supports at a top-notch setting in Europe, then look no further than the Tizard Center at the University of Kent. Since 1986, they've been training professionals to support individuals with disabilities. Their primary focus has always been promoting values-based and ethical approaches to supporting people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. If you would like to learn more about ABA and PBS training on an international stage, check out www.tizard.org.
  • HRIC Recruiting. Barb Voss has been placing BCBAs in permanent positions throughout the US for just about a decade, and has been in the business more generally for 30 years. When you work with HRIC, you work directly with Barb, thereby accessing highly personalized service. So if you're about to graduate, you're looking for a change of pace, or you just want to know if the grass really is greener on the other side, head over to HRIColorado.com to schedule a confidential chat right away.
  • And while I'm promoting the stuff on my website, I'd be remiss if I didn't mention the membership program. Think of it as a DIY Patreon… Members get access to a private FB group in which they are able to get nearly instantaneous access to the videos of these podcast interviews. For example, this interview has been available to members for two months. Members get the raw feed. That means no ads, and none of these introductory comments. You just get right to the interview. Another cool thing we do is hold Zoom Hangouts with former guests so where you can interact with them directly. For more information, check out behavioralobservations.com/membership.
Sep 29, 2020

Dr. Nick Green joins me in Session 132 for his third appearance on the show. In this episode, we discuss:

  • How he responded to being furloughed for a few months.
  • His contributions to Covid-19 research at the University of Florida.
  • Nick's general principles on how he helps clients develop and accomplish fitness goals.
  • How to overcome barriers to fitness, especially when gyms are closed.
  • What are some basic movement patterns that people should train.
  • Some of the great results his fitness clients are seeing.
  • His advice on wearable tech and other methods for collecting fitness analytics.
  • How to think about time allocation so busy people can still meet their fitness goals.
  • How to incorporate health and fitness into a comprehensive ABA program.
  • What steps Behavior Analysts can take to begin work in the health and fitness industry.

We also took questions submitted by members of The Behavioral Observations Membership Program. Here are the links to the stuff we talked about:

Session 132 is brought to you with the support of the following sponsors:

  • Behavior University. Their mission is to provide university quality professional development for the busy Behavior Analyst. Learn about their CEU offerings and podcast-specific discounts over at behavioruniversity.com/observations.
  • The ABA Marketing Minute with Rich Brooks. Digital marketing guru and two-time guest Rich Brooks and I have teamed up to provide listeners with 60-second micro-lessons in digital marketing. You'll hear the first installment later in this broadcast, so I won't spoil it here, but let's just say the message should parallel a lot of what we should strive for in our clinical practice. If you're interested in marketing your practice on social media or Google, or if you want to give your website a makeover, I highly recommend working with Rich and his awesome team over at Flyte New Media.
  • And while I'm promoting the stuff on my website, I'd be remiss if I didn't mention the membership program. Think of it as a DIY Patreon… Members get access to a private FB group in which they are able to get nearly instantaneous access to the videos of these podcast interviews. For example, this interview has been available to members for two months. Members get the raw feed. That means no ads, and none of these introductory comments. You just get right to the interview. Another cool thing we do is hold Zoom Hangouts with former guests so where you can interact with them directly. For more information, check out behavioralobservations.com/membership.
Sep 14, 2020

Dr. Camille Kolu joins me in Session 131 to provide a primer on all things Trauma, and how this broad area applies to the practice of Behavior Analysis

In this interview, Camille talked about how she began working in the area of trauma, what is trauma actually, how she screens for trauma histories, what ABA practices are contra-indicated for individuals with traumatic backgrounds, and so much more.

This was an interview that could've gone for at least another hour if time permitted. If you're interested in hearing Camille expand on this topic, I highly suggest checking out the New Hampshire ABA 2020 Conference (disclosure: NHABA is sponsoring this episode).

Camille has been a leader in disseminating her work in this area. You can check out her website, cuspemergence.com and browse the dozens of blog posts she's written in the area of Trauma-Informed ABA. If you're like me, and you're interested in taking your knowledge in this area to the next level, she has a series of courses available, and you can find those at cuspemergenceuniversity.com.

During our chat, Camille fielded questions from the Behavioral Observations Membership group. The BOP Membership is my DIY Patreon. And lucky for us, Camille has agreed to join the membership for a Zoom hangout, either in late September or early October. Once we get a date nailed down, I'll be sure to share the details via the email list, social media, and so on.

