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Was your first inclination to cringe at the title of this blog? If so, great! You'll enjoy this topic. What's less enjoyable is how common forced compliance is in the field of applied behavior analysis. Other names for forced compliance include "escape extinction," "teaching compliance," and more. No matter its name, traditional forced compliance looks somewhat like this:1. child is given a prompt (verbal, physical, other)2. staff continues to present the prompt (often with increasing intrusiveness) until child complies3. child exhibits many additional behaviors until either the target behavior is produced, the staff is exhausted and reinforces the maladaptive behavior, or the staff physically hand-over-hand completes the behavior topography for the childFor a video example, click this link. In this description, they simplify it even more: when escape is the function, extinction procedures are conducted by simply "Deny opportunity for breaks. For example, the learner screams whenever he is asked to complete a new task to avoid the demand. The teacher/practitioner continues with task even though the learner is screaming."
We even have ethical obligations to avoid escape extinction. Really! 1.01- relying on scientific knowledge and 2.0- treatment efficacy demand that we update our knowledge to include the many studies that demonstrate more effective procedures for dealing with escape maintained behaviors. 4.07- avoidance of implementing when there are environmental conditions that prohibit treatment fidelity means that we can't suggest a default technology that we KNOW is not going to be implemented all of the time. Extinction needs to be continous to be effective, which makes it impossible in most applied settings (especially in-home).
In a recent presentation by Dr. Megan Marie Miller of Navigation Behavioral Consulting, she points out that not only is escape extinction unethical in a majority of cases, but there are better, more effective technologies to use when the target behavior is maintained by escape from demand. First, let's summarize the concerns with the use of escape extinction:1. Non-compliance can be multiply maintained (Rodriguez, Thompson, & Baynham, 2010). Applying escape extinction to a multiply maintained behavior would likely be unsuccessful as it would not address the other functions of the behavior. 2. It's VERY intrusive! Physical guidance can increase problem behavior (Laraway etal., 2003; Lerman & Iwata, 1995; Piazza et al.,1996; Sidman, 1989). There are already high rates of injury in this field, why exacerbate it?3. Parents and caregivers are not likely to use traditional procedures (McConnachie & Carr,1997). They are socially invalid and VERY difficult to implement with fidelity. If we know it's not going to be implemented correctly, why would we use this?4. There are side effects to forcing compliance. We could teach too much compliance and create children who are at risk of abuse as adults (failure to discriminate when and when not to comply). We can pair ourselves as aversive stimuli and affect future treatment efficacy. We have to see an extinction burst (it's not necessary since there are alternatives). Is this ethical? Of course not. 5. There is more than 25 years of research indicating how ineffective escape extinction can be AND what tod do instead. Why would we rely on default technology when we have a better way to address escape-maintained target behaviors?Some Selected Alternatives:• Lerman, Iwata, and Wallace (1992) Bursts or increases in aggression in nearly half of thecases. Recommendation: Identify strategies that reduce these side effects• Piazza, Moes, and Fisher (1996) Recognized issues with traditional escape extinctionand extinction burst. Used DRA and demand fading• Hoch, McComas, Thompson, and Paone (2002) Behavior change without extinction. Gave break with tangible and break without tangible• Ringhdahl et al. (2002) Used DRA and Demand Fading to reduce without extinction. • Behavioral Economics (DeLeon, 2011) Choosing to work for a reinforcer vs choosing a break. Some children need the break and choose the break no matter the price. Some children will continue to choose the edible even at high prices. Having a choice between the break and edible resulted in the highestlevels of responding• Task as a reinforcer (Ward, Parker, & Perdikaris, 2017) Reinforcers are not available until work is complete. Contingent on target escape behavior, removed the work and withheld access to reinforcement. When target “ready” behavior occurred, presented work
Clearly we have a lot of potential alternatives that are less likely to produce emotional side effects, poor pairing, and low treatment integrity. Using effective methods to gain instructional control is also important. Robert Schramm explains the seven steps to instructional control which can create HUGE changes in escape-maintained behavior. A free tutorial webinar from the Colorado Department of Education is available if you'd like to learn more about how to apply it to your practice. In addition to being more effective and less restrictive, alternatives to escape extinction are evidence-based, more likely to be accepted by the public, and easier to implement with treatment fidelity for maximum efficacy.
