Usamos cookies necessários para o funcionamento e a segurança do site. Com sua
autorização, também podemos usar dados de navegação para entender como o BHUB é
utilizado e melhorar a plataforma.
Política de Cookies
Curadoria científica com IA
Sincronização diária
Pesquisa em Análise do Comportamento, organizada por evidências
Encontre artigos revisados por pares, filtre por categoria e fonte, e acompanhe novas publicações científicas em um só lugar.
Abstract Behavior analysis has a long history of using nonhuman animals in basic research, classroom teaching, and applied practice, yet discipline-specific guidance for competent and ethical animal work remains limited. This paper reviews historical and contemporary trends in animal use within behavior analysis, including the decline of traditional animal laboratories, growing interest in invertebrate models, and expansion of behavior-analytic work into homes, shelters, zoos, and other applied settings. We argue that although behavioral principles are broadly applicable, competence in animal work requires more than general behavior-analytic training. In the absence of integrated guidance for developing and evaluating that competence, behavior analysts may face serious risks to animal welfare, human safety, the relationship between behavior analysis and the broader animal behavior community, and the field’s ability to advance a comprehensive science of behavior. In response, we propose a set of six minimum standards for animal-focused work in behavior analysis: (1) interdisciplinary knowledge of animal behavior, (2) species-specific knowledge, (3) skill fluency, (4) ethical conduct, (5) safe practices, and (6) appropriate mentorship strategies. A practical self-assessment tool accompanies these standards to help professionals determine their scope of competence. We hope these standards initiate a needed conversation about what is required to work with animals competently in behavior analysis and support the development of guidelines as structured, explicit, and carefully maintained as those established for human-focused work.
Abstract Interventions seeking to reduce impulsive choice in nonhuman animals (i.e., preference for smaller sooner over larger later rewards [SSR vs. LLR]) often require long training durations. However, prior studies illustrate how a brief course of Pavlovian training can reduce rodents' impulsive choice by attracting them to the LLR and by providing an appetitive Pavlovian conditioned stimulus (CS) contingent on LLR choices. In these studies, the comparison group completed unpaired (UN) training where the CS and US never co‐occurred. The present study added a truly random control (TRC) group to evaluate whether UN training made the CS aversive, exaggerating the effect of Pavlovian training on self‐control. Following Pavlovian (PAV), UN, or TRC training, a lever CS was inserted into the chamber during half the delay to the LLR. PAV rats were significantly more attracted to the lever during training and chose the LLR significantly more often than TRC or UN rats. Significant sex differences were detected, with self‐control influencing the effects of Pavlovian training predominantly observed in male rats. Because sex differences in self‐control outcomes were not observed in the only other study to examine the effects of presenting an appetitive CS after LLR choices, possible reasons for this interexperiment difference are discussed.
Abstract The peak interval procedure, in which subjects learn to cluster their anticipatory responses around delays to biologically critical outcomes, provides benchmarks for interval timing models. These include (a) the bistable response regime demarcated by an abrupt increase (start times) and a decrease (stop times) in response rates around the target time in individual trials; (b) bell‐curve‐shaped average response curves that superpose on a relative time scale; (c) lower coefficient of variation of stop times than start times; and (d) specific correlational patterns between these parameters, their mean, and difference. This article presents a multilayer computational model that predicts these key markers of timing behavior in the peak interval procedure. The first layer constitutes the clock stage, comprising uncoupled diffusion processes approaching a single boundary. The first crossing of the threshold for each diffusion process is broadcast to the downstream motor layer. The motor layer integrates the broadcast signals with a leak term scaled by the drift rate to avoid saturation and reset of motor system activity. The model is extended to account for real‐time temporal discrimination. This family of models departs from the single‐clock approach to modeling and meets the core empirical benchmarks of timing behavior.
Resumo Diversos estudos têm relatado déficits no processamento temporal em doenças neurodegenerativas como a doença de Parkinson e a doença de Alzheimer. Esses déficits podem ser quantificados por paradigmas de timing de intervalo que requerem que os participantes estimem ou produzam um intervalo de vários segundos e demandam memória de trabalho para regras temporais, bem como atenção ao tempo. O desempenho em timing pode ser quantificado por uma variedade de medidas; no entanto, duas métricas relativamente universais incluem: (1) acurácia temporal, definida como a estimativa temporal média, e (2) precisão temporal, refletida pela variabilidade das estimativas temporais. Examinamos a acurácia e a precisão temporais em uma meta-análise de 14 estudos com pacientes com doença de Parkinson e 10 estudos com pacientes com doença de Alzheimer. É notável que, em ambas as doenças, a precisão temporal mostrou-se confiavelmente prejudicada across os estudos, enquanto a acurácia temporal foi afetada na doença de Alzheimer, mas não na doença de Parkinson. Nossa meta-análise sugere que, apesar da diversidade de paradigmas de timing de intervalo e da complexidade da doença de Parkinson e da doença de Alzheimer, a precisão temporal é consistentemente prejudicada nessas doenças. Esses resultados avançam o timing de intervalo como um ensaio confiável para estudar a disfunção cognitiva na doença de Parkinson e na doença de Alzheimer e podem se estender a outros transtornos neurológicos e psiquiátricos.
Abstract Type I errors, or false positives, occur when a researcher erroneously concludes that the independent variable caused a change in the dependent variable. Type I errors can result in resources being misused in both research and practice. Although Type I errors are most often associated with group design paradigms, researchers using single-case experimental designs are also susceptible to making Type I errors. In this article, we describe the research on Type I errors in single-case experimental designs across analytic methods, including visual analysis, machine learning, effect estimation, and randomization approaches. We also suggest ways that each analytic method can be used to mitigate Type I errors and highlight aspects of Type I error in single-case experimental designs that are understudied and in need of additional research.
Abstract Case-specific effect sizes have been developed to supplement the visual analysis of line-graphed data in single-case design research by quantitatively summarizing intervention effectiveness. This article provides background on case-specific effect sizes and describes when they can effectively complement visual analysis. We discuss several distinct families of case-specific effect size metrics, including nonoverlap indices (e.g., nonoverlap of all pairs), standardized measures (e.g., standardized mean difference), response ratios (e.g., percentage change), and goal attainment (e.g., percent of goal obtained). Furthermore, we discuss the assumptions and limitations that hold for all families of case-specific effect sizes and the assumptions and limitations of each type of case-specific effect size. In conclusion, we provide guidance for determining when these metrics are appropriate for a single-case design study and present a decision framework to help researchers select the most suitable effect size measure(s), if any, for their data.
Abstract Impulsive choice—preference for a smaller-sooner over a larger-later reward—is a transdiagnostic risk factor for behaviors that harm human health. Preventing a temporally extended pattern of impulsive choice should be a translational research priority. No existing intervention meets all the criteria outlined in this article of an ideal school-based prevention program: low cost, low teacher effort, fast-acting, and capable of producing lasting, generalizable reductions in impulsive choice. Here, we evaluate Pavlovian conditioning as a candidate approach. Our review is informed by evidence from nonhuman laboratory experiments and kindergarten classroom studies examining whether appetitive Pavlovian conditioning protocols can reduce impulsive choice and related behaviors. Laboratory experiments demonstrate that a brief Pavlovian conditioning protocol establishes a conditioned stimulus (CS) that may then be strategically used to reduce impulsive choice in rats by serving as an attractive antecedent and/or an appetitive delay-bridging stimulus. Studies conducted in kindergarten classrooms show that a class-wide protocol can establish an appetitive CS with minimal teacher training and classroom disruption. Presenting the CS during an in-situ waiting task reduced children's challenging behaviors and presenting it during academic-choice tasks increased children's willingness to work for larger rewards. This preliminary evidence supports the continued exploration of Pavlovian conditioning approaches to efficiently prevent patterns of impulsive choice that cumulate over time to negatively affect human health and wellbeing.
Abstract Renewal, reinstatement, and other forms of recovery of learned behavior after extinction have been interpreted in terms of the concept of context . Context is defined here as the field of stimuli that is interrelated with the behavior of an individual in the present. Two important classes of stimuli that comprise context are discriminative stimuli and motivating operations. Two experiments examined interactions between discriminative and motivational aspects of context in the renewal and reinstatement of operant behavior following extinction in mice. In Experiment 1, mice received all operant acquisition and extinction sessions under 24 hr of food deprivation. In Experiment 2, mice received half of acquisition and extinction sessions under 24 hr of deprivation and the other half under nondeprived conditions. In both experiments, mice were tested for renewal and reinstatement after extinction, one group under 24 hr of deprivation and the other nondeprived. Results showed that the extent to which recovery occurred depended on relations between motivating operations (a) during acquisition/extinction learning and (b) during tests for renewal and reinstatement. Translational implications for the study of recovery of behavior after extinction in nonlaboratory circumstances are discussed.