Here are the links from Session 131:

This podcast is brought to you with the support of the following sponsors:

  • The 2020 New Hampshire Association for Behavior Analysis Virtual Conference! NH ABA is only a handful of years old, but for a smallish state, our conference has punched above its weight. The 2020 event will be no exception. This year's speaker list includes Drs. Solanday Forte, Deb Grossett, Bridget Taylor, Alyssa Wilson, Camille Kolu, and Emily Sandoz. NH ABA also acknowledges that the Covid-19 pandemic has resulted in financial burdens on many Behavior Analysts, so they've decided to use a values-based registration fee, which means that while there are suggested registration fees, you can participate in the event for a lot less if that's appropriate to your financial situation. For more information, check out nhaba.net, and I hope that you choose to join us virtually on September 26th!
  • HRIC Recruiting. Barb Voss has been placing BCBAs in permanent positions throughout the US for just about a decade, and has been in the business more generally for 30 years. When you work with HRIC, you work directly with Barb, thereby accessing highly personalized service. So if you're about to graduate, you're looking for a change of pace, or you just want to know if the grass really is greener on the other side, head over to HRIColorado.com to schedule a confidential chat right away.
Sep 10, 2020

I've never attended CalABA. In fact, I've never even set foot in the state. And while I live all the way across the country, I recognize the importance of Behavior Analysts banding together to advocate for our clients, our communities, and of course, our profession.

When CalABA had to cancel their conference in response to the Covid-19 pandemic, the timing was such that they were not able to recoup the costs associated with hotel reservations, conference venues, and the like. The amount of money CalABA lost from this "black swan" type of event was staggering.

In this podcast, Drs. Jennifer Harris and Greg Elsky take us behind the scenes of the events from the ill-fated CalABA 2020 conferecne. Specifically, we talk about what it was like leading up to the scheduled conference itself during the infancy of the Covid-19 pandemic, how they learned they had to cancel the event, what it was like to share this news with the attendees who were streaming into the venue, and we talk at length about the devastating financial consequences of cancelling the event.

We also talk about how CalABA can overcome such a difficult situation with their current fundraising campaign. To be candid, without an influx of cash, CalABA's ability to advocate on behalf of the field in the nation's most populous state will be seriously jeopardized.

Moreover, legislation that negatively affects the practice of Behavior Analysis in California has the potential to influence other states and provinces.

Based on these factors, I will be supporting CalABA in their fundraising efforts. The Covid crisis has hit many of us in the wallet (myself included), however if you have the means to do so, please consider donating to what I believe is a worth cause.

Sep 4, 2020

It's back to school time for children, and in this day and age, school is looking a bit different than it has historically. In my neck of the woods, school districts are reopening with a few different models ranging from fully online/remote, hybrid in-person/remote, and full in-person instruction. 

It's hard to tell what impact this might have on our children's ability to learn the basics, and it is with this in mind that I'm grateful to have Michael Maloney on the show to talk about his 40+ years of experience using Direct Instruction and Precision Teaching. 

In this podcast, we discuss the history of Direct Instruction (DI; also, see Project Follow Through Outcome data below), including the simultaneously fascinating and tragic story of Project Follow Through, how Michael learned about DI and applied it not only to school settings but also in the context of remediating adult illiteracy, his initial forays into running his own educational centers, as well as the instructional software solutions he's developed. 

Michael was also kind enough to field some questions from the Behavioral Observations Members.

Michael has also been generous enough to give away free instructional materials, so if this is something you're interested in, check out the site, maloneymethod.com

Here are some of the resources we discussed:

PROJECT FOLLOW THROUGH OUTCOME DATA

Huge thanks to the following sponsors for this episode!!!

  • The 2020 New Hampshire Association for Behavior Analysis Virtual Conference! NH ABA is only a handful of years old, but for a smallish state, our conference has punched above its weight. The 2020 event will be no exception. This year's speaker list includes Drs. Solanday Forte, Deb Grossett, Bridget Taylor, Alyssa Wilson, Camille Kolu, and Emily Sandoz. NH ABA also acknowledges that the Covid-19 pandemic has resulted in financial burdens on many Behavior Analysts, so they've decided to use a values-based registration fee, which means that while there are suggested registration fees, you can participate in the event for a lot less if that's appropriate to your financial situation. For more information, check out nhaba.net, and I hope that you choose to join us virtually on September 26th!
  • My friends at Praxis CET have two great ACT and RFT classes coming up that seem really cool (Understanding and Using Relational Frame Theory for Behavior Analysts with Drs. Siri Ming and Tom Szabo and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy with Parents with Drs. Lisa Coyne and Evelyn Gould). These are live, online courses, where participants can ask questions, get feedback, etc... on the spot. For more information, go to www.praxiscet.com/bopod. If you check it out and decide to enroll, use the code OBSERVATIONS to save some $$$ at registration.
  • Two-time guest and digital marketing guru Rich Brooks dropped another 60-second lesson for ABA Business Owners. In this installment of the ABA Marketing Minute, Rich Brooks talks about how to get your business to rank highly for local search results in Google. If you are interested in a free 30-minute webinar on building an effective website for your practice, check out takeflyte.com/abaminute!
Aug 28, 2020