Some more links for additional reading:FCT by Tiger, Hanley, and BruzekPositive and Negative Reinforcement by Piazza et alForm and Function of Extinction by Iwata and colleaguesSide Effects of Extinction by Lerman, Iwata, and Wallace

Nudges for Healthy TrainingsJune 11, 2018 Does this picture look familiar to you? As behavior analysts and business professionals, training can be a large part of a day. While necessary for skill acquisition and competent performance, often attending a traditional training involves engaging in several harmful behaviors. Attendees are often sitting for long periods of time, eating snack foods and sugar-filled drinks while listening, and slouching in their uncomfortable, ergonomically-unfriendly chairs. These behaviors can have harmful effects on the health and wellness of the very employees that the training is intended to benefit. Fortunately, behavioral economics may have some suggestions for how to help attendees engage in healthier behaviors. According to Reed, Niileksela, & Kaplan (2013), behavioral economics is where economic principles and behavior change science come together to produce practical strategies. In behavioral economics, a "nudge" is a way to influence behavior without providing additional punitive consequences (Arno & Thomas, 2016). Nudges have been used as low-cost, broad-impact strategy for helping large groups of people make healthier choices without adding restrictions. This is especially applicable to training settings in which trainers do not have control over restricting or punishing unhealthy behaviors but still wish to make a positive change in the choices their attendees make during the training period. For those interested in additional information about nudges, types of nudges, and how to apply nudges to other settings, see the reference and resource list at the bottom of this blog. In the following lines, several nudges are presented that could help trainers create healthy training environments to encourage healthy behaviors such as sitting up straight, eating and drinking lower sugar items, and standing up frequently.
Providing prompts to stand up or to sit up straight during trainings. PostureMinder or SlideCarnival are tools that can help you integrate these prompts into slide training PPT decks. Audio cues could also be set on smartphones to prompt standing/sitting up behaviors intermittetly throughout the training. Post a picture or visual aide next to the projector screen or lecturn that shows proper ergonomic posture in the chairs/desks provided. Upon arrival, have a welcome slide that includes a link to The Standing Initiative. https://behaviorfit.com/standinginitiative/Make this even more effective by also using PollEverywhere to have a livestream social comparison of the attendees actively signing up. If doing multiple trainings for connected groups (i.e. different departments or teams), add a visual representation of how the number of signups in one group compares to other groups. Provide "default choices" that are healthier than traditional high-sugar snacks and drinks. For instance, set water bottles and fruit at attendees' seats. If you don't want to provide sodas, don't! If you must, then consider putting the sodas or sugary coffees out of sight so that attendees need to request them. Use labels to show nutritional content of each available choice. Final thoughts:If you are reading this and wondering why to care, think about the fact that healthy employees are more likely to show up to work, produce high quality performance, perform work tasks under pressure, and stay with the company over time! Investing in employees is worth the extra resources; nudges provide ways to invest in lots of employees with very little cost. Resources and References:Arno, A., & Thomas, S. (2016). The efficacy of nudge theory strategies in influencing adult dietary behaviour: a systematic review and meta-analysis. BMC Public Health, 16(1), 676. Reed, D. D., Niileksela, C. R., & Kaplan, B. A. (2013). Behavioral Economics. Behavior Analysis in Practice, 6(1), 34-54. Simon, C., & Tagliabue, M. (2018). Feeding the behavioral revolution: Contributions of behavior analysis to nudging and vice versa. Journal of Behavioral Economics for Policy, 2(1), 91-97. Thaler, Richard H., and Cass R. Sunstein. Nudge: Improving decisions about health, wealth, and happiness. New Haven, CT Yales University Press, 1999.

While it may sound surprising to some, turning behavior analytic technologies into games is not novel. Most BCBA course sequences cover a few of these popular games such as the Good Behavior Game or the learning applications developed by Leapfrog Learning. However, the focus on gamification of behavior analytic technology has generally focused on young learners and students. At this year's Missouri Association for Behavior Analysis conference, three examples of how gamification can be used pragmatically in the workplace to improve employee performance will be shared. Specifically, A free Iphone application along with the principles of pinpointing and schedules of reinforcement were used to improve individual employee performance of key job tasks. A multiple baseline across subjects design with probe follow up was used to demonstrate the effect of the implementing the gamified feedback system on employee performance. Study subjects included adult employees from three diverse industries- food service, disability support work, and athletic coaching- highlighting the range of applications of the technology. Social validity measures confirm that employees and managers were positively affected by the observed behavioral changes. Want to learn more or chat about these studies? Register for MOABA http://www.moaba.org/moaba-events/ or leave a comment below!

