Association for Behavior Analysis International

Climate Change and Human Health. What can Behavior Analysts do? Lincoln Kamau Carbon Purple and Autism Resources & Therapy Center of Massachusetts Abstract: Climate Change is the greatest single threat to human health on the planet today. Air pollution alone is estimated to cause 7 million deaths a year. That is at least double the number of people who died globally from COVID-19 in 2020 (WHO, 2020). B.F. Skinner was concerned with the application of behavioral science to solve important human problems, such as overpopulation, nuclear war, pollution, opportunities for minorities and more (e.g., Skinner, 1987, 1971/2002). He maintained that the solution to these problems required the modification of behavior and, therefore, a technology of behavior. Given the threat climate change presents to humanity, but also cognizant of the effective technologies’ behavior analysts have in their tool kit, this presentation will challenge behavior professionals to embrace a range of micro and macro-level interventions such as targeted feedback, environmental arrangements, group contingencies, renewable energy use, food production, waste recycling and reduction etc. to increase and improve sustainable practices. Behavior analysts will also be challenged to collaborate with other experts and policy makers to improve sustainable practices in a variety of areas including environmental conservation and preservation, renewable energy, emission control and transportation. The Environmentalist Behavior Analyst: Identifying Opportunities and Feasibility of Behavior Analytic Careers in Sustainability Julia H. Fiebig (Ball State University; AGI), Jessica Ghai (Boston University), Holly Seniuk (Behavior Analyst Certification Board) Abstract: The effects of climate change are primarily issues of social and environmental justice. They are symptomatic of a lack of sustainable and regenerative systems that could offer a stable social foundation for the entire population, without exceeding the ecological ceiling of the earth’s resources (Raworth, 2017). While most behavior analysts work within the fields of education and human services, a growing number of practitioners and researchers recognize the urgency to expand work into other sectors. Environmental sustainability is one area that continues to grow as a legitimate professional opportunity for behavior analysts. Given the complexity and urgency of this Super Wicked Problem, there exist a vast number of issues that behavior analysts can meaningfully impact. This paper presents the array of environmental sustainability issues behavior analysis can help solve as well as a systematic framework for those behavior analysts thinking of focusing their behavior analytic work on sustainability. An overview of an iterative process is offered, inclusive of values clarification, evaluation of situational needs and assets, and creation of an action plan. This process creates opportunity for the behavior analyst to consider how they may augment, or shift, their work to critical issues of environmental sustainability and justice. Meg Martineau (New England Behavior Analysts for Sustainability) The Ripple Effects of Committing to Sustainable Action at your Place of Work Abstract: One of the largest challenges facing our society is the climate crises, yet there are very few BCBA certificates where this is their area of focus. The primary area of focus for BCBAs continues to be in the treatment of autism spectrum disorder (Behavior Analysis Certification Board, 2021). As the climate crisis unfolds, the demand for behavioral based climate solutions will continue to grow. Behavior analysts have the opportunity to make a significant impact on climate change initiatives at their place of work, home, or community. This talk will describe the implementation of a behaviorally based climate solution based on a community-based social marketing framework (Mackenzie-Mohr, 2017). This presentation will describe the implementation of a school wide composting program, discuss how behavior analysts already possess leadership skills in sustainability efforts, and describe the larger ripple effects created through targeted actions.

Intermediate: Individuals who are interested in learning more about how behavior analysts can become more involved with sustainability efforts. The talk will focus on immediate actions that can be taken to make a positive change and will also, look at long-term efforts of each author for improving sustainability practices.

Climate Change is the greatest single threat to human health on the planet today. Air pollution alone is estimated to cause 7 million deaths a year. That is at least double the number of people who died globally from COVID-19 in 2020 (WHO, 2020). B.F. Skinner was concerned with the application of behavioral science to solve important human problems, such as overpopulation, nuclear war, pollution, opportunities for minorities and more (e.g., Skinner, 1987, 1971/2002). He maintained that the solution to these problems required the modification of behavior and, therefore, a technology of behavior. Given the threat climate change presents to humanity, but also cognizant of the effective technologies’ behavior analysts have in their tool kit, this presentation will challenge behavior professionals to embrace a range of micro and macro-level interventions such as targeted feedback, environmental arrangements, group contingencies, renewable energy use, food production, waste recycling and reduction etc. to increase and improve sustainable practices. Behavior analysts will also be challenged to collaborate with other experts and policy makers to improve sustainable practices in a variety of areas including environmental conservation and preservation, renewable energy, emission control and transportation.

