Integrative Review of Developmental Behavior-Analytic Concepts.

We reviewed five behavior-analytic concepts related to development: behavioral trap, cumulative-hierarchical learning (CHL), basic behavioral repertoire (BBR), pivotal behavior, and behavioral cusp. We searched for terminological variations of the concepts in the CAPES Journals Portal and selected for analysis 31 peer-reviewed articles written in English or Portuguese, published between 1967 and 2021, that contained the search terms in the title, abstract, or keywords and contextualized in the main text. We analysed the conventional usage of the concepts, their conceptual limitations, and the relationships among them, declared or implied, and proposed a conceptual integration of the concepts under a CHL framework, following a path indicated by other authors. We considered BBR, pivotal behavior, and behavioral cusp nonsynonymous concepts of the same logical category, referring to prerequisites for important developmental outcomes and targets of CHL-inspired interventions but defined by different effects on subsequent behavioral development. The three concepts can be conflated in a superset-subset fashion, based on the specificity of their effects: BBR consists of a broad class of behaviors that may affect subsequent learning; the subclass of BBRs characterized by far-reaching collateral effects are classified as pivotal behavior, and the subclass of pivotal behaviors whose potential effects include contact with unprecedented environmental contingencies are classified as behavioral cusps. We propose that behavioral traps be explicitly incorporated in the CHL framework, to emphasize the environmental component of the cumulative-hierarchical learning process. Our formulation seems to organize the conceptual field in a way that respects the conventional use of concepts, preserving their strengths. Regardless of the specific formulation, we believe that integrating the various development-related concepts within a cumulative-hierarchical learning framework can encourage a more proactive integration of findings, questions, and practices informed by each concept, which could lead to the mutual refinement of the corresponding conceptual and methodological frameworks, as well as new research questions and practical applications. In particular, we expect that explicitly incorporating behavioral traps within the CHL framework will provide a useful heuristic model to guide research on how natural environmental contingencies influence the systematic transformation of behavior across the lifespan.

Resistance to change as function of different physical-effort requirements in humans.

The effects of different physical-effort requirements on behavioral resistance to change were examined with undergraduate students engaging in a computer task for points exchangeable for money. In Baseline, button pressing was maintained on a multiple variable interval (VI) 45-s VI 45-s schedule of reinforcement with two physical-effort requirements: 10 N in the Low-Effort Component and 50 N in the High-Effort Component. In Test, button pressing was disrupted by a multiple extinction (EXT) EXT schedule plus anagrams as a concurrent task for five participants. For other two participants, button pressing was disrupted only by a multiple EXT EXT in one test, and both disruptors were implemented together in the second test. Baseline and Test conditions were replicated in an ABAB design. Resistance to change was greater in the presence of discriminative stimuli associated with the Low-Effort Component to six participants during the first test and to four participants during the second test. The present findings suggest differences in physical-effort can contribute to differences in resistance to change.

The Adventures of Amaru: Integrating Learning Tasks Into a Digital Game for Teaching Children in Early Phases of Literacy.

In low-income countries, the history of academic failure is a liability for children acquiring literacy skills. It is thus important to develop strategies that motivate and focus these students on specific strategies to learn to read. Digital games can be useful in motivating students and assisting teachers in the teaching-learning process, but there are few interactive tools that effectively integrate tasks of direct instruction and good gameplay. This technical report describes an interactive digital game to engage students in the initial phase of reading skills acquisition, whose design incorporates evidence-based procedures. The game, called "The Adventures of Amaru," aims to promote word coding-decoding skills and vocabulary growth through teaching trials. We discuss the adaptation of reading teaching curricula, their limitations and future implications of the use of this game by children from a low-income background.

Terapia Comportamental Infantil na relação mãe e filho ante o luto materno - um relato de caso / Child Behavior therapy in the mother-child relationship towards the mother's mourning - a case report

Participou do processo terapêutico um menino de seis anos, que foi trazido à clínica por sua mãe. A principal queixa estava relacionada com as perguntas que o menino fazia sobre a forma como o pai morreu. O pai suicidou-se quando o cliente tinha dois anos de idade após um longo período de adoecimento. As perguntas do cliente sobre como o pai havia falecido foram relatadas pela mãe como fonte de angústia para ela, pois não sabia se deveria contar. Com isso, o objetivo terapêutico principal foi ampliar o conhecimento que o cliente tinha acerca do pai. Também foram planejadas sessões de intervenção com a mãe. O conteúdo das perguntas sobre o pai e as respostas da mãe foram tomadas como as medidas comportamentais observadas. No total foram realizadas 25 sessões, sendo 12 com a criança e 13 com a mãe. Foi observado que o conteúdo das perguntas do menino mudou de foco durante o processo terapêutico. Concluiu-se que as perguntas iniciais do cliente em relação a morte do pai eram mantidas pela falta de informações sobre ele em decorrência da apresentação de um comportamento de esquiva da mãe quando o cliente solicitava tais informações.(AU)

