Psychopathology
This course addresses the major definitions for mental disorders, as well as the theories of etiology within the context of recent developments in the categorization and classification of psychological phenomena (DSM-IV-TR®). It includes models of mental status assessment and emphasizes cultural factors related to mental illness. IA survey of the classes of psychotropics used for the major disorders is also addressed. (3 credits)
Psychology of the Lifespan
This course examines normal development from infancy through advanced age, focusing on the development of perceptual and cognitive processes, psychosocial roles, and familial interpersonal processes. Current clinical approaches are examined from diverse theoretical viewpoints and in view of recent research findings. Cultural diversity and individual differences are integral to this course. For the Applied Behavior Analysis Specialization, this course meets Behavior Analysis Certification Board® requirements for 45 hours in “any other behavior analysis content area.” (3 credits)
Interviewing Skills I
This course provides a broad understanding of the philosophic bases of the helping process, an integration of counseling methods and strategies, basic helping skills, client and helper self-understanding and self-development, and facilitation of client change. Developmental factors with children and cultural differences are considered. (2 credits)
Interviewing Skills II
Prerequisite: Interviewing Skills I. This course builds upon the foundation of Interviewing Skills I. Specifically, students learn ways of incorporating these techniques into models of diagnostic interviewing. This course provides the student with a solid understanding of additional interview formats, including Mental Status Examinations and the assessment of suicidal ideation. Consideration of cultural differences in establishing a relationship and conducting an interview are integral to this course. (2 credits)
Concepts and Principles in Behavior Analysis
Behavior analysis is a natural science approach to studying behavior, wherein behavior is a legitimate subject matter in its own right, and is not the result of processes occurring within the individual. This course instructs students in the basic principles of operant and respondent conditioning, selection by consequences, and the research literature upon which they were derived. It is important for students to understand and be fluent in basic behavioral principles so that they understand the philosophical and empirical underpinnings of the interventions they apply. Furthermore, when an intervention is unsuccessful, they can use them to understand why, and draw upon them to make appropriate modifications. Topics covered in this course include reinforcement, simple and complex schedules of reinforcement, punishment, stimulus control, extinction, behavioral contrast, equivalence relations, and Skinner’s analysis of verbal behavior. Numerous applied examples are used to supplement the course material and readings. (3 credits)
Applied Behavior Analysis
Prerequisite: Concepts and Principles in Behavior Analysis. Applied behavior analysis is a discipline devoted to the understanding and improvement of human behavior. This course teaches students how to produce socially significant behavior change in applied settings using basic concepts and principles from the experimental analysis of behavior. Students learn how to apply basic principles and concepts of behavior analysis to produce effective, ethical, and meaningful change in the behavior of people they support through readings, lecture, discussion, and practice exercises. Some topics covered include how to select, identify, and effectively use reinforcers; how to manipulate reinforcement schedules and dimensions of reinforcement to produce the desired effects on behavior; and how to assess the functions or causes of behavior and develop function-based interventions. Students are also introduced to applied applications of verbal behavior, extinction, shaping, transfer of stimulus control, and stimulus equivalence. (3 credits)
Clinical and Educational Applications of Behavior
Analysis
Prerequisites: Concepts and Principles in Behavior Analysis, Applied Behavior Analysis. This course builds upon the basic principles of learning and applied behavior analysis
presented during the concepts and principles course. It emphasizes the critical features of structuring effective instruction and interventions for clinical and school settings. Students learn how to analyze instructional content and arrange it into sequences. This course is appropriate for students who will design and supervise instructional programs for clients in settings such as institutions, private intervention programs, rehabilitation programs, and schools or other educational programs. It is also for students who will work with clients such as adults with developmental disabilities, children with autism and related disabilities, or persons with learning disabilities. (3 credits)
Verbal Behavior Analysis
Prerequisite: Concepts and Principles in Behavior Analysis. Verbal behavior analysis is the joint application of findings from applied behavior analysis and verbal behavior research to establish communicative functions for individuals who lack them. This course examines Skinner’s theory of verbal behavior as well as the related conceptual and empirical literature. Special emphasis is given to applying verbal behavior analysis to children and adults with special needs. Topics covered include: (1) teaching elementary verbal functions such as echoics, mands, tacts, and intraverbals; (2) establishing fluent listener and speaker behavior; and (3) selecting and applying verbal behavior tactics to address individual communication deficits. (3 credits)