Dr. Mary Jane Weiss joins me in Session 128 to talk about the evolution of the practice of Applied Behavior Analysis. This is the second interview that was recorded live during the virtual Behavior Analyst Leadership Council Conference that was held in April 2020.

Mary Jane's accomplishments in the field are too great to list here in their entirety, but this bio-sketch should give you a bit of background:

Dr. Mary Jane Weiss is a Professor at Endicott College, where she serves as the executive director of programs in ABA and autism, and as director of the Ph.D. program in ABA. Dr. Weiss has worked in the field of ABA and Autism for over 30 years. She received her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from Rutgers University in 1990. She previously worked for 16 years at the Douglass Developmental Disabilities Center at Rutgers University, where she served as Director of Research and Training and as Clinical Director. She serves on the Scientific Council of the Organization for Autism Research, is on the Board of Advisors for the Cambridge Center for Behavioral Studies, and is a regular reviewer for a variety of professional journals. She is a frequent member of service committees for the Behavior Analyst Certification Board, including many years of service on Disciplinary Review Committees and serving as the inaugural chair of the Code Compliance Committee for the Professional and Ethical Compliance Code. Dr. Weiss authored the Ethics Corner column for APBA for over two years. She is a Past President of the Autism Special Interest Group of ABAI, a former member of the Board of the APBA, and a former Board Vice President for Autism New Jersey.

In this podcast, we discuss what ABA practice was like as she came up in her training and early career, and trace that arc up to what she's doing these days as the Executive Director of Programs in ABA and Autism at Endicott College.

We also discuss what Mary Jane would do to change the training of new BCBA's if she had that proverbial magic wand, why she really likes teaching online, what makes for good instructional design, how to improve the quality of ABA training, why it's important to have a broad philosophical and conceptual background in Behavior Analysis, how to work well with other professions, and her thoughts on the Autism-centric perception of our profession. And if you listen to any part of the podcast at all, be sure to listen to her closing advice for BCBA's of all experience levels. In short, if you're interested in where our field is going, this is the podcast for you.

During our conversation, we discussed the following resources:

I'd like to thank long-time listener Jim from Colorado, for helping me prepare for this interview, the BALC for making this opportunity happen, and the following sponsors:

  • The 2020 New Hampshire Association for Behavior Analysis Virtual Conference! NH ABA is only a handful of years old, but for a smallish state, our conference has punched above its weight. The 2020 event will be no exception. This year's speaker list includes Drs. Solanday Forte, Deb Grossett, Bridget Taylor, Alyssa Wilson, Camille Kolu, and Emily Sandoz. NH ABA also acknowledges that the Covid-19 pandemic has resulted in financial burdens on many Behavior Analysts, so they've decided to use a values-based registration fee, which means that while there are suggested registration fees, you can participate in the event for a lot less if that's appropriate to your financial situation. For more information, check out nhaba.net, and I hope that you choose to join us virtually on September 26th!
  • My friends at Praxis CET have two great ACT and RFT classes coming up that seem really cool (Understanding and Using Relational Frame Theory for Behavior Analysts with Drs. Siri Ming and Tom Szabo and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy with Parents with Drs. Lisa Coyne and Evelyn Gould). These are live, online courses, where participants can ask questions, get feedback, etc... on the spot. For more information, go to www.praxiscet.com/bopod. If you check it out and decide to enroll, use the code OBSERVATIONS to save some $$$ at registration.
  • Behavior University. Their mission is to provide university quality professional development for the busy Behavior Analyst. Learn about their CEU offerings and podcast-specific discounts over at behavioruniversity.com/observations.
Aug 22, 2020

As we discussed in the recent Inside JABA Series podcast, Applied Behavior Analysis has a long history of helping people improve their fitness, nutrition, and overall well-being.

