Degree Requirements: As with other degree specializations in the Department of Psychology, students must complete 48 credit hours of graduate work in psychology to obtain the M.A. degree. A thesis is not permitted.   

Coursework: Completion of the following content courses with a minimum grade of “B” in each is required.  Note that Psyc 737 must be taken twice with a change of topic.  This course has been approved by the Faculty Senate for repeat enrollment, as indicated in the WVU Graduate Catalog.

1.   Psyc 511.  Research Design and Data Analysis 1. 3 Hr. Principles of experimental design in psychology including group and single subject methodologies. Topics include: (1) internal and external validity; (2) simple and complex analysis of variance; and (3) reversal and multiple baseline designs.

2.   Psyc 531. Experimental Analysis of Behavior. 3 Hr. Research and theory in the psychology of learning. Assessment of traditional and behavior-analytic approaches to the study of positive reinforcement, aversive control, and stimulus control. Includes laboratory work with animals.

3.   Psyc 533. Applied Behavior Analysis. 3 Hr. PR: PSYC 531. Methodological, empirical, and conceptual issues in the application of basic research in behavior analysis to problems of social significance.

4.   Psyc 607. Ethical & Legal Issues in Psychology. 3 Hr. Surveys the ethical guidelines and major legal issues confronted by psychologists.

5.   Psyc 611. Single-Subject Research Methods. 3 Hr. PR: PSYC 511 and PSYC 531. Critical evaluation of single-subject designs in basic and applied research. Major topics include single- subject methodology’s historical and conceptual bases, its relation to group-statistical methods, and its role in behavioral psychology.

6.   Psyc 737. Advanced Applied Behavior Analysis. 3 Hr. (May be repeated for credit with consent.) PR: PSYC 533.  Application of research and theory of behavior analysis to social problems; other selected topics.

7.   Psyc 737. Advanced Applied Behavior Analysis. 3 Hr. (May be repeated for credit with consent.) PR: PSYC 533.  Application of research and theory of behavior analysis to social problems; other selected topics.

8.   Psyc 652. Introduction to Clinical Psychology. 3 Hr. Basic interviewing skills and current problems in the practice of clinical psychology.

9.   Psyc 754.  Clinical Psychopharmacology. 3 Hr. Survey behavioral and psychological disorders.

10.  A 3-hr course in Special Education on Developmental Disabilities

Practica: The practica provide first-hand experience in applied behavior analysis with relevant client populations.  The practica will be supervised in accord with the guidelines established by the Behavior Analysis Certification Board. Students are supervised not only in their application of behavior principles in applied settings, but also with respect to such things as translating basic and applied research into practice and oral and written communication skills. Practica sites depend on availability in the community and in the Department.
            During both semesters of the first year, students are enrolled in 3 semester hours of practicum. During the second year, students are enrolled in 6 semester hours of practicum each semester. During the summer after the first year, students are enrolled in six hours of practicum. Each three hours of academic credit entail about 150 hours of practicum experience. (The total number of hours of supervised practicum required for students in this program for BCBA eligibility is 750).
            The first year of the practicum courses is an amalgam of activities designed to introduce the student to professional issues, observation and functional analysis of behavior, interviewing and other client-interaction skills, and contemporary research and treatment topics. Part of this practicum course will be supervised research involvement with one of the Behavior Analysis Program faculty members.
           

Other Requirements: All students are required to sit for a mock version of the BCBA written examination near the end of their second year in the program. Students likewise must  write a case study or client project that the student has completed during their practica. The document is not expected to contain a background review, but rather is an extended client report of the type that one might generate in an applied workplace. This document must be submitted for review by the practicum supervisor. Once the practicum supervisor has reviewed and approved the document, the document will be reviewed by a second faculty member. Once approved by both readers, the student must present the work during one of the Program’s regularly scheduled research and application seminars.

Evaluation of Students: Each student is evaluated by the Behavior Analysis Program faculty at the end of their first semester, at the end of their second semester, and at the end of their fourth semester in the program. The first two evaluations are written and are reviewed by the student with the faculty advisor within one month of the Program review. The reviews at the end of the first semester and first year include an evaluation of the student’s suitability to participate in the advanced practica. Students deemed unsuitable for placement in practica at the end of their first year are ineligible to continue toward the M.A. degree and are terminated from the program. In addition, students may be dismissed from the program for cause at any point in their training. Grounds for dismissal are delineated in the Psychology Department Graduate Handbook.