Mentalism and Radical Behaviorism

Overview

As a future ABA professional, understanding why the field of behavior analysis differs from other psychology fields is important. Behavior analysts use objective and behavioristic statements to describe phