Current research projects
To see some of our recently featured research on the Behavioral Observations podcast, click here.
Group contingencies in education
Disruption and off-task behavior in the classroom can present serious obstacles for student learning and teacher mental health. A large component of our lab’s research program examines the effectiveness of various group-oriented contingencies that can improve classroom behavior and procedural variations that make them easier for teachers to implement. We are currently conducting this work in general, special, and alternative education classrooms.
Decreasing teacher stress with effective classroom management
Many teachers report high stress levels and that student challenging behavior is a major source of their stress. Funded by a grant from the Jose Martinez-Diaz Bridging Fund, we are collaborating with Dr. Katie Morrison’s neuroscience lab to measure teacher stress levels via salivary cortisol (a hormone in the body that is released when a person experiences stress). After establishing their baseline stress patterns, we work with them to implement effective classroom management during stressful periods. Our initial findings show that physiological measures of stress (i.e., salivary cortisol) can be substantially reduced by implementing effective classroom management during stressful class periods.
Effects of interviewer behavior on the accuracy of children’s responses
It has long been known that the behavior of an interviewer can influence what children say in forensic interviews. For example, asking leading questions can decrease the accuracy of children’s responses. However, the vast majority of research in this area was conducted using group designs, which don’t tell us much about the behavior of individual people. Using single-case research designs, we have found substantial individual differences among children in their sensitivity to different kinds of behavior from the interviewer. We aim to learn more about how these interviews should conducted to improve how interviews with children are conducted and the extent to which they provide factual information.
Refining the measurement of behavior
Behavioral research has made substantial contributions to eduction, including decreasing disruptive behavior and improving academic engagement. However, there are many ways to measure the effects of behavioral interventions and they do not always provide the same information. We are currently examining the extent to which observation-based measures of academic engagement correspond with actual productivity. So far, we have found that the degree to which observation (e.g., appearing to be on task) and product measures (e.g., actual work completion) correspond may depend heavily on the context and individual being observed.
Predicting and preventing dangerous behavior
Dangerous behavior like severe aggression is a serious concern for the stakeholders of residential facilities (e.g., juvenile detention). However, typical behavior analytic approaches like functional assessment are not feasible under some circumstances. The behavior of interest is difficult to observe, infeasible and unethical to evoke in assessment, and infrequent but severe. We are exploring the utility of quantitative methods (e.g., risk ratio analysis, prognostic behavioral markers) to reliably predict the trajectory or development of behavior over time using simple metrics like latency to first instance of aggression.
