Bearded Behaviorist

A researcher found a species of ants that had toes when they were small but had none when they were larger. Other than this they weren't all that interesting. She wrote a single note on the species in her journal. It was, "lack toes in taller ant."
If you are going to CoABA 2025, I hope to see you!

His response was strange. He said, "See Kyle!" and pointed to the second floor but with his entire hand. I walked away because it kind of freaked me out how intense he was, but I am confused. Who is Kyle?

This is a joke, both this story & the cowards who justify dehumanize others & laugh about it.

Being half deaf is wild! I went to the library looking for the book the Rise & Fall of the Third Reich. I walked up to a librarian and noticed he had a really big Young Republicans pin on his chest. Odd choice for work, but ok. I asked, "Where can I find books on the Rise of Nazi Germany?"

Updated Definition of Insanity: Insanity = Rigid adherence to rules (spoken or unspoken) in the face of changing conditions, new information, etc.

Praise matters! Don't be a "Good Job Robot"! Instead, try labeling the behavior you saw with enthusiasm!
Example: "Match! You matched it! Yay!"
It's more realistic and it also models relational connects & builds language skills!

Protip: the appropriate response to "you are hurting me" is never to ignore or justify one's behavior. Even IF there was no intent to harm, the response means you are now choosing to ignore that harm & continue which means you now have chosen harm.

I am not anti-medication or pro-medication. I am pro-get-the-supports-you-need-to-succeed. If that means medication, great! If that means no medication, great! It's about addressing your needs.

If you want to support an artist, stand up against tyranny, and celebrate Pride all at once, please consider buying (or sharing) this design!

www.redbubble.com/shop/ap/1720...

Ignorance is bliss. Especially when the drug of misplaced rage is used to redirect that ignorance towards harm.

Know your rights! Protest!

P. S. I don't care if I lose followers for these posts. I am not going to budget on my values over likes and followers. I started this page because of my values. I will not compromise on them.

and I'm not accusing anyone of anything

perceived threats that aren't "actual" can be the problem just as easily, and so communication and feelings of safety become the issue

or is he fleeing because he likes the stim of running?

it all requires some serious root-cause analysis & risk mitigation

a missing Autistic person of color is the recipe for a lot of disaster

I hope they find him safe again, and I hope whatever is resulting in these disappearances is rectified before something worse happens

so sad! so scary!

this man has gone missing 3 times in 3 months and one has to wonder, what is he fleeing from? whether it's a real or perceived problem, three times in as many months is a lot of "elopement" (god, I hate that word in this context)

Breaking News! KMFDM ripped off a religious song when they wrote the iconic theme song for the Mortal Kombat movie!

It was a Finnish Hymn! 🥷

#dadjokes #puns #punissuer

ABAI still passively supports JRC. The QABA is pushing anti-DEI. The BACB is worried about their certification instead of about clients. Conversion therapy is on a rise. Pathologizing people is increasing. All of this are signals that we need to do something. Stand for fundamental rights & dignity.

Lazy behaviorism is dismissing anything that isn't readily apparent as behavior analytic by calling it a "soft skill" or dismissing an observation as being mentalism. The number one mentalism behavior analysts engage in is thought terminating tacts like these.

Privilege and Selection Bias in Peer Reviewed Research. It's a problem. Especially when the privileged can publish articles claiming that someone lack "expertise" because thet aren't published....

When we label others' outrage as 'performative,' are we really just protecting the systems being criticized? This new article examining how behavioral science can inadvertently reinforce power structures.

v.gd/FunctionOfOutrage

Awareness Without Action Is? World Autism Awareness Day! Yay! Or Perhaps Not? Should we celebrate? Should we cringe? These are pretty extreme reactions! Why do these two extremes exist? Or rather, why do these reactions exist amo...

Use the shorted link, scan the QR code, or go to is.gd/AwarenessWit... to read the full article! Share your thoughts in the comments. #AutismAwareness #NeurodiversityMatters #autismawarenessday #WorldAutismAwarenessDay

Awareness Without Action Is? World Autism Awareness Day! Yay! Or Perhaps Not? Should we celebrate? Should we cringe? These are pretty extreme reactions! Why do these two extremes exist? Or rather, why do these reactions exist amo...

As an autistic professional, I discuss:
• Why awareness without changes can hurt people
• The Double Empathy Problem - why understanding goes both ways
• How treating autism as something to "fix" causes harm
• How this affects parents too

World Autism Awareness Day Edition of the Functional Contextualist Newsletter is out today!

"Awareness Without Action Is?" explores why just knowing about autism isn't enough - we need to actually do something with that knowledge.

chng.it/x7DX7cWpRH

This study has been approved by the Endicott College Institutional Review Board.

Participants will be expected to:
-Read & respond to multiple-choice questions.
-Rate statements on a scale from Strongly Disagree to Strongly Agree.
-Provide brief, one- to three-word responses to nine open-ended questions.

You can access the survey here:
endicott.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_...

4. Non-autistic BCBAs who currently support autistic individuals & their families in applied settings.

The survey is estimated to take between 10 and 20 minutes to complete. No identifiable information will be collected from participants.

2. Parents and caregivers of autistic individuals who currently or previously received ABA services.
3. Autistic Board Certified Behavior Analysts (BCBAs) who currently support autistic individuals and their families in applied settings.

My colleagues are conducting a study to analyze perspectives on ABA procedures, principles, & ethical adherence across four key groups:

1. Autistic individuals who currently or previously received ABA services.

Are you a behavior analyst or a behavior technician? The behavior technician asks, "what can I do?". The behavior analyst asks "How can I use this? Apply this? Improve this?" The biggest disservice that has been done to behavior analysis is the narrowing of our imaginations due to rigidity.

The psychology behind anti-trans legislation: How cognitive biases shape thoughts and policy Two social psychologists explain the ways unconscious biases influence how people think and can fuel discrimination against transgender people and other minority groups.

The psychology behind anti-trans legislation: How cognitive biases shape thoughts and policy

theconversation.com/the-psycholo...

(Thanks to @advocatetruth.bsky.social for sharing)

Agree to disagree is reserved for matters of taste such as liking blue cheese or black licorice. This is not true for fundamental rights. The right to autonomy, to free expression, to live one's life the way one wants to live it is not something we can agree to disagree on.