Abstract Grooming is crucial for mammalian health and hygiene, serving diverse functions such as parasite defense, removing dirt, and thermoregulation. Grooming is not purely reactive but integrated into daily routines and regulated endogenously. In rodents, it has been shown to follow a sequential structure with predictable patterns, often interpreted as reflecting pattern‐generating neurological programs. In this study, we examined the temporal and spatial structure of self‐grooming sequences in cats to test whether grooming in this species follows similarly predictable patterns. Grooming performance in 17 cats was recorded, and 40 sequences were analyzed to discern the allocation of grooming time to different body areas. Pattern analyses reveal the temporal order in which body areas were cleaned. Oral grooming occupies the largest portion of grooming time, whereas face washing and scratching were less frequent. High individual variation was found in the distribution of grooming time across body areas and in the spatiotemporal order of sequences, challenging the idea of strict patterns and grooming rules in cats. Instead, our analyses indicate that grooming is structured by probabilistic transitions between spatially adjacent body regions. We conclude that grooming sequences in cats are primarily determined by the spatial proximity of grooming targets and movement efficiency.
Abstract Understanding domestic cat ( Felis catus ) preferences is important for identifying effective reinforcers that can support training, enrichment, and welfare. We assessed preference across three stimulus categories (food, toys, and social interaction) using free‐operant assessments with four adult cats in familiar home environments. The primary dependent measure was duration of quadrant engagement with concurrently available stimuli. Within‐category assessments evaluated preference among multiple stimuli within each category to identify the most preferred item, and between‐category assessments presented the highest ranked stimuli from each category concurrently to evaluate cross‐category preference. A single‐operant reinforcer assessment evaluated whether the most and least preferred stimuli identified in the between‐category assessment differentially maintained operant responding, measured as a nose‐poke response to access the target stimulus. Results showed that three of four cats responded at higher levels when the most preferred stimulus was available relative to the least preferred stimulus. This study is the first to combine within‐ and between‐category free‐operant preference assessments with a direct evaluation of reinforcer effectiveness in domestic cats using procedures that are feasible for home and applied settings, including shelters. These findings support the utility of systematic preference assessments for identifying candidate reinforcers in domestic cats.
Abstract The recurrence of previously reduced behavior following successful differential reinforcement has been termed resurgence . Across studies, resurgence has occurred following either positive or negative reinforcement, but no direct within‐experiment comparisons have been conducted. The primary purpose of the current experiments was to address this gap by comparing resurgence following a history of positive or negative reinforcement with human participants responding to earn or avoid losing money. Across experiments, we manipulated the arrangement of the resurgence test following negative reinforcement; money losses were discontinued in Experiment 1 and made inescapable during Experiment 2. Avoidance responding persisted after the discontinuation of monetary loss during Experiment 1, precluding comparisons of resurgence. Conversely, unavoidable monetary losses resulted in greater resurgence relative to discontinuation of monetary earnings during Experiment 2. The present experiments provide the first controlled within‐subject comparisons of resurgence following positive and negative reinforcement and show that the form of extinction affects avoidance responding.
Abstract We used application programming interfaces (APIs) to estimate gender and race/ethnicity based on names of first and last authors in 4,833 articles published in the Journal of the Experimental Analysis of Behavior (JEAB) from 1958 to 2025. From the first to the most recent 5‐year interval, Gender API estimated that the percentage of articles with women first authors increased from 6% to 33% and the percentage of first authors Ethnicolr API classified as more likely than not to be authors of color (AOC) increased from 5% to 25%, with similar gains in percentages of last authors estimated to be women or AOC. The proportion of names classified as feminine and as less likely to be White has grown steadily, but even after two‐thirds of a century of growth, these groups are underrepresented relative to the U.S. adult population, college graduates working in science‐related fields, and higher education faculty. These findings underscore the need for ongoing efforts to address systemic barriers and promote equitable representation in scholarly publishing.
Abstract Honesty is fundamental to interpersonal relationships and civil society. Although immediate contingencies often favor lying, many individuals respond honestly even when lying would be more efficient for contacting reinforcement. Across two experiments, we evaluated strategies for increasing honest responding by young children through exposure to social contingencies and emotionally evocative stimuli when material contingencies continued to reinforce lying. The stimuli were pictures of faces of children displaying happiness and sadness. The first experiment found that presession pairing of happy faces with honesty and sad faces with lying did not affect behavior; however, pairings combining verbal rule statements and faces contingent upon honesty during sessions resulted in increased honesty. In the second experiment we examined pairing emotionally evocative images with honesty and lying, with increasing intensity of providing a verbal rule linking emotions with honesty. Pairing was effective only when combined with the presentation of a rule linking honesty and emotions. For two participants it was possible to fade treatment with a return to baseline, during which honesty persisted. These results suggest that it may be possible for behavior analysis to develop new interventions to support honesty that do not require changing immediate environmental contingencies.