Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Assessment Of Dopaminergic And Serotonergic Receptor Antagonists In Male Rats Trained To Discriminate 4-Methylmethcathinone (Mephedrone), Rachel L. Burroughs

Masters Theses

Preclinical drug discrimination studies of the synthetic cathinone, 4-methylmethcathinone (mephedrone) have demonstrated its effects are comparable to those of other popular psychostimulant drugs. Few studies have directly examined the contribution of specific neurotransmitter receptors to mephedrone’s discriminative stimulus effects. The present study investigated the role of dopamine and serotonin receptors in these effects. Eight adult male Sprague-Dawley rats were trained to discriminate 3.0 mg/kg mephedrone from saline. After dose-response curves were determined with mephedrone (0.375-3.0 mg/kg), a series of stimulus antagonism tests were conducted with dopamine antagonists (Sch 23390, haloperidol) and serotonin antagonists (WAY 100,635, MDL 100,907, pirenperone) administered as …

A Parametric Analysis Of Choice Under Risk, David W. Sottile

Masters Theses

Accurate assessment of risk propensity is important because risky choices underlie a broad range of behavioral problems. The Balloon Analogue Risk Task (BART) is an assessment that measures propensity to engage in risky choice. While this is a useful assessment, the BART changes two variables that affect risky choice simultaneously, probability of an undesirable outcome and stake size, which cannot be separated within the context of the BART. The goal of this study was to evaluate the separate and combined effects of key factors that are likely to risky choice (Magnitude of payoff, probability of an undesirable outcome, and stake …

Evaluation Of Generalized And Specific Token Reinforcement Using A Paired Stimulus Preference Assessment And Progressive Ratio Schedules, Haily K. Traxler

Masters Theses

Skinner (1953) stated that the effects of generalized conditioned reinforcers should maintain longer than specific conditioned reinforcers because their effects are not dependent on a particular motivating operation. Tokens easily model different levels of generality because tokens can be paired with one or more back-up reinforcers. In the current study, three types of tokens were assessed that could be exchanged for either salty snacks, food and drinks offered in a small marketplace, or money on a gift card. Token preferences were assessed using a Paired Stimulus preference assessment and a progressive ratio (PR) task. The results of the preference assessment …

Application Of A Three-Lever Drug Discrimination Method To Differentiate The Interoceptive Stimulus Effects Of 3, 4-Methylenedioxypyrovalerone And 4-Methylmethcathinone In Male Sprague-Dawley Rats, Trent Bullock

Masters Theses

Psychoactive “bath salts” represent a continuing drug abuse problem. The synthetic cathinones, 3, 4-methylenedioxypyrovalerone (MDPV) and 4-methylmethcathinone (4-MMC) are popular constituents of “bath salts” in the United States and the United Kingdom, respectively. Addiction to these substances has proven difficult to treat, possibly requiring targeted therapeutics. Drug discrimination is a preclinical assay that may aid in treatment development. Thus far, two-lever (drug vs no drug) discrimination studies have exhibited asymmetrical substitution patterns between 4-MMC and MDPV. Therefore, a three-lever discrimination method was employed in which 12 male Sprague-Dawley rats were trained to discriminate 0.5 mg/kg MDPV, 2.0 mg/kg 4-MMC, and …

Contribution Of Monoaminergic Mechanisms To The Discriminative Stimulus Effects Of 3,4-Methylenedioxypyrovalerone (Mdpv) In Sprague-Dawley Rats, Harmony I. Risca

Masters Theses

3,4-Methylenedioxypyrovalerone (MDPV) is a popular synthetic cathinone reported to have a high abuse potential and comparable pharmacological actions to those of cocaine. The aim of this study was to evaluate a variety of monoaminergic agents for substitution, potentiation, or antagonism in rats trained to discriminate MDPV. Male Sprague-Dawley rats were trained to discriminate 0.5 mg/kg MDPV and a variety of monoaminergic drugs were tested for substitution and/or potentiation of the MDPV cue. In separate experiments, stimulus antagonism tests were conducted with selected dopamine antagonists or serotonin antagonists in rats trained to discriminate 1 mg/kg MDPV. Full substitution for MDPV was …

The Effects Of Gateway Width On Driver Yielding To Pedestrians: A Systematic And Parametric Analysis, Jonathan M. Hochmuth

