Behavior Analysis @ MTSU

The MA in Applied Research and Methodology* with an emphasis in Behavior Analysis is a 2-year program that requires students to complete 22 hours of core courses, 6 hours of research/thesis, and 9 hours of elective courses:

Core Behavior Analysis Courses (Verified Course Sequence):

• PSY 6785 - Principles of Behavior Analysis (3 credit hours): Reinforcement theory and practice in applied settings with an emphasis on basic and advanced issues and best practices in behavioral control using reinforcers, punishers, discrimination, avoidance, shaping of new behaviors, chaining, contingencies, maintenance, and transfer. Special topics include language learning and training and the moral and legal controls in behavioral analysis. 

• PSY 5480 - Learning Theories (3 credit hours): Research and experiments in learning and the relate growth of the major theories of learning with emphasis on classical and instrumental conditioning and related topics. 

• PSY 6500 - Behavioral Methodology (3 credit hours): Techniques for design and evaluation of clinical treatment and research. Includes single subject and group designs. Emphasis on direct observation and data collection procedures, reliability, social validity, and generalization. 

•  PSY 6445 - Skills Assessment and Methods in Applied Behavior Analysis (3 credit hours): Covers the application of behavior analysis to building new skills and improving and maintaining existing socially important behaviors. Includes content on assessment, intervention procedures, and quality assurance of behavior analytic programming. 

• PSY 6440 - Advanced Applied Behavior Analysis (3 credit hours): Intensive presentation of methods used in behavioral assessment and interventions. Application of various behavioral techniques.

• PSY 5430 - Ethical Conduct in Behavior Analysis (3 credit hours): Ethical practice and professional roles of behavior analysts.

• PSY 6545 - Systems Level Behavior Analysis (3 credit hours): Introduces the application of behavior analytic concepts and principles to problems of human behavior at the group and organizational level, specifically in the context of clinical service delivery. 

• PSY 6720 - Literature Review and Reading in Learning (1 credit hours): Supervised literature review and/or readings on a topic of current importance in learning. Topics and requirements obtained from individual faculty advisors.

Research/Thesis Requirement:

• PSY 6600 - Independent Research in Psychology (3 credit hours): Individualized empirical research approved by an advisor. 

• PSY 6640 - Thesis Research (3 credit hours): Selection of a research problem, review of pertinent literature, collection and analysis of data, and composition of thesis. 

Elective Course #1 - Choose one of the four following courses:

• PSY 5240 - Behavioral Neuroscience (3 credit hours): The role of the brain in those areas which are typically considered by psychology, such as sensory and motor functions, motivation, higher mental functions, and mental disorders. 

• PSY 6020 - Theories of Personality (3 credit hours): Examines traditional schools of personality theory and current developments within each. 

• PSY 6190 -  Advanced Cognitive Psychology (3 credit hours): Topic-oriented overview of cognitive psychology. Models of attention, perception, memory, language, reasoning, problem solving, and decision making. Issues in cognitive development and cognitive neuropsychology. 

• PSY 6810 - Literature Review and Reading in Social Psychology (3 credit hours): Supervised literature review and/or readings on a topic of current importance in social psychology 

Elective Course #2 - Choose one of the three following courses:

• PSY 6120 - Developmental Psychology: Child (3 credit hours): Reviews the major areas of child development. These areas include cognitive, emotional, and social development. Primary attention will be devoted to the period of infancy through early adolescence. Covers both developmental theory and research. 

• PSY 6130 - Developmental Psychology: Adolescent (3 credit hours): Survey of research on adolescence from a biopsychosocial perspective. Student observation and study of developing adolescents from cognitive, biological, social, and psychological frameworks. 

• PSY 6410 - Developmental Psychology: Development Across the Lifespan (3 credit hours): Theories and characteristics of human development covering the lifespan. 

Elective Course #3 - Choose one of the two following courses:

• PSY 6280 - Psychological Statistics: Regression (3 credit hours): Review of basic statistics; various correlation coefficients; multiple and partial correlation; simple and multiple regression. 

• PSY 6290 - Psychological Statistics: ANOVA (3 credit hours): Review of basic statistics. Scientific quantification, research design, and statistical analysis from the perspective of analysis of variance: one-way, factorial, repeated measures, and mixed designs.