In a recent study by Roose and Williams in the Journal of Organizational Behavior Management, researchers were surprised to find that difficult goals do not necessarily produce better performance. This contradicts the idea that managers must always set extremely high criteria for success in order to produce high rates of employee performance. While subjects that started with goals more than 170% of their current level of performance were largely unable to achieve them, study subjects with goals that were only 150% of their current performance level actually achieved levels of performance that exceeded 175% of their baseline performance. What this means is that the researchers found that introducing goals that were “easier” (closer to the current level of performance) actually produced levels of performance at or above the “difficult” goal criteria. From a behavior analytic perspective, this makes sense! Basically, the researchers accidentally stumbled on the principles of shaping and were surprised at its effects on performance. With shaping programs, BCBAs typically reinforce small steps towards a goal, rather than waiting until the achievement of the goal has occurred to offer reinforcement. This allows for the rapid acquisition of new skills and long-lasting behavioral change. By beginning with “easier” goals, the researchers were essentially reinforcing precursory behaviors- allowing their subjects to contact reinforcement and its behavior-increasing effects without waiting as long as it might take to achieve difficult goals. It is similar to what happens when babies are reinforced for saying anything even close to “mama”. Each time a parent delivers high quality reinforcement for progressively increasing performance, the child produces closer and closer approximations to the final “difficult” goal of speech. Making employee goals close but slightly above their current level of achievement allows the manager to quickly shape closer and closer approximations of the “difficult” achievement criteria. It is likely that the easier goals were also achieved faster, which increases the rate of reinforcement received by each employee. Consider a first employee that has a quarterly goal of achieving 200 times their previous quarter’s performance. They would need to work hard every day for 90+ days before contacting any reward for their work. Employee two on the other hand, has a criterion of achieving 10% higher performance prior to reinforcement. In this example then, the second employee’s behavior of “getting better” or improving their performance might be rewarded a dozen times before the first employee. Additionally, were the employees to achieve the same levels of performance improvement, employee two would actually end up surpassing employee one’s difficult goal by the end of the quarter! Taken together, the study and the behavior analytic principles it exemplifies contain important reminders for performance managers in any industry. To maximize the effectiveness of organizational and employee goal setting, consider the following questions: How large is the gap between current performance and goal performance? If employees do not contact any reinforcement due to goals being too difficult (the gap being too large), their performance will not be affected.How often do employees achieve goals? If goals are too difficult and it takes too long for employees to contact reinforcement, again, performance will likely not be affected. Consider increasing reinforcement frequency by reducing the time it takes for employees to achieve performance criteria. If employees only prefer large-impact reinforcers, token economy principles can be used to increase frequency without increasing cost of reinforcers.How is progress and performance monitored? Some employers worry that setting lower levels of achievement criteria will result in low levels of performance, and in fact this can be true if one is not careful. Performance should be monitored in real-time so that criteria can be changed as achievement occurs. For example, if an employee is achieving an established criterion of 1.25 times their previous performance level but a level of 1.5 is needed, incremental increases in criteria will be more effective than simply establishing a higher, more difficult goal. Increasing performance goals from 1.25 to 1.3 to 1.35, etc. is more likely to result in higher performance overall. For an easy-to-use dashboard that allows management to monitor performance in real-time, check out the upcoming workshop at ABAI Paris:https://www.abainternational.org/events/program-details/event-detail.aspx?&sid=50465&by=Area For the original study referenced in this article visit http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/01608061.2017.1325820Roose, K. M., & Williams, W. L. (2017). An Evaluation of the Effects of Very Difficult Goals. Journal of Organizational Behavior Management, 1-31. For a quick tutorial on shaping basics that you can apply to setting performance goals, visit: http://www.behavioradvisor.com/Shaping.html

For those that were not able to attend the Next Gen Revolution Summit in Miami yesterday, the main takeaway was clear: Behavior Analysts STILL want to save the world...but we aren't. Well, we aren't doing it as well as we could anyways and in particular we seem to stick to just the small (yet important) corner of the world that is the Autism Community. Throughout the summit however, attendees got to see example after example of BCBAs that have boldly answered Skinner's call to save the world. There were BCBAs working on augmented reality (BehaviorMe), working in crossfit gyms (BehaviorFit), addressing the problem of healthy grieving (Tom Buqo) and even creating transdisciplinary therapy centers that meet the needs of the community at large, outside of just folks with ASD (Amy McGinnis Stango). These creative entrepeneurs are dedicated to getting our science out into the world to make a difference- and they're doing it! Not one had the same story, but they all had the same goal- use the science of human behavior to save the world. But how do we even begin to address such a huge and daunting goal? Fortunately, we have a science for that. We can use task analysis to break down our ultimate impact goal into small, measurable steps. We can add a schedule of reinforcement that keeps those steps happening at a steady rate. And of course, we can shape up new skills that help us better interact with other professional communities. The skills of entrepeneurship and world-change are not exclusive to businessmen and C-suite execs! By applying our science to ourselves, we can build new repertoires and begin to impact more lives. So what is the first step in your task analysis of revoutionary ABA? If you still don't have a million ideas flying around in your head at the end of this little blog, one step might be attending the Next Gen Revolution Summit! Start following the #AlltheWaystoABA hashtag or connect with others that are pushing ABA out of the box. If your corner of the world is a business, check out OBM Online where you can pick up some new skills and meet other like-minded revolutionary BCBAs.