Masters Theses

The gateway in-street sign treatment has been demonstrated to be a cost-effective method for increasing driver yielding behavior at crosswalks. In the present study, wide and narrow gateway widths were compared at two sites to determine if there was a differential effect on driver yielding behavior. Then, the relationship between width and yielding was refined with a parametric analysis at one of these sites. Gateway width was varied in two-foot intervals from 12ft to 18ft. The results indicated an inverse relationship between gateway width and driver yielding behavior. There are likely two variables related to this effect. First, because drivers …

Examining The Effectiveness Of A Training Video On The Lmplementation And Lnterpretation Of A Functional Analysis, Alissa Anne Conway

Masters Theses

Functional behavior assessment (FBA), and more specifically functional analysis (FA), refer to structured assessment processes designed to identify the controlling variables for challenging behaviors across children, adolescents, and adults. The results from a functional analysis are used to match therapy techniques to unique causal variables for challenging behaviors and also to select more adaptive replacement behaviors that produce similar functions as the challenging behaviors. As functional analysis techniques, in all variations, have become more commonplace in applied behavior analysis (ABA), attention has turned to how to train practitioners to implement FAs, interpret the results, and use the FAs to inform …

Phase Change Lines, Scale Breaks And Trend Lines Using Excel 2013Tm, Neil Deochand

Masters Theses

The development of graphing skills for the behavior analyst is an ongoing process. Specialized graphing software is often expensive, not widely disseminated, and may require specific training. Dixon, et al. (2009) provided an updated task analysis (Carr & Burkholder, 1998) in the widely used platform Excel 2007. Vanselow and Bourret (2012) provided online tutorials outlining some alternate methods also using Office 2007. This article serves as an update to those task analyses with alternative and under-utilized methods in Excel 2013. To examine the utility of our recommendations twelve psychology graduate students were presented with the task analyses and the experimenters …

Differential Effects Of Methylenedioxypyrovalerone (Mdpv) And Mephedrone In Rats Trained To Discriminate Mdma Or A D-Amphetamine+Mdma Mixture, Eric Louis Harvey

Masters Theses

Recent reports on the abuse of novel synthetic cathinone derivatives call attention to serious public health risks of these substances. In response to this concern, a growing body of preclinical research has characterized the psychopharmacology of these substances, particularly mephedrone (MEPH) or methylenedioxypyrovalerone (MDPV), noting their similarities to MDMA and cocaine. The present study employed drug discrimination methodology to assess the discriminative stimulus effects of MEPH and MDPV in male Sprague-Dawley rats trained to discriminate 1.5 mg/kg 3,4 methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) or a mixture of 1.5 mg/kg MDMA and 0.5 mg/kg d-amphetamine (MDMA+AMPH). After establishing dose response functions with each training …

Effects Of Altering Motivation In Pigeons Performing A Titrating-Delayed-Matching-To-Sample Task, Zachary J. Zimmermann

Masters Theses

In order to better understand the role motivating operations (MOs) serve in preceding and evoking behavior, it is useful to examine the effects of whether manipulating motivation can influence performance on tasks with known behavioral outcomes. It is well established that altered stimulus control is responsible for changes in responding on tasks of generalization and discrimination. Therefore, if stimulus control could be influenced by MOs, then perhaps stimulus discriminations could be improved by manipulating the relevant MO. To this end, the effects of altering motivation via food deprivation were examined in pigeons using a titrating-delayed-matching-to-sample task. Additional pharmacological variables (i.e., …

The Effects Of Varying Duration Of Reinforcement On Novel Selection-Based Mands Versus Topgraphy-Based Mands, Nicholas S. Acker

Masters Theses

In recent years, researchers have evaluated individuals' preferences for different mand modalities and its effects on the acquisition of novel mands during functional con1munication training (i.e., FCT; e.g., Falcomata, Ringdahl, Christensen, & Boelter, 20 I 0). In many of these studies, the modality of responding that Michael ( 1985) classified as selection-based responding, is preferred by participants (e.g., Falcomata et al., 201 0). Wraikat, Sundberg, and Michael (1991) suggest that topography-based responses may be preferable for the acquisition of complex language. However, selection-based verbal responses may have faster acquisition in learning initial verbal operants (Charlop-Christy, Carpenter, Le, LeBlanc & Kellet, …