In Session 127, Brandon May joins me to delve into this history a little further, while at the same time highlighting some of the amazing research he's conducted in this area (two quick examples of this include teaching college athletes to lift weights with more velocity, and creating a token economy to improve the health and well being of group home residents).

Whether you care about these topics or not, there are a lot of great lessons about applying ABA in non-ASD/DD areas, so I encourage you to listen to the episode in it's entirety, particularly as we go down some really interesting rabbit holes towards the end of the show.

Brandon received his BA in Psychology and Neuroscience from the University of Colorado and his Master's in Social Work and ABA from Saint Louis University. Right now, he's trying to finish up his dissertation in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic, all while raising five kids, running his business, Elite ABA, as well as supporting other behavioral agencies and programs where he lives.

In our discussion, we talked about tons of articles, podcasts, and other resources. I've done my best to catalog them here:

This podcast is sponsored by the following:

  • The 2020 New Hampshire Association for Behavior Analysis Virtual Conference! NH ABA is only a handful of years old, but for a smallish state, our conference has punched above its weight. The 2020 event will be no exception. This year's speaker list includes Drs. Solanday Forte, Deb Grossett, Bridget Taylor, Alyssa Wilson, Camille Kolu, and Emily Sandoz. NH ABA also acknowledges that the Covid-19 pandemic has resulted in financial burdens on many Behavior Analysts, so they've decided to use a values-based registration fee, which means that while there are suggested registration fees, you can participate in the event for a lot less if that's appropriate to your financial situation. For more information, check out nhaba.net, and I hope that you choose to join us virtually on September 26th!
  • My friends at Praxis CET have two great ACT and RFT classes coming up that seem really cool (Understanding and Using Relational Frame Theory for Behavior Analysts with Drs. Siri Ming and Tom Szabo and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy with Parents with Drs. Lisa Coyne and Evelyn Gould). These are live, online courses, where participants can ask questions, get feedback, etc... on the spot. For more information, go to www.praxiscet.com/bopod. If you check it out and decide to enroll, use the code OBSERVATIONS to save some $$$ at registration.
  • HRIC Recruiting. Barb Voss has been placing BCBAs in permanent positions throughout the US for just about a decade, and has been in the business more generally for 30 years. When you work with HRIC, you work directly with Barb, thereby accessing highly personalized service. So if you're about to graduate, you're looking for a change of pace, or you just want to know if the grass really is greener on the other side, head over to HRIColorado.com to schedule a confidential chat right away.
Aug 13, 2020

I had the honor of conducting two interviews at the Behavior Analyst Leadership Council's 2020 virtual conference back in April. In Session 126, I'm sharing the first one of those conversations, and it is with a name that should be familiar listeners, and that's Dr. Antonio Harrison (@onecoachdoc).

Antonio, as many listeners will remember, was instrumental in pulling together and facilitating Session 120, which was the roundtable discussion with four other African American men and Behavior Analysts in the wake of the George Floyd killing.

Today's episode was actually recorded before Session 120, and Antonio and I discussed topics that were important but admittedly lighter by comparison. Specifically, we discussed his introduction to ABA, how growing up in adverse circumstances actually developed some helpful skills, why Bill Belichick is the best football coach in history, (perhaps I'm adding my input here ;-), and how he maintains a high level of productivity.

That said, I think the most important lesson is the part of our discussion where he talks about how he's made inroads in applying Behavior Analytic interventions in novel settings, such as coaching football. I think that anyone who is considering making a move to practice outside the area of ASD will benefit from this segment of the interview.

We covered a lot of ground in a short amount of time, and here are some links to some of the papers, podcasts, resources, etc... that were brought up:

This podcast is sponsored by the following:

