Training Preservice Behaviour Analyst Intervention Skills in a Virtual Reality Environment
type: CreativeWork
description: Preservice behaviour analysts need a wide range of professional skills and shaping is one of the critical skills they must learn. This study trained preservice behaviour analysts to acquire shaping skills in a virtual reality environment using the Portable Operant Research Teaching Lab (PORTL). To date no known study has (a) evaluated the effectiveness of shaping skills training to preservice behaviour analyst or (b) attempted to teach these skills in virtual environment format. We used an AB design across participants with three preservice behaviour analysts to learn shaping skills in a virtual reality environment using the PORTL curriculum. The shaping skills comprised creating a teaching plan, setting up for a session, delivering reinforcement, and evaluating a session. For all participants, training resulted in improvement in shaping skills. Participants also maintained the shaping skills for a minimum of two weeks. Further, the effect of the training generalized to a novel learner for all participants. Additionally, participants showed high satisfaction with shaping skills in virtual reality (VR) environment.
abstract: Preservice behaviour analysts need a wide range of professional skills and shaping is one of the critical skills they must learn. This study trained preservice behaviour analysts to acquire shaping skills in a virtual reality environment using the Portable Operant Research Teaching Lab (PORTL). To date no known study has (a) evaluated the effectiveness of shaping skills training to preservice behaviour analyst or (b) attempted to teach these skills in virtual environment format. We used an AB design across participants with three preservice behaviour analysts to learn shaping skills in a virtual reality environment using the PORTL curriculum. The shaping skills comprised creating a teaching plan, setting up for a session, delivering reinforcement, and evaluating a session. For all participants, training resulted in improvement in shaping skills. Participants also maintained the shaping skills for a minimum of two weeks. Further, the effect of the training generalized to a novel learner for all participants. Additionally, participants showed high satisfaction with shaping skills in virtual reality (VR) environment.
author: Owusu, Gifty
language: eng
keywords: Virtual reality, telehealth, portable operant research teaching lab, preservice behaviour analyst, shaping.
date published: 2024-03-15T17:19:24Z
date modified: 2026-07-24T01:23:21Z
provider: Brock University
publisher: Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations
type: WebPage
source organization: Brock University

PropertyValue
property ID: Handle
value: http://hdl.handle.net/10464/18349