A Comparison Of Two Variations Of A Stimulus-Stimulus Pairing Procedure On Novel And Infrequent Vocalizations Of Children With Autism, Andrew J. Bulla

Masters Theses

Despite the growth in a behavioral technology for the treatment of autism, a small population of individuals with autism fails to develop functional language. One procedure used for inducing vocalizations in non-verbal children is a stimulus-stimulus pairing (SSP) procedure. In an SSP procedure a vocalization is paired with a reinforcer over a period of time to establish the vocalization as a learned reinforcer, and any utterance of the target vocalization is believed to be automatically reinforced thus increasing the frequency of the vocalization. Past research has yielded mixed results with the SSP procedure, and more research is warranted to identify …

Evaluation Of The Efficacy Of A Rat Agreement Based Reinforcement Procedure, Katherine B. Lalonde

Masters Theses

Since 2007, giant African pouched rats (Cricetomys gambianus) have been used successfullyfor detecting Tuberculosis (TB) positive patients.The rats are trained to detect TB-positive sputum samples through the use of operant conditioning techniques, in which an indicator response is rewarded with food. If the rats are to be used for first line screening of patients reinforcement could not be provided because the true status of the sample would be unknown. The present study evaluated the effects of a reinforcement-for-agreement procedure that could be used to reinforce indication responses when the true status of the sample is unknown. Four rats evaluated 100 …

The Effects Of The Temporal Placement Of Feedback On Performance And Skill Acquisition Of A Medical Data Entry Task, Nathan Bechtel

Masters Theses

This study was conducted in a laboratory, and compared the effects of the temporal placement of feedback on task performance and skill acquisition. Temporal placement offeedback refers to the timing offeedback delivery relative to performance. Two temporal placements were examined: feedback immediately after performance and feedback immediately prior toperformance. The experimental design utilized was a form of Latin square design that included a combination of one between-group and two within subjects factors. Participants were randomly assigned to one of three groups, which differed only in the phase order utilized. Participants performed a data entry task intended to replicate thejob of …

Using Behavioral Interventions Amongst Unionized Workers To Increase Attendance, Marlies Hagge

Masters Theses

Employees’ attendance is fundamentally relevant for running a successful business. However, in many companies absences far exceed the national average of about 3% and pose a significant problem to the company’s overall success. This study compares the effectiveness of different low-cost behavioral interventions in order to increase attendance and specifically decrease the amount of avoidable absences from 6.3% overall absenteeism during baseline. Participants include 45 unionized custodians in 6 groups at a large Midwestern university. Interventions were introduced for 4 of the groups while the remaining 2 groups served as a control. Treatments evaluated include public recognition for perfect attendance, …

The Effects Of Feedback On Hourly Pay And Individual Monetary Incentives, Douglas A. Johnson

Masters Theses

The effects of performance feedback when individuals received fixed or individual incentive pay were examined. A 2 X 2 factorial design was used with approximately 30 college students in each group. Participants attended six experimental sessions. They entered the cash value of simulated bank checks presented on a computer screen. Monetary incentives increased the number of correctly completed checks (p = .000); however feedback had no effect (p = .825). Time spent working and rate of performance correlated strongly with the number of checks completed correctly, suggesting that both influenced the checks completed correctly. The results suggest that incentives increase …

Reinforcement Schedules Modulate Discriminative Stimulus Properties Of 3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine And Cocaine, Daniel Kueh

Masters Theses

Drug discrimination is a model used to assess the subjective effects of different psychoactive drugs such as 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) and cocaine. However, results from MDMA discrimination studies across different laboratories have not been consistent. Possible confounds for this inconsistency may include the use of different reinforcement schedules such as the fixed-ratio 20 (FR20) and the variable interval 15 seconds (VI15 s) during discrimination training. Studies examining the effects of these two schedules on the discriminative stimulus properties of MDMA and cocaine have not been conducted. Thus, the present study compared the FR20 and the VI15 s schedules to determine their …

Behavior-Based Safety And Working Alone: The Effects Of Self-Monitoring On The Safe Performance Of Bus Operators, Ryan Olson

