Abstract
A practitioner-scholar plays a significant role in conducting scholarly research and communicating relevant findings in a proper manner that conveys knowledge. Being able to achieve such a goal will enhance my passion for becoming a certified behavior analyst. It is my aim to provide a voice to those are unable to speak for themselves through my work. Becoming a practitioner-scholar will allow me to accomplish my goal of gaining skills in research and data collection, which would be possible if I continue to practice and enhance my knowledge on scholarly articles. The aim of this paper is to analyze the practitioner-scholar model and assess my vision on becoming a certified behavior analyst. The paper will constitute a brief introduction on my personal interest and desires, it will also evaluate three articles I intend to use in my research work and finally, my vision statement and relation to the relevant themes will also be discussed.
Introduction
I have always had an interest in behavioral psychology and this has seen me have a special interest in children with autism. Several research have been conducted regarding this area and I am majorly interested in the treatment of children with such disorders. In as much as there may be several treatment options, I will not be blind to the fact that children with autism have special abilities and strengths, I would rather pay attention to their abilities as opposed to their weaknesses while at the same time seeking medical solutions to the same. I have done extensive research and compiled a couple of articles that I am interested in. My interest in this subject grew after I got two children suffering from mental illnesses. I began to be more attentive to their passions and interests and this made me more interested in autism. I believe people suffering from this disability are highly talented and intelligent; one only needs to find out what they are good at and focus on it.
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Evaluation of Sources
Theme 1: Positive Reinforcement
The first article, Behavior Analysis: Applied behavior analysis written by Trump talks about the use of positive reinforcement to encourage children with disabilities. In the articles, the author talks about the various methods that can be used to encourage positive behavior in children with autism. He further discusses the myths that are related to the subject in question and uses concrete evidence to demystify some of the misinformation that has been given over time. In light of this, I find the article quite informative on the subject of behavior analysis since it gives detail on the things to look out for when dealing with persons with such disabilities. Trump emphasizes on the use of reinforces to reduce inappropriate behavior while at the same time teaching appropriate reinforcement behaviors. I find this article quite informative since it has several examples that I can relate with and at the same time, I agree with the methods the author advocates. Additionally, the article is credible and valid since the author uses cited examples and experiences that have been tested and proved. He also incorporates information from various researches done by other credible researches, this makes his work reliable and at the same time informative. I love the author ’s point of view since it is not bias and focuses on the information that I deem relevant. The article is also in line with the theme of reinforcing strengths I autistic children other than dwelling on their weaknesses (Trump, 2011).
Theme 2: Behavioral Intervention
The second article discuss problem solving and analytical reasoning abide by good behavioral intervention that will speed the learning process. In addition, the environment must be addressed accordingly. The article titled Behavior analyst today: Problem solving, reasoning, and analytical thinking in a classroom environment written by Robbins addresses various analytical and critical thinking methods of problem solving. The author carefully addresses issues of reasoning and analytical thinking and how they are related to behavior analysis. To add on this, Robbins discusses elements known as teachable repertoires that ae discussed in details. The author further incorporates various studies done in various institutions and schools that relate to dealing with children with special needs. I like the article since it gives a good background on the methods that were previously used and at the same time incorporates the methods that are currently in use. This explains how the author highlights various methods that can still be dated 15 years back showing a clear application of the strategies and methods used. The author further goes ahead to mention various procedures that can be used to reinforce positive behavior and how they can be passed from one person to the next. I find this text quite informative especially when it comes to the aspect of critical thinking. Behavior analysis is a subject that entails a lot of analytical and critical thinking since a professional need to learn, study and monitor the behavior of the persons under study. I find the article subjective and not biased. It is informative in the relevant area of discussion and this will give me the needed information to build on my research question (Robbins, 1991).
Theme 3: Practical Learning
The last article titled A progressive model for teaching children with autism. Journal of applied behavior analysis by Gunby is more of a practical application of treatment methods. This is in line with my research question since it focuses on the practical use of the theoretical treatments used. In this article, the author talks about three children with autism spectrum disorder. He follows the children and discusses how they participate in various activities using positive reinforcement and proper environment. This is a more recent article, which is used to put into practice the application aspect of behavior analysis. Gunby writes about three children with autism spectrum disorder and how they are trained to follow an instructor’s gaze to select a specific item. The instructor uses different prompts with each participant. The author further shows how the progressive training model can be used to increase gaze shift for children with autism spectrum disorder. According to the author, the children learned to follow instructions, gaze rather to make the correct selection. This is quite informative since it shows different behavioral techniques that can be used to deal with children with autism. I believe the experiments can also be used to identify various strengths and abilities possessed by various children. The information in the article is credible since it is a primary source and the participants are first time. However, the conclusion made may not necessarily be credible and reliable since the sample size used is quite limiting. I believe the information may be more reliable if the sample size is increased. The article however is in line with my selected themes and it will be beneficial in my research (Gunby, 2018).
Application and Research Vision
I desire to be a successful practioner-scholar who is keen to help children with autism and ADHD disorders. The studies I am conducting now are all in line with helping me learn more about my area of study and this will make me more knowledgeable in this particular field. I am more into the behavioral reinforcement aspect of behavior training and the information found in these articles will be useful to me. I believe in focusing on the strengths of persons with mental illnesses other than focusing on their weaknesses. Thus, learning how to maximize on their strengths will be a crucial step towards achieving this. Additionally, the articles focuses on positive reinforcement and teachable techniques that I would love to employ in my quest to achieve my vision. I believe that the application of various learning techniques will go a long way into ensuring that I realize my dream of seeing talented persons with disabilities doing special abilities despite their partial limitations. I aim to see better society where persons with disabilities are not seen as a burden; however, they should be seen as talented human beings who have special abilities that are yet to be exploited. I have always had a heart for the less privileged in the society and these studies will help me to become better equipped to see my vision. On the other hand, I would love to leave a positive impact on the lives of many children to help them have dreams they can achieve despite the hardship that may come their way. Having more knowledge will help me get the right certifications and do my exams. I look forward to setting up my own office to serve my community and have a special interest in children with autism and ADHD since I have seen they are becoming common and most parents and caregivers do not know how to go about it.
Conclusion
These articles above give more insight on the area of psychology I am interested in and I would love to follow up later in future as I advance my knowledge in this field. I determine whether my research is relevant to my question by asking myself these questions: does the source provide a general overview of my topic, or is it focused? What is the authors’ point of view? I used the strategies learned at Capella University. I used the library as a source, and I searched for my question. In addition, I searched for peer review articles, and evaluated the credentials. The criteria used was the following questions: Is the following authors credible? Did the author have credentials? Evaluate the scholarly information by searching for the article content, site, material, and author. Is the author in the psychology field, or is it a random information? I do see a theme on these articles that correlate.
The articles selected are all in line with my themes and my research question. I am interested in the implementing early intervention strategies for children who have been diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder. The main themes are the intervention and treatment strategies that can be used during this process. To add on this, the articles selected have various purposes and uses in my research. The first article on behavior analysis will enforce my focus on behavior reinforcement, the second article will focus on problem identification and solving technique whereas the third article focuses on the practical aspect of my selected themes. The articles complement each other well since they all include the theoretical, analytical and practical aspect of the selected themes. All these have to however fall in line with my vision.
References
Trump, C. (2011). Behavior Analysis: Applied behavior analysis. (1 st ed.). Anthens, GA: Academic search premier.
Robbins, K., J. (1991) Behavior analyst today: Problem solving, reasoning, and analytical thinking in a classroom environment . Seattle, WA: Good Year Books.
Gunby, K., V. (2018) A progressive model for teaching children with autism . Journal of applied behavior analysis (0021-8855), 51(3), P.694.