Some Tips For Diving In: 1. Recognize the limits of your repertoire...then do something about it! NOW! 2.Can't find a unicorn (BCBA supervisor with OBM experience AND free time)? Collaborate with a non-ABA expert in the field you want to enter. Remember way back in the day when you were willing to pay someone to let you work? Ah, the good old days of internships and supervised practica. You might not miss the days of providing free menial labor, but if you are invested in going into a new career, having an insider in the business you want to enter can be invaluable. 3. Check out these DBA SIG presentations! Do What You Can’t (Ryan O’Donnell)I didn’t know ABA could do THAT (Megan Miller) http://aboutbehavior.webs.com/webinars-ceus 4. Attend a conference and network like crazy.Bust out those business cards and take notes like you used to (or like you should have) when you were a student.ABAI'S OBM in Health and Human Services Conference has passed for this year but there are still exciting upcoming opportunities: http://www.siop.org/conferences/18con/ https://nextgenrevolutionsummit.com/ 5. Take advantage of free resources in the I/O and OBM community Head over to Bsci21.org for a free consultation Check out the OBM Network for mentorship opportunities free with membership 6. Like the c2 facebook page to keep an eye out for the upcoming continuing education webinar: Expanding Our Reach and stay informed about our upcoming obm-focused journal club. https://www.facebook.com/connectionsconsulting/ And remember if the first try doesn't work, just keep swimming!

“There are very few products that are so exciting that people will tattoo your logo on their body.”Richard Teerlink, Harley-Davidson CEO While not everyone’s definition of success includes tattoos, the CEO of Harley-Davidson is right about one thing: the brand is exciting. Just its logo alone has inspired everything from mansions to clothing stores to body art. However, in the early 80’s Harley-Davidson as a brand, was far less exciting. Harley-Davidson held just above 20% of the market share in 1983 and Honda was outselling them two to one. But by 1990, something had changed. Dramatically. Harley-Davidson soared to the top of the industry, capturing more than 60% of the market. Interestingly, their success came down to a few key changes. One of which is a prime example of the application of OBM principles to performance management. Around 1986, the company realized that their incentive/pay system did not target the correct behavior to produce the kind of motorcycles their customer base wanted to buy. In fact, in some ways they were inadvertently paying employees to do the exact opposite of the performance they needed to become an industry leader. As a result, their reputation was one of shoddy, quickly-made cheap bikes- certainly not what most potential buyers were looking for. In manufacturing plants, employees were paid for the number of units they produced. In essence, any incentive received by the staff was based only on attendance and quantity. This created a glut of inventory with low quality products. The turnaround happened when the company began pinpointing behaviors that would produce quality performance, rather than speedy performance. Workers that produced the highest quality outputs began to receive compensation for their superior quality work. For instance, designers and engineers that produced vehicles that were aesthetically pleasing and full of luxury details started to get promoted to more important and higher paid positions in the company. The same manufacturing plant employees that had been paid per unit were now paid based on audits of the quality of their production. To maintain these organizational changes, they also included pre-performance training programs to increase initial skill level of incoming employees and carefully tracked data about the effectiveness of their intervention. Using a train-the-trainer methodology, managers were taught to identify and respond to pinpointed performances that were tied to low quality outputs. The results were inspiring and impactful. The company tripled its market share and employees reported more pride and commitment to their work. The brand gained a reputation that bordered cult-style following by customers. Today, the company remains a top leader in the industry, likely in part due to its effective performance pay system. Quote credit: Buller, P. F., & Schuler, S. (2000). Managing Organizations and People: Cases in Management. Organizational Behavior, and Human Resource Management, Cincinnati. Discussion Questions:Describe the type of specific behaviors you would pinpoint in your own organization to begin improving quality of your company’s outputsWhat type of behavior is pinpointed when organizations use time clock-based incentive pay systems?Describe the pinpointed performance dimension and maintaining consequence for a Harley-Davidson manufacturing plant employee prior to 1985.Describe the pinpointed performance dimension and maintaining consequence for a Harley-Davidson manufacturing plant employee after 1987. Which performance would a manager select for reinforcement in 1990?An engineer creates a design that can be produced three times faster than the current modelAn engineer submits a plan for next year’s model that can be produced for 78% of the cost of the current modelAn engineer submits a design accompanied with a customer survey in which potential buyers describe the new model as “luxury, quality, traditional, and solid”Discussion Answers:VariesMacro: Attendance Micro: The motion of pushing the time clock buttonQuantity of Performance; Pay per UnitQuality of Performance, Pay based on quality audit criteria3