Masters Theses

Experimental evaluations of Behavior-based Safety (BBS) processes applied with lone workers are scarce. Further research is needed to determine the power of self-monitoring based interventions for improving safe behavior, and to explore the best practices for improving safety when employees work alone. In the current study,· four male bus operators (ages 40-50) self-monitored their safe performance and initialed feedback graphs based on their self-monitoring data at the end of each day. Experimental data collectors observed each participant by riding buses as passengers. A multiple baseline design across performances was used to assess the effects of the intervention on four target …

The Effects Of Sensory Integrative Therapy And Functional Communication Training On Stereotypic Behavior, Thomas M. Starzynski

Masters Theses

Three developmentally delayed individuals who exhibited self-stimulatory behaviors were exposed to sensory-integrative therapy. Prior to treatment, a Motivation Assessment Scale was completed and a functional analysis baseline was conducted to identify the maintaining variables of the self-stimulatory behavior. Each subject displayed a pattern of responding suggesting that stereotypic behaviors were maintained by automatic reinforcement. Results show that sensory-integrative therapy had no effect on self-stimulatory behaviors. The stereotypic behaviors of Subject 1 and Subject 2 were later reduced when functional communication plus response interruption was applied. The self-stimulatory behavior of Subject 3 was not affected by the implementation of functional communication …

The Acute Effects Of Cocaine In Pigeons Performing Under A Progressive-Ratio Schedule, Claudia Ann Jones

Masters Theses

Although the progressive-ratio (PR) schedule has been used frequently to quantify the reinforcing effectiveness of self-administered drugs, it has seldom been used to examine the effects of drugs on food-maintained behavior and has never been used to evaluate the effects of cocaine on such behavior. In the present study, the effects of acute administrations of cocaine were evaluated in pigeons responding under a PR schedule of food delivery. Overall, cocaine produced a dose-dependent effect on food-maintained behavior. In general, acute administrations of cocaine at 0.56 to 3.2 mg/kg increased breaking points, whereas doses above 5.6 mg/kg decreased breaking points. Low …

Failure Of Methamphetamine Withdrawal To Produce Behavioral Disruptions In Pigeons, William F. Potter

Masters Theses

Methamphetamine, a widely used recreational drug, is not known to produce physiological dependence. Few studies to date have examined whether behavioral dependence occurs upon sudden withdrawal from methamphetamine. In this study, pigeons (n=4) were trained to respond under a multiple FR 25 IRT > 6-s schedule of reinforcement, allowing for examination of drug effects upon a relatively high rate of responding (FR) and a relatively low rate of responding (IRT > t). Acute adminstrations of methamphetamine showed rate-dependent effects at low doses, while higher doses decreased responding under both schedules. Tolerance was demonstrated for all subjects except one at the highest dose …

An Arbitrary Matching Training Supplement To The Avc Discrimination Test, Charles P. Butler

Masters Theses

Kerr, Meyerson and Flora (1977) devised a series of small learning tasks that could be used to assess developmentally disabled individuals on the typical tasks to be performed in a school setting or sheltered workshop and required only very simple equipment. Davine (1990) suggested that there may be transitional skills between AVC levels IV and V not found by Kerr et al. Davine looked at four experimental steps designed to test this notion. The results of this study were inconclusive. Wilson (1991) tested the same notion by devising a series of non identity matching tasks which were generally found to …

Preventive Dental Care- Instruction And Contingency Management In The Acquisition And Maintenance Of Oral Hygiene Skills, Sandra K. Kallstrom

Masters Theses

Inadequate oral hygiene is one of the largest problems facing the dental profession to date. It is estimated that 98% of individuals suffer from dental problems associated with neglect. The objective of this study was to develop effective techniques which aided in the acquisition and maintenance of oral hygiene skills. This study compared the effects of instruction and demonstration with contingency management on plaque percentage scores. A between-subjects design was used with one control and three experimental groups. The results indicated that, oral hygiene instruction and demonstration appear to be ineffective in reducing plaque scores. Significant plaque reductions where found …

Letter Recognition By Mentally Retarded Adults: Improving Performance Through Differential Outcomes, Paul R. Malanga

Masters Theses

Four mentally retarded adults were taught to recognize (i.e., discriminate) finger spelling letters when presented as members of unchanging pairs (e.g., A and E, G and H). Correct responses were followed by food or verbal praise. On average, terminal accuracy was significantly greater when a correct response to a given letter was consistently followed by a particular outcome (e.g., food followed correct responses to A and praise followed correct responses to E) than when nondifferential outcomes were arranged (e.g., food followed 50% of all correct responses and praise followed the remaining 50%, regardless of whether the responses were to A …

Effects Of Music As A Conditioned Stimulus And Progressive Muscle Relaxation In Reducing Anxiety, Marie Elaine Clarkson

Masters Theses

The primary purpose of this study was to determine whether music could become a conditioned stimulus for lowered muscle tension and/or reduced anxiety.

