FlexPrax, Applied, & Conceptual Chats

I know this proably sounds confusing to you right now. Let's break down what a "FlexPrax" is and explore the differences between an applied/clinical chat and a conceptual chat.

"FlexPrax" is short for "flexibility practice" and is the part of lab meetings dedicated to offering labbies the opportunity to practice some flexibility! After labbie check-in and project check-in, the lab meeting will then shift to the FlexPrax for anywhere from 5-20 minutes. For a long time, this looked like all the labbies following along a guided mindfulness meditation practice (if they chose to follow along), but we've opened up the floor to any and all labbies who wish to lead the lab in some kind of flexibility exercise. 

Aside from guided mindfulness meditation and other mindfulness exercivses (e.g., body scanning, mindful movement, mindful eating, breath work, etc.), the lab has participated in some unique and interesting FlexPrax! These include

• laugh yoga

• dance parties

• creating magnetic poetry

• how music and sound impact your body

• silence

• reading children's books and poems

There's really no official structure to this thing. After the FlexPrax exercise is over, labbies are invited to share any thoughts and observations that came up during the exercise. The FlexPrax is also not a mandatory part of lab... labbies who do not wish to partake in the exercise can simply observe or step away from the meeting for the time being, whichever floats your boat.

Any labbie is welcome to lead the FlexPrax! All you have to do is sign up! 

After the FlexPrax portion of the lab comes the applied or conceputal chat, depending on what folks have signed up to talk about that day. Below is a little more about these options.

If someone has signed up to lead an "Applied or Clinical Chat" in lab, it usually means that they want to discuss or workshop some applied practice, such as leading folks in exercises, or maybe they just want to get some clinical stuff on the table and chew on it. Labbies can bring conceptual ideas or practical problems they are currently experiencing in their training or practice. This time is dedicated to offering labbies the opportunity to do experiential work around building those clinical or applied skills. Many of the topics are typically approached from a clinical behavior analytic perspective, and we've covered topics such as compassion-focused therapy,  clinical implications of an interbehavioral perspective, reconceptualizing exposure therapies, etc. Some clinical chats have orgnaically lead to labbies engaging in role-plays and other clinical workshop exercises, which allows them to directly build on their clinical skills.

Some topics the lab has discussed during applied/clinical chats include:

• An overview of Dr. Emily Sandoz's Clincial Behavior Analysis training curriculum and classes

• Conducting therapy with an interpreter

• Navigating power differentials in the clinic

• Client spirituality

• Getting clients in the present moment

• Interventions for clients living in aversive environments

• Exploring the function of mindfulness meditations in clinical settings

• A behavior analytic account of comedy and using it as a strategy to teach flexibility skills

• A clinical behavior analytic and interbehavioral account of teaching

• Building a "Dream Clinical Training Program" 

• An interbehavioral account of exposure therapy

• Psychosis and delusions: How do we address it in practice with individuals we support?

• Coercion and assent - Milgram flipside

Any labbie is welcome to lead the an Applied/Clinical chat. No topics are off limits. All you have to do is sign up! 

"Conceptual Chats" consist of the lab discussing any psychological phenomena that we would like to look at from a contextual behavioral, clinical behavior analytic, or interbehavioral perspective. Labbies can choose any topic they would like the lab to discuss and lead the conceptual chat by providing the lab with some general information about their topic (e.g., the common definition, any psychological research on the topic, any personal stories or encounters with the topic). 

Some topics the lab has discussed during conceptual chats include:

• Revenge

• Secondhand embarrassment

• Dreaming

• Compassion

• Grit

• Boundaries

• Imagination, creativity, art, & artistry

• Loneliness

• Faking

• Daydreaming

• Dissociation, depersonalization, & derealization

• Avoidance

• World views

• Comedy

• Flourishing

• Self-care

• Ethics in AI

• Power

• Belonging

• Liminality

• Identity

• Pleasure/self-pleasure

• Awe

• Shame/guilt

• Nostalgia

• Intuition

• Time

• "The Self"

• Privilege

• Affirmative consent

• Intimacy

• Gender as a behavior

Sometimes the lab's discussion of a topic goes beyond the lab meeting and turns into a paper, as is the case with the topics of privilege, consent, intimacy, and gender. You can find the lab's official stance on these topics on the Publications webpage of this site. The lab also has a Conceptual Chat Discrimination Sheet to help generate discussion and behavior analytic thinking for the chosen topic!

Any labbie is welcome to lead a Conceptual chat. No topics are off limits. All you have to do is sign up!