As behavior analysts and business professionals, we are uncomfortable with things we cannot see, touch, and objectively define. In fact, some behaviorists believe these phenomena are not worth studying at all. Despite this, the scientific community continues to push the study and benefits of awe. So what is awe? Can we define it behaviorally? And more importantly, as behavior analysts how can we ethically use this concept at work? Awe is a challenging concept to define behaviorally. Common language describes awe as an experience of heightened awareness of beauty that can often be induced among natural wonders or around inspiring leaders. According to scientists at UC Berkeley, awe can help employees foster innovation, employee wellbeing, and even improve corporate social responsibility behaviors at work. So how do we as behavior analysts understand what’s going on with this awe research?It could be that awe works by changing the stimuli we expose ourselves to, therefore breaking common behavior chains and creating the possibility for new contingencies. For example, due to my behavioral history, I might visually focus on the scheduling board the moment I walk in to work. This stimulus typically precedes my behavior of stressfully problem solving to address any staffing concerns that have popped up and sets me up to respond more harshly to other stimuli in my morning environment. On the other hand, replacing this initial stimulus with a visual of my favorite clients could shift my perspective and change the way I respond as I first walk into the lobby. Taking a few minutes to actively engage in awe can even have physiological effects that can improve efficiency, reduce absenteeism, and improve employee wellbeing. For instance, a few minutes of deep breathing can reduce body pain and blood pressure. When people feel better, they work better and love their jobs more!
Tips for taking advantage of awe in any organization:1. Incorporate awe journaling or exercises regularly at workThis could be as easy as sending out a weekly prompt in the scheduling email asking what inspired them today or taking ten minutes in a regularly scheduled meeting to share experiences of awe in a small group setting. Some organizations prefer a more formal awe program such as a weekly yoga group or company photo hike. The Sworkit app for Iphone and Android provides free, customizable short yoga sequences that can be done in an office with no equipment. Berkeley psychologist Dacher Keltner also provides this guide to walking meditation: https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/how_to_cultivate_awe_walking_meditation 2. Put awe-inspiring visual art in your officeVisual cues have long had a place in the behavior analytic and OBM literature. Placing visual aides around the office that have been paired with awe or that inspire employees to think about awe-inspiring experiences can be a simple way to improve office culture. Suggestions include visual progress charts, vertical gardens, and employee-chosen art. Check out https://www.thisisjasonsilva.com/or www.mwinklerphotos.com for quick sources.
3. Have an “awe hub” where employees can put up post-its, notes, and pictures that inspire awe in their lives.You probably already have a place in your office that collects notes and flyers. Encourage employees to also share their own awe experiences. Have an employee of the week share their personal awe story here or designate an awe-officer each month that is responsible for adding to the collection and spreading the joy. (Hint: having employees ask each other about their awe experiences can be exponentially beneficial!)
4. Educate employees on opportunities to take advantage of awe.Use behavioral skills training to teach employees not only to understand awe and its benefits but also to actively engage in awe. The steps of behavioral skills training include instructions, modeling, rehearsal, and feedback. As behavior analysts we know that people have to actually engage in the behavior to contact its consequences so the rehearsal step is the most important. I like this article for practical suggestions https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3592486/ and BSci21 also has a good tool for remembering “how to” BST here: http://www.bsci21.org/behavior-skills-training-in-4-steps/
5. Back it up with policy and oversightOnce employees know how to engage in a practice of awe, use policies, procedures, and management to maintain behavior change. This means catching people using awe and rewarding them for it from an organizational perspective. Make sure there are contingencies in place that make it worth the effort for your employees to practice awe, even though their schedules are busy. Don’t forget to train managers to identify and reinforce awe as well! The SHRM website is a great resource for policy templates if you are not familiar with this side of organizational management: https://www.shrm.org/
Interested in trying some awe exercises on your own or in your organization? Check out the C2 facebook page for a fun 14 day program from the Institute for Greater Good that promises to help you take your first steps toward an awe-filled life at work and at home. https://www.facebook.com/connectionsconsulting/
How do you feel about using a “fluffy” concept like awe in your organization? Is it appropriate? Is it scientific? Share your favorite awe experience or exercise in the comments below.