  • The 2020 New Hampshire Association for Behavior Analysis Virtual Conference! NH ABA is only a handful of years old, but for a smallish state, our conference has punched above its weight. The 2020 event will be no exception. This year's speaker list includes Drs. Solanday Forte, Deb Grossett, Bridget Taylor, Alyssa Wilson, Camille Kolu, and Emily Sandoz. NH ABA also acknowledges that the Covid-19 pandemic has resulted in financial burdens on many Behavior Analysts, so they've decided to use a values-based registration fee, which means that while there are suggested registration fees, you can participate in the event for a lot less if that's appropriate to your financial situation. For more information, check out nhaba.net, and I hope that you choose to join us virtually on September 26th!
  • My friends at Praxis CET have two great ACT and RFT classes coming up that seem really cool (Understanding and Using Relational Frame Theory for Behavior Analysts with Drs. Siri Ming and Tom Szabo and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy with Parents with Drs. Lisa Coyne and Evelyn Gould). These are live, online courses, where participants can ask questions, get feedback, etc... on the spot. For more information, go to www.praxiscet.com/bopod. If you check it out and decide to enroll, use the code OBSERVATIONS to save some $$$ at registration.
  • Lastly, I want to mention the BOP membership program; think of it as a DIY Patreon… It’s been running for a few years now, and it costs the princely sum of $9/month. Members get access to a private FB group in which they are able to get nearly instantaneous access to the videos of these podcast interviews. The best part is that members get the raw feed. That means no ads, and none of the introductory comments. You just get right to the interview.Another cool thing we do is hold Zoom Hangouts with former guests. We do this about 6 times a year, and it works like this: we schedule a Zoom call, a former guest comes on and joins us, and the members have the opportunity to ask them questions directly.
Jul 29, 2020

In Session 125, I had the opportunity to speak with Drs. Corina Jimenez-Gomez and Chris Podlesnik. While we spent a good deal of time discussing translational works in Behavior Analysis and covered important topics like resurgence, renewal, relapse, and generalization. We also discussed things like the ABAI Science Blog - which I highly recommend checking out, and what it's like to find a job as a Behavior Analytic power couple!

We discussed a several of studies and resources, and I've done my best to list them here:

I also clipped this graphic that will help with the discussion (taken from the Podlesnik, et al. article listed above).

This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is JABA-Figure.png
 
 

This podcast is sponsored by the following:

  • The 2020 New Hampshire Association for Behavior Analysis Virtual Conference! NH ABA is only a handful of years old, but for a smallish state, our conference has punched above its weight. The 2020 event will be no exception. This year's speaker list includes Drs. Solanday Forte, Deb Grossett, Bridget Taylor, Alyssa Wilson, Camille Kolu, and Emily Sandoz. NH ABA also acknowledges that the Covid-19 pandemic has resulted in financial burdens on many Behavior Analysts, so they've decided to use a values-based registration fee, which means that while there are suggested registration fees, you can participate in the event for a lot less if that's appropriate to your financial situation. For more information, check out nhaba.net, and I hope that you choose to join us virtually on September 26th!
  • HRIC Recruiting. Barb Voss has been placing BCBAs in permanent positions throughout the US for just about a decade, and has been in the business more generally for 30 years. When you work with HRIC, you work directly with Barb, thereby accessing highly personalized service. So if you're about to graduate, you're looking for a change of pace, or you just want to know if the grass really is greener on the other side, head over to HRIColorado.com to schedule a confidential chat right away.
  • Lastly, I want to mention the BOP membership program; think of it as a DIY Patreon… It’s been running for a few years now, and it costs the princely sum of $9/month. Members get access to a private FB group in which they are able to get nearly instantaneous access to the videos of these podcast interviews. The best part is that members get the raw feed. That means no ads, and none of the introductory comments. You just get right to the interview.Another cool thing we do is hold Zoom Hangouts with former guests. We do this about 6 times a year, and it works like this: we schedule a Zoom call, a former guest comes on and joins us, and the members have the opportunity to ask them questions directly.
 
Jul 17, 2020

The killing of George Floyd and others by police officers seems to have caused considerable reflection on how policing occurs in the United States.

We first covered this topic in Session 73 in my interview with Dr. Amy Smith Wiech, and if you're interested in this topic, I would suggest going back and checking that one out.

That episode aside, I think many of us in America are trying to come to grips in terms of how these events continue to happen.

It is with this in mind that I'm delighted to be joined by Dr. John O'Neill to talk more about this issue. John is the Founder and Director of Research at the Contextual Behavioral Science Institute, where he and his colleagues have published behavior analytic research on many law enforcement-related topics, such as training practices at police academies and the unintentional discharge of firearms.

In this conversation, we get into a lot of the difficult topics surrounding policing in America. Specifically, we discuss things like racism, gun ownership, de-escalation training, and much more. While we certainly didn't solve "all the problems" in our society, I think the interview really highlights just how complex law enforcement is, and that there are unfortunately no easy answers to our current predicament.