Participated in the therapeutic process a six-year-old male child, who was brought to the clinic by his mother. The main complaint was related to the boy's questions about how his father died. The father committed suicide when the boy was two years old due to a long period of illness. The client's questions about how the father had died were reported by the mother as a source of distress for her, as she did not know if she should tell him. With this, the main therapeutic goal was to increase the client's knowledge about the father. Mother intervention sessions were also planned. The content of the questions about the father and the responses of the mother was taken as the behavioral measures observed. Overall 25 sessions were held, 12 with the child and 13 with the mother. It was observed that the content of the boy's questions shifted focus during the therapeutic process. It was concluded that the client's initial questions regarding the father's death were maintained by the lack of information about him as a result of the mother's evasive behavior when the client requested such information.(AU)

Relação entre a renda mensal e o desejo de ter filhos procurados no parceiro afetivo por homens e mulheres homossexuais e heterossexuais / Relations between sexual partner's income and their desire to have children wanted by homosexual and heterosexual men and women

A eficácia do desempenho sexual, de um modo geral, depende de uma seleção rigorosa de parceiros feita pelos membros de cada espécie. Entre os humanos, o critério financeiro é um dos aspectos que caracterizam a diferença sexual na seleção de parceiros. Contudo, o comportamento sexual não pode ser definido apenas pelos aspectos característicos de pessoas heterossexuais, pois também existem relacionamentos homossexuais. A partir desta perspectiva, investigou-se, através de um website, as preferências de homossexuais e heterossexuais por renda mensal e desejo de ter filhos no parceiro. Constatou-se que os heterossexuais desejam mais ter filhos do que os homossexuais. Além disso, para ambas as orientações, a "renda mensal" não demonstrou ser um critério seletivo na hora de escolher um parceiro

The effectiveness of sexual performance generally depends on a selection made by rigorous partners members of each species. Among humans, the financial test is one of the aspects that characterize the sexual difference in the selection of partners. However, sexual behavior cannot be defined only by the characteristic aspects of heterosexual people, because there are also homosexual relationships. From this perspective, it was investigated, through a website, the preferences of homosexual and heterosexual by monthly income and partner's desire to have children. It was found that heterosexual's desire to have children is bigger than homosexuals. In addition, for both orientations, the "monthly income" not proved to be a selective criterion when choosing a partner

Estudo comparativo das preferências por idade, altura e peso de homossexuais e heterossexuais, na seleção de parceiros / Comparative study of age, height and weight preferences of homosexuals and heterosexuals in mate selection / Estudio comparativo de las preferencias por edad, estatura y peso de homosexuales y heterosexuales en la elección de pareja

A comparação de homens e mulheres homossexuais e heterossexuais é útilpara reduzir o número de teorias explicativas quanto à etiologia das diferenças sexuaisno âmbito da seleção de parceiros. Assim, comparamos as preferências por idade,altura e peso de 600 participantes de um website de relacionamento afetivo. Os resultadosindicam que para a idade, os homossexuais são típicos de sexo. Além disso, os aspectosaltura e peso preferidos no parceiro, pelo menos entre os heterossexuais, são tãopreditivos de sexo quanto idade, visto que uma assimetria nas preferências os caracteriza.Em outras palavras, homens preferem mulheres mais novas, mais baixas e mais levesque eles, enquanto que as mulheres preferem o inverso. A grande variabilidade nosvalores preferidos pelos homossexuais sugere uma reunião de pessoas com mecanismospsicológicos muito diferentes, em um mesmo grupo(AU)

The comparison between male and female homosexuals and heterosexualsis useful for reducing the number of explanatory theories regarding the etiology of sexdifferences in the mate selection. Therefore, we compared the preferences for age,height and weight of 600 participants from an online dating website. The resultsindicated that homosexuals are sex-typical for age preferences. In addition, the heightand weight in a preferred partner, at least among heterosexuals, are so predictive asage are, whereas an asymmetry in the preferences characterized them. In otherwords, men prefer younger women, lower and lighter than them, while women preferthe opposite. The variability about values preferred by homosexuals suggests aninappropriate reunion of people with very different psychological mechanisms in thesame group(AU)

La comparación de hombres y mujeres homosexuales y heterosexuales es útilpara reducir la cantidad de teorías explicativas en cuanto a la etiología de las diferenciassexuales en relación a la elección de pareja. En el presente estudio, se comparan laspreferencias por edad, altura y peso de 600 participantes de un site de relacionessentimentales. Los resultados muestran que en relación a la edad, los homosexuales sonpredecibles. Además, las características como altura y peso preferido en la pareja, por lomenos entre los heterosexuales, son tan predictivos de sexo como la edad, siendo queuna asimetría en las preferencias los caracterizó. En otras palabras, los hombres prefierenmujeres más jóvenes, más bajas y más livianas que ellos, mientras que las mujeresprefieren lo contrario. La gran variabilidad en los valores de preferencia de los homosexuales,sugiere uniones indebidas de personas con mecanismos psicológicos muy diferentes, enun mismo grupo(AU)