M. Jackson Marr

Sex differences in spatial ability: a test of the range size hypothesis in the order Carnivora

Sex differences in spatial cognition have been reported for many species ranging from voles to humans. The range size hypothesis predicts that sex differences in spatial ability will only occur in species in which the mating system selects for differential range size. Consistent with this prediction, we observed sex differences in spatial ability in giant pandas, a promiscuous species in which males inhabit larger ranges than females, but did not observe sex differences in Asian small-clawed otters, a related monogamous species in which males and females share home ranges. These results provide the first evidence of sex differences in spatial ability in the order Carnivora, and are consistent with the range size hypothesis.

Habituation and desensitization as methods for reducing fearful behavior in singly housed rhesus macaques

Operant conditioning using positive reinforcement techniques has been used extensively in the management of nonhuman primates in both zoological and laboratory settings. This research project was intended to test the usefulness of counter‐conditioning techniques in reducing the fear‐responses of singly housed male rhesus macaques living in the laboratory environment. A total of 18 male rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta) were selected for this project and randomly assigned to one of three groups: a desensitization training group, a husbandry training group, or a control group. Behavioral data were collected before and after a 6 weeks training and/or habituation period during which the first two groups received a total of 125 min of positive reinforcement training (and also were assumed to undergo habituation to the environment) and the control group experienced only simple habituation to the environment. Based on a Wilcoxon Matched‐Pairs Sign Test, we found that a significant proportion of animals exposed to desensitization training showed a reduction in the rate at which they engaged in cringing toward humans (exact significance=0.016, one‐tailed, N–ties=6), cringing in general (exact significance=0.016, one‐tailed, N–ties=6), and in stress‐related behaviors (exact significance=0.016, one‐tailed, N–ties=6). This was not the case for animals exposed to basic husbandry training or animals in the control group. A significant proportion of desensitization‐exposed animals also showed a reduction in the duration of time spent cringing toward humans (exact significance=0.016, one‐tailed, N–ties=6), but not in cringing behaviors in general or in stress‐related behaviors. There were not a significant proportion of animals in either the husbandry training group or the control group that showed a decrease in duration of these behaviors. Results of this study could enhance both laboratory animal welfare and laboratory animal research, and could be a first step in developing techniques for reducing fearful behavior in rhesus monkeys in the laboratory environment. Am. J. Primatol. 71:30–39, 2009.

The stitching and the unstitching: What can behavior analysis have to say about creativity?

Traditional critics of behaviorism and behavior analysis have emphasized that these approaches cannot deal with creative achievements in the arts or sciences, or even in ordinary speech. This essay explores several lines of research and conceptual issues from different sources in an effort to refute this claim. The emphasis is on scientific and mathematical creativity. Some of the topics considered include the role of special practice and manipulation, conditions for development of automaticity, the interplay of contingency-controlled and rule-governed behavior, modeling, abstraction, intuition, the blending of response units, and emergent behavior. Some limitations of a behavioral account are also considered.

Tale of two curricula: The performance of 2000 students in introductory electromagnetism

The performance of over 2000 students in introductory calculus-based electromagnetism (EM M&I averages were significantly higher in each topic. The results suggest that the M&I curriculum is more effective than the traditional curriculum at teaching E&M concepts to students, possibly because the learning progression in M&I reorganizes and augments the traditional sequence of topics, for example, by increasing early emphasis on the vector field concept and by emphasizing the effects of fields on matter at the microscopic level.

Comparing large lecture mechanics curricula using the Force Concept Inventory: A five thousand student study

The performance of over 5000 students in introductory calculus-based mechanics courses at the Georgia Institute of Technology was assessed using the Force Concept Inventory (FCI). Results from two different curricula were compared: a traditional mechanics curriculum and the Matter & Interactions (MI the differences between curricula persist after accounting for factors such as pre-instruction FCI scores, grade point averages, and SAT scores. FCI performance on categories of items organized by concepts was also compared; traditional averages were significantly higher in each concept. We examined differences in student preparation between the curricula and found that the relative fraction of homework and lecture topics devoted to FCI force and motion concepts correlated with the observed performance differences. Concept inventor...