Our conversation was aided by the contribution of questions from the Behavioral Observations Membership group. The membership is the podcast's DIY Patreon if you will, where for a small monthly fee, members can submit their questions to guests, get early, commercial-free video access to these interviews, and participate in occasional Zoom calls with guests. In fact, John has agree to join us in the next hangout so if this topic piques your interest and you'd like to speak with him directly, consider signing up!

One final thing I'd like to say about this episode and some of the recent shows that I've put out over the last few months. Since the beginning of the pandemic, I've been trying to cover subjects like this one, that seem to be more topical in nature. If you have a chance, let me if this is something you'd like to see more of.

This episode of the podcast is brought to you by the following:

  • The ABA Marketing Minute with Rich Brooks. Digital marketing guru and two-time guest Rich Brooks and I have teamed up to provide listeners with 60-second micro-lessons in digital marketing. You'll hear the first installment later in this broadcast, so I won't spoil it here. If you're interested in marketing your practice on social media or Google, or if you want to give your website a makeover, I highly recommend working with Rich and his awesome team over at Flyte New Media.
  • Behavior University. Their mission is to provide university quality professional development for the busy Behavior Analyst. Learn about their CEU offerings and podcast-specific discounts over at behavioruniversity.com/observations.
  • The new book by Brett DiNovi and Dr. Paulie Gavoni, Behavioral Karma: 5 Scientific Laws of Life and Leadership. It's available for pre-purchase right now. I've gotten a sneak peek at some of the content and look forward to reading the book in its entirety.
Jul 10, 2020

In the fourth edition of the Inside JABA Series, I am joined by Drs. Dorothea Lerman, Linda LeBlanc, and Matt Normand to discuss the forthcoming JABA Special Series on Telehealth and Public Health.

Linda and Matt are no strangers to this podcast, but this is Dorothy Lerman's first time on the show, so by way of introduction, she is currently a Professor of Behavior Analysis at the University of Houston - Clear Lake, where she directs a master’s program in behavior analysis and serves as Director of the UHCL Center for Autism and Developmental Disabilities.

Additionally, she has published more than 80 research articles and chapters, served as Editor-in-Chief for The Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis and Behavior Analysis in Practice and has secured more than $2 million in grants and contracts to support her work.

In this episode, we discuss the motivation behind commissioning this special series, what exactly a special series is (and how it is different than a special issue and special section), the previous work in these two overlapping areas that has been published in past editions of JABA, the topics of some of the submitted papers for this special series, research questions for future work, and much more.

While I believe the entire episode has value, the second half of the conversation - the part where we talk about what we do and don't yet know about telehealth, probably has the most direct relevance to practitioners right now. That's not to take away the importance of applying Behavior Analytic principles towards things like obesity, proper infant positioning, and the like, but nearly all Behavior Analysts have had to transition to remote work in some shape or form. To that end, I hope you find that portion of the show particularly informative.

As always with these Inside JABA Series podcasts, there are no commercials other than to say that if you find this information helpful and want to earn CEU's for listening to the show, then head over to behavioralobservations.com/get-ceus, and follow the prompts from there. I should also note, 50% of the proceeds from all the Inside JABA Series Podcasts go towards supporting the Society for the Experimental Analysis of Behavior. If you're in a pinch and need more than a few CEU's there are volume discounts available for all the continuing ed offerings, of which we have over 20 and counting.

We mentioned quite a few studies during the conversation, and I tried my best to jot them all down while we were chatting and have the links below. As always, feel free to contact me if I've missed any.

There were quite a few more papers that were discussed that will be in the forthcoming issue of JABA, so if you're not already subscribed, please consider doing so.

Jun 25, 2020

"Does anyone have a social story for [insert challenging situation here]?"

Chances are if you're like me, you've seen this question on the various ABA Facebook groups. Very often, the responses to questions like these generate some controversy, or at the very least, arguing over the empirical support for the use of Social Stories and other story-based narrative interventions.

One of these types of Facebook threads popped up a month or two ago, and in response to it, I saw a post from Dr. Justin Leaf from the Autism Partnership Foundation. In it, he described his own research in this area, which casts doubt on the utility of these types of interventions.

To be up front with my own biases, I've often been skeptical of Social Story based interventions as well, and thought it would be interesting to discuss this further with Justin.

We recorded this podcast episode a while back at the height of the quarantine, so you'll likely hear various background noises from both of our households, though I don't think they detract from the overall sound quality.

Our conversation will no doubt generate some controversy, so please feel free to add your thoughts or commentary at Facebook.com/behavioralobservations or right in the comments section of the show notes.