Assessment and Intervention
Prerequisite: Concepts and Principles in Behavior Analysis. In this course, students learn how to conduct assessments, review assessment data, and develop interventions based on provided and collected data. Students also learn methods to assess procedural fidelity and develop interventions that improve the implementation of behavioral assessments and interventions. This course provides in-depth discussions of educational assessments for children and adolescents with and without disabilities; behavioral assessments such as DIBELS, ABLLS, and VB MAP; and preference assessments, functional assessments, and functional analyses. It also addresses the administration, scoring, and interpretation of widely used intellectual assessment
instruments. (2 credits)
Behavioral Pharmacology
Prerequisite: Concepts and Principles in Behavior Analysis. This course presents the basic principles required for the use of psychopharmacological agents. All major classes of psychotropics are presented, including antidepressants, mood stabilizers, antipsychotics, anxiolytics and sedatives/hypnotics, psychostimulants, and atypical medications. Other topics covered include laboratory and physiological assessments pertinent to their use, basic neuro-chemical and anatomical concepts associated with their proposed mechanism of action, drug-drug interactions, adverse reactions, and pertinent aspects of differential diagnosis. Psychiatric aspects of general medical conditions, with particular attention to the diagnosis and treatment of delirium, are presented. (2 credits)
Advanced Intervention: Behavioral
This course is designed to introduce clinical behavior analysis, particularly for adults. It provides an overview of contemporary behavioral models and therapy techniques. It presents major behavioral modalities and their theoretical and research foundations. The emphasis is on the further development of a broad range of behavioral assessment, intervention, and conceptualization skills. A major focus is the proficiency in two full regimens of contemporary empirically supported manualized behavior therapy. (2 credits)
Diversity in Clinical Practice
This course considers the impact of privilege on students’ perception of culture, diversity, and identity. Students will explore their own culture, and their reactions to and perceptions of persons who are different. The course specifically examines class, ableness, gender roles, ethnicity, and sexual orientation, as well as the interaction between those statuses and clinical issues. (2 credits)
Professional Ethics and Issues
Professional, ethical, and legal issues related to the practice of professional counseling are critically examined. Issues considered include privacy, privilege, confidentiality and its limitations, informed consent, patients’ rights, malpractice, patient-therapist relationships, and regulations influencing the practice of therapy. For the Applied Behavior Analysis Specialization this course meets Behavior Analysis Certification Board® requirements for 10 hours in “ethical and professional standards issues relevant to the practice of behavior analysis.” (2 credits)
Observation and Measurement
This course addresses behavior definition, data collection, inter-observer agreement, social validity, and treatment integrity. The course content is based on current state-of-the-art procedures in applied behavior analysis and includes methods of classroom data collection, such as precision teaching and curriculum-based measures, and basic issues in data-driven decision making and measurement-guided education. (3 credits)
Research Methods
Prerequisite: Concepts and Principles in Behavior Analysis. This course teaches students how to conduct an experiment in applied behavior analysis that is methodologically and logically sound, socially valid, ethical, and legal. The course covers the major experimental designs used in applied behavior analysis, observation and data collection techniques, graphical and statistical analysis of data, and procedures for getting a study approved by the Institutional Review Board (IRB). The course also covers experimental and quasi-experimental designs used in other areas of psychology, including how to conduct and critique these studies and the advantages and limitations of each. By the end of the course students should be able to submit, conduct, present, and write up an experiment in applied behavior analysis, and to write an expert review of an experimental report for a peer-reviewed journal. Students should be able to critically analyze research from areas other than behavior analysis, as both professionals and consumers, and explain why a particular analysis or conclusion is or is not appropriate. (3 credits)
Advanced Research Project I
This seminar course marks the beginning of the thesis process for students in the Applied Behavior Analysis Specialization. It gives students the opportunity to learn about the research interests of the program faculty, sample recent behavior-analytic research, and learn how behavior analysis can be applied to special populations. ABA faculty members lead weekly classes based on current research from their individual specialty areas. Topics covered include applied research in verbal behavior as well as using behavior analysis to treat individuals with high-incidence disabilities, at-risk students, and individuals with drug/alcohol dependency. By the end of the course, students will be prepared to make informed decisions about their thesis topic and other related issues. (1 credit)
Advanced Research Project II
This is the second seminar designed to prepare students for the Applied Behavior Analysis master’s thesis. Emphasis is on utilizing the co-requisite M.A. practicum as a setting to propose a piece of applied behavior analytic research. The major learning objective is the completion of an accepted proposal for the M.A. thesis. (1 credit)
Advanced Research Project III
This is the final seminar in preparing an Applied Behavior Analysis master’s thesis. Emphasis is on utilizing the co-requisite M.A. practicum as a setting to complete a piece of applied behavior analytic research. The major learning objective is the completion of the M.A. thesis. (1 credit)
Science and Human Behavior (Elective)
Prerequisite: Concepts and Principles in Behavior Analysis. This course is designed to enhance students’ understanding of the application of behavior analysis to individual and social problems, with an emphasis on the philosophical bases of behavior analysis. Students read Skinner’s seminal text, Science and Human Behavior, in which he describes behavioral and cultural analyses, as well as critiques and related articles. The major objective of the class includes understanding and critiquing Skinner’s approach to the study and control of individual and group behavior. Topics include discussing individual behavior that seems difficult to study with a behavior-analytic approach (e.g., private events) as well as control of group behavior and the problems associated with such control. Students will be able to discuss the pros and cons of Skinner’s perspective, identify the aspects of his beliefs with which they agree or disagree, and explain their own perspectives. (2 credits)
Clinical Supervision in Applied Behavior Analysis (Elective)
This class prepares applied behavior analysts with the skills, practice, and resources to supervise clinical and nonclinical staff effectively in a variety of settings. The class includes a discussion of theoretical and ethical frameworks and competency-based practice in goal setting, selecting pinpoints or target behaviors, and providing feedback. Challenges to effective supervision and problem-solving strategies are also discussed and practiced in class. As part of the class, students supervise two to three individuals as part of the class. This course is limited to six students. (2 credits)
Organizational Behavior Management (Elective)
Prerequisite: Concepts and Principles in Behavior Analysis. This course focuses on applying behavior analytic principles in the domain of behavior consultation and management. Emphasis is placed upon understanding the various stages of successful behavior consultation, identifying potential problems that may arise during the consultation process, and knowing how to overcome them. School-based consulting is a major focus. Other major learning objectives include correctly identifying, explaining, and understanding the key concepts of behavioral consultation; applying the key concepts of behavioral consultation to any targeted consultation population; correctly identifying, explaining, and understanding the various stages of successful behavioral consultation; and successfully identifying potential problems that may arise during the consultation process and knowing how to overcome them. (2 credits)
Special Topics I
Special Topics II
Special Topics III
These seminar courses for the Applied Behavior Analysis Specialization address current topics in the field that may include autism, stimulus control, relational frame theory, verbal behavior theory, behavior intentional communities, instructional methodologies, and similar topics of interest. (AB 581 – 1 credit, AB 582 – 2 credits, AB 583 – 3 credits)
Professional Development Group
In Professional Development Group is a two-course series students explore issues of professional and career development in counseling including the history of counseling, roles of counselors, organizational structures, and credentialing. In addition, this course provides a forum for students to receive regular advisement, become oriented to The Chicago School, review policies and procedures of the program, master APA style and improve professional writing skills, learn and discuss implementation of ACA guidelines, plan for progress through the program, and prepare to begin their first practicum. Applied Behavior Analysis Specialization students also participate in approximately 10 hours per week of field experience. (1 credit)
Practicum I
Practicum II
Practicum III
Practicum IV
Prerequisites: Interviewing Skills I, Applied Behavior Analysis, Professional Ethics and Issues, Observation and Measurement, Professional Development Group. This applied experience is an opportunity for the student to demonstrate understanding of key concepts in clinical psychology and counseling in a work setting. Training includes a variety of activities that a clinical professional counselor is expected to perform, such as interviewing and intakes; individual, group and family counseling; and staff/case conference time. The training experience requires a minimum of 1,000 hours over a minimum of 12 months of on-site supervised training, including at least one hour
of individual supervision per week. (2 credits each – 8 credits total)