One of the biggest obstacles that we currently face in slowing down global warming is increased human consumption. Human consumption behaviors have increased greenhouse gas emissions faster than technology has been able to reduce emissions (Arto & Dietzenbacher, 2014). Popular opinion holds that humans will find a solution to greenhouse gas emissions, as innovation given environmental strain has historically been true (Harari, 2015). It is estimated that in 20 years the temperature of the earth will rise by 1.5?, which will result in increased heat waves, longer warm seasons, shorter cold seasons, and natural disasters (IPCC, 2021). One area of consumption that has drastically increased recently is food waste (Hall et al., 2009). Food waste is one of the largest producers of methane emissions, a more potent greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide (Miller et al., 2013). An intervention was piloted that looked at decreasing food waste by practicing contemplative practices aimed at increasing a sense of community with humanity and engage in less I/me/my behavior and increase behaviors towards humanity.

Applied behavior analysis (ABA) is commonly utilized to address the core deficits of autism spectrum disorder and other intellectual disabilities. However, the use of behavioral change tactics has been demonstrated to be effective in increasing physical activity levels across intervention type and populations. Identified using the PRIMSA Model, 50 articles, which investigated the application of behavior analytic interventions to increase physical activity in individuals with sedentary lifestyles, illness, and/or disease, were included in this analysis. Various measures were delineated to evaluate the research including participant age and diagnoses, number of participants setting, experimental design, type of intervention implemented, treatment package or independent intervention, duration of intervention, and outcome and maintenance. The measures revealed 90% of reviewed experiments demonstrated meeting mastery level criterion, statistical significance, or high statistical significance. A review from this analysis also includes the effectiveness of utilizing behavior analytic interventions, behavior analysts’ responsibility to this area, current implications in involving behavior analysts in this specialized of application of ABA, limitations, and relevant areas for future research.

Throughout the last decade we have been experiencing the unprecedented effects of climate change, and although a systemic change is undisputedly necessary, individual behavior change has proven to be meaningful and is essential to prevent further depletion of natural resources and expansional increases in anthropogenic emissions. The first speaker will discuss a series of three studies analyzing the relational frames surrounding climate related purchasing using arbitrary symbols and a relational training task and was later visually depicted using the Multidimensional Scaling (MDS) procedure. The results of these studies illustrate consistency regarding an individual's climate related purchasing. Finally, using ecofeedback, the speaker will unpack the results of incentivization and climate related behaviors. The second speaker will discuss two studies, the first will analyze the results from a principal analysis of a 20-item list that identifies pro-environmental behaviors that significantly contribute to emission contributions. In the second study, the speaker will discuss the results from a correlational analysis that assessed the relationships between climate anxiety, psychological flexibility, and pro-environmental behavior. Climate change is a complex problem that requires innovative and complex solutions, and these studies together illustrate behavior analysts’ role in combating the climate crisis.

Behavior analysts, students, and faculty

As our climate continues to warm due to anthropogenic (i.e., human) causes, natural disasters continue to increase in magnitude and intensity while climate migration and justice issues become increasingly salient. Human action is needed; however, experiential avoidance of climate action may occur along with high rates of anxiety about climate change. Climate anxiety can become maladaptive when it impacts an individual's quality of life, and arguably when it hinders their ability to engage in pro-climate behavior. In a first study, we developed a 20-item climate checklist from an initial list of 100 items. The results of a principal component analysis identified three factors where consumer behavior was most predictive of high emissions in our sample. In a second study, we evaluated the relationships between climate anxiety (Climate Anxiety Scale) , psychological flexibility (AAQ-II), and engagement in pro-climate behavior as indexed on the climate behavior checklist. Results support a psychological flexibility model of climate anxiety wherein promoting greater flexibility around issues of climate change could influence pro-climate behavior.