Here are the links to the resources we discussed:

This session of Behavioral Observations is brought to you by:

  • The ABA Marketing Minute with Rich Brooks. Digital marketing guru and two-time guest Rich Brooks and I have teamed up to provide listeners with 60-second micro-lessons in digital marketing. You'll hear the first installment later in this broadcast, so I won't spoil it here, but let's just say the message should parallel a lot of what we should strive for in our clinical practice. If you're interested in marketing your practice on social media or Google, or if you want to give your website a makeover, I highly recommend working with Rich and his awesome team over at Flyte New Media.
  • The Behavioral Observation Podcast's own Continuing Education offerings. As of this writing, there are over 20 podcasts that are available for continuing education. With discounts available for multiple event purchases and the ability to learn while driving, walking the dog, and so on, there's never been a better time to get caught up with your continuing education.
  • And while I'm promoting the stuff on my website, I'd be remiss if I didn't mention the membership program. Think of it as a DIY Patreon… Members get access to a private FB group in which they are able to get nearly instantaneous access to the videos of these podcast interviews. For example, this interview has been available to members for two months. Members get the raw feed. That means no ads, and none of these introductory comments. You just get right to the interview. Another cool thing we do is hold Zoom Hangouts with former guests so where you can interact with them directly. For more information, check out behavioralobservations.com/membership.
Jun 18, 2020

Russ Harris and I recorded this episode about three or four weeks ago, when the world's troubles centered around the challenges with Covid-19 related stay-at-home measures. It's amazing how fast things have changed since then! In light of the social upheaval as people in the United States and beyond come to grips with tragic examples of racism and injustice, getting irritated by one's family members pales in comparison in terms of personal suffering. I had briefly thought to shelve this episode in light of this contrast, but the more I thought about it, I believe that the suggestions and thoughts that Russ shared on this episode will be helpful nonetheless. Please check out behavioralobservations.com for this episode's shownotes!

Jun 3, 2020

Since the killing of George Floyd, I’ve had colleagues approach me with suggestions on how to address the issue of police brutality and racism on Behavioral Observations. To be honest, none of the suggestions were entirely satisfying.

As a white guy living in one of the whitest states in America - someone who has not had any mistreatment based on his skin color - other than condemn the actions of those police officers, sharing my thoughts on this event (as well as the broader topic of racism and police brutality) would not only ring hollow, but not be appropriate for the moment. In other words, I realized that I lacked personal perspective with this issue, and while I may have some thoughts on the matter, those thoughts are more or less academic in nature.

So after wracking my brain for a few days on what I could do to leverage the BOP platform for good, I came upon the idea for this show: For Session 120, I want to take myself out of the podcast altogether, and turn it over to a panel of African American men who are also our colleagues in Behavior Analysis. The goal of the show would be for both me and the BOP audience to simply listen rather than talk.

I reached out to Dr. Antonio Harrison to see if he would be interested in facilitating this discussion, and thankfully he agreed. We then recruited Shawn CapellPierre LouisLarry West III, and Kirk Kirby to participate in the panel. From there, I stepped out of the rest of the production process. As of this writing, I haven't even listened to the final product yet because I want to experience this conversation as an audience member would.

As such, I'm ready to learn more about the experience of African American men in our country and I hope you are too. If you find value in this episode, please share it with as many friends and colleagues as possible. I'm hoping this episode is also disseminated beyond the field of Behavior Analysis as well. Lastly, if you have the means to do so, please consider donating to the group, Black Applied Behavior Analysts, (in case you're wondering, I have and will continue to put my money where my mouth is).

Thanks for listening!

May 27, 2020

Providing feedback to staff members is essential for delivering quality services, but doing it effectively is easier said than done. That's why I'm excited to share this conversation I had with Dr. Natalie Parks from BehaviorLeader.com.

Natalie, along with co-authors Adam Ventura, Erica Crowley, and Dennis Uriarte, just published "Feedback F!@# Ups and How to Avoid Them," and in Session 119, we really dive deep into this topic.

Natalie describes some best practices for providing feedback, including how to do so in the current digital-meeting age. We also talk about how to provide feedback to the "difficult" staff member, as well as how to incorporate the feedback process in staff on-boarding procedures.

If you find this topic interesting, I suggest heading over to BehaviorLeader.com and click on the Featured Products button, and order a copy for yourself. There's also a 5-Day "Fix Your Feedback" Challenge on their website as well, which sounds like a lot of fun!