There were three groups: (1) the PMR group receiving PMR alone, (2) the MUS group receiving music alone, and (3) the PMRM group receiving PMR followed by music. After four training sessions, a posttest was conducted in which all of the groups were given five minutes to relax. The PMR group had silence, the MUS group had music and the PMRM group had music which had previously been heard after relaxation training. Tension and anxiety reduction were …

Nonidentity Matching Training As A Supplement To The Audio-Visual Combination Test, Melissa Wilson

Masters Theses

The Audio-Visual Combination Test is an assessment tool developed by Kerr, Meyerson, and Flora (1977), and used by those working with developmentally disabled persons to assess learning-to-learn skills. The test measures motor, visual, and auditory discrimination learning.

The experimenter attempted to determine if there were an important step-visual nonidentity discrimination-between AVC subtests 4 and 5/6 of the test. Twelve developmentally disabled adults were tested with three different sets of tasks interposed between a revised subtest 4 and 5/6. Results showed that most subjects had greater difficulty with the visual nonidentity discrimination than with the auditory/visual discrimination, subtest 5/6. The results …

The Effects Of Mephenytoin On Schedule-Controlled Responding In The Pigeon, Victoria Mary Pellettiere

Masters Theses

Acute and chronic effects of mephenytoin (30 - 360 mg/kg) were examined in pigeons responding under a multiple fixed-ratio 50 fixed-interval 90-sec schedule of food delivery. The highest dose administered acutely (240 mg/kg) produced substantial reductions in rate of responding under both components of the multiple schedule; the effects of other doses were small and inconsistent. Tolerance appeared to develop to the rate-decreasing effects of mephenytoin following chronic exposure to the drag.

The Effects Of A Conditioned Establishing Operation On Performance Of A Two-Component Chain, Kenneth Lee Alling

Masters Theses

Subjects were exposed to a discrete-trial procedure in which reinforcement following the completion of a two-component response chain was dependent upon the presence or absence of the houselight. The procedure used closely resembles the hypothetical procedure suggested by Michael (1982) for developing control by a conditioned establishing operation. All subjects came to respond differentially in the presence and absence of the houselight. However, removal of the supposed conditioned reinforcer following completion of the first component of the response chain had little effect on control by the houselight, casting some doubt on Michael's (1982) theoretical analysis.

Effects Of Phenobarbital In Combination With Phenytoin Or Valproic Acid On The Delayed-Matching-To-Sample Performance Of Pigeons, Catherine Ann Karas

Masters Theses

The present study examined the effects of phenobarbital (S, 10,20, and 40 mg/kg), phenytoin (2.5, 5, 7.5, and 15 mg/kg), and valproic acid (40, 60, 80, and 120 mg/kg), and those of phenobarbital (10 and 20 mg/kg) in combination with phenytoin (2.5,5, and 7.5 mg/kg) or valproic acid (40, 60, and 80 mg/kg), on the delayed-matching-to-sample performance of pigeons. In general, high doses of each individual drug reduced accuracy. Drug combinations also reduced accuracy relative to control values. Reductions in accuracy produced by drug combinations were very similar in magnitude to those predicted by a response-addition model of drug interaction.

The Effects Of A Reinforcer On Behavior Maintained By A Second External Reinforcer, Jeanne Marie Lamere

Masters Theses

A number of studies has shown that providing extrinsic rewards for performing an "intrinsically interesting" task decreases an individual's subsequent interest in that task when the rewards are no longer available (e.g., Deci, 1971, 1972; Lepper, Greene, & Nisbett, 1973). Based on these results, many have argued that extrinsic rewards decrease an individual's "intrinsic motivation." A fundamental premise of this argument is that "extrinsic" and "intrinsic motivation" are functionally different, a distinction that is not supported by a behavioral analysis. This study examined whether similar subsequent decrements in task performance would be observed when a behavior is maintained by one …