Has Radical Behaviorism Lost Its Right to Privacy

The role of privacy and private events is a most challenging problem in the analysis and understanding of behavior, and many questions remain unanswered or, at the least, controversial. The set of papers on this topic included in a recent issue of Behavior and Philosophy (2009) illustrates that even among those who are quite sympathetic to a behavioristic perspective, there is much diversity and disagreement over many fundamental issues.

Color vision in the giant panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca)

Hue discrimination abilities of giant pandas were tested, controlling for brightness. Subjects were 2 adult giant pandas (1 male and 1 female). A simultaneous discrimination procedure without correction was used. In five tasks, white, black, and five saturations each of green, blue, and red served as positive stimuli that were paired with one or two comparison stimuli consisting of 16 saturations of gray. To demonstrate discrimination, the subjects were required to choose the positive stimulus in 16 of 20 trials (80% correct) for three consecutive sessions. Both subjects reached criterion for green and red. The female subject also reached criterion for blue. The male was not tested for blue. This study is a systematic replication of Bacon and Burghardt’s (1976) color discrimination experiment on black bears. The results suggest that color vision in the giant panda is comparable to that of black bears and other carnivores that are not strictly nocturnal.

FUNCTIONAL ANALYSIS AND TREATMENT OF HUMAN-DIRECTED UNDESIRABLE BEHAVIOR EXHIBITED BY A CAPTIVE CHIMPANZEE

A functional analysis identified the reinforcer maintaining feces throwing and spitting exhibited by a captive adult chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes). The implementation of a function-based treatment combining extinction with differential reinforcement of an alternate behavior decreased levels of inappropriate behavior. These findings further demonstrate the utility of function-based approaches to assess and treat behavior problems exhibited by captive animals.

Operant Methods Assessing the Effects of ELF Electromagnetic Fields

The recent surge of research on ELF electromagnetic radiation has devoted much concern to behavioral effects on animals. Frequently, the rationale for this research has been to reveal effects of ELF fields on physiological substrates manifested by the measured behavior. While this goal is laudable, such an approach often ignores the rich but orderly fabric of the primary dependent variable — behavior. The physiological bases of all but the simplest behaviors are, at best, obscure and likely to remain so in the absence of careful specification of the environmental variables of which behavior is a function. Thus analyses of the effects of ELF electromagnetic radiation (as well as other agents) on behavior should be pursued in its own right without the necessity to physiologize. Appropriately identified behavioral effects of ELF fields might prove of enormous significance. For example, Marr, Rivers, & Burns (1973) noted: “Considering the ubiquity of ELF electromagnetic fields of low intensity it is of considerable biological interest to determine whether they are detectable by organisms. If a species of organism could detect the presence of such fields, it might imply that natural fields play a role in controlling significant behaviors of the species.

The natural selection: behavior analysis as a natural science

Most behavior analysts emphasize that a science of behavior must be a natural science as opposed to a social science or any other such description. But what does this mean and why is it important? I explore these questions by attempting to characterize the designation “natural science” and briefly surveying what behavior analysis has in common with other putative natural sciences. Included in the discussion are problems of agency, background assumptions, mechanism, and some examples of shared problems and issues with other natural sciences. Special focus is placed on behavior analysis as a biological science and the implications of that status.Most behavior analysts emphasize that a science of behavior must be a natural science as opposed to a social science or any other such description. But what does this mean and why is it important? I explore these questions by attempting to characterize the designation “natural science” and briefly surveying what behavior analysis has in common with other putative natural sciences. Included in the discussion are problems of agency, background assumptions, mechanism, and some examples of shared problems and issues with other natural sciences. Special focus is placed on behavior analysis as a biological science and the implications of that status.