If you find this episode helpful and would like to get a supervision CEU for it, click here to get more info. You'll also find CEU's on many more topics there, and bulk-purchase discounts are available if you're a procrastinator like me ;-)

Lastly, I’d like to mention that I've been running a membership program for the podcast for a few years now; think of it as a DIY Patreon…

It costs the princely sum of $9/month. Members get access to a private FB group in which they are able to get nearly instantaneous access to the videos of these podcast interviews, often weeks or months before they are published. 

The best part is that members get the raw conversation itself. That means no ads, and none of the introductory comments, and sometimes, some bloopers, re-takes, and do-overs.

Another cool thing we do is hold Zoom Hangouts with former guests. We do this about 6 times a year, and it works like this: we schedule a Zoom call, a former guest comes on and joins us, and the members have the opportunity to ask them questions directly. So if you'd like to learn more, head to BehavioralObservations.com/membership.

May 18, 2020

You may recall that a few months back, I interviewed Dr. David Cox (@davidjcox_). In our discussion, we spent a fair amount of time talking about the literature on the use of psychedelics for the treatment of a variety of behavioral and mental health challenges.

I recently got the opportunity to extend this conversation with Dr. Matthew Johnson (@Drug_Researcher). Matt Johnson is a Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at John Hopkins University, and he's been a leading figure in this area of research for over 15 years. His expertise in this area is so well regarded that he's been sought out by media outlets such as (takes deep breath):

The New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, Globe and Mail, Daily Mail, USA Today, Chicago Tribune, San Francisco Chronicle, Denver Post, Baltimore Sun, CNN, CBS News, NBC News, The Atlantic, Newsweek, Vanity Fair, Marie Claire, Vogue, Whole Living, The Washingtonian, Scientific American, Nature, Vice, Insider, Inverse, Healthline, Psychology Today

(pause to inhale...)

60 Minutes, CNN’s Wolf Blitzer Situation Room, Fox Business News’ Kennedy, the Dr. Oz Show, PBS’ Retro Report, Labyrint (television show in the Netherlands), Spectrum News NY1, the BBC World Service, NPR’s Morning Edition, NPR’s Kojo Nnamdi Show, New Zealand Radio, and Newstalk Radio Ireland... just to name a few.

Matt has also been featured in a special episode of The Tim Ferriss Show on this very topic. As such, I'm a little more than humbled to chat with him on Behavioral Observations!

In our chat, we did a quick overview of Delay Discounting, talked about decision making with condom usage, and the behavioral economics of cannabis. As an aside, we've done quite a few shows on Behavioral Economics. Here's a quick list of them if you want to get really up to speed:

Back to this show, Matt and I spent a large part of our chat discussing his groundbreaking work in the area of psychedelics. We really get into the weeds, as it were, of how these studies are done, and discuss everything from recruiting participants, the timing of these trips, how participants are supported through their experiences, bad trips, transformative experiences, hypothesized mechanisms of action, what these treatments will look like in five years, and much, much more. 

And before I forget, here are some links to additional readings that we referenced:

We close with a fun discussion of the concept of impulsivity. In Matt's view, as a psychological construct, the term isn't very useful, and we get into how he came to that conclusion. 

This episode is brought to you by:

  • HRIC Recruiting. Barb Voss has been placing BCBAs in permanent positions throughout the US for just about a decade, and has been in the business more generally for 30 years. Like Batman, she works alone, which means that when you work with HRIC, you work directly with Barb and get highly personalized service. So if you're about to graduate, you're looking for a change of pace, or you just want to know if the grass really is greener on the other side, head over to HRIColorado.com to schedule a confidential chat right away.
  • Behavior University. Their mission is to provide university quality professional development for the busy Behavior Analyst. Learn about their CEU offerings and podcast-specific discounts over at behavioruniversity.com/observations.
  • Lastly, I’d like to mention something I don’t bring up all that frequently. I have a membership program for the podcast; think of it as a DIY Patreon… It’s been running for a few years now, and it costs the princely sum of $9/month. Members get access to a private FB group in which they are able to get nearly instantaneous access to the videos of these podcast interviews. The best part is that members get the raw feed. That means no ads, and none of the introductory comments. You just get right to the interview.

    Another cool thing we do is hold Zoom Hangouts with former guests. We do this about 6 times a year, and it works like this: we schedule a Zoom call, a former guest comes on and joins us, and the members have the opportunity to ask them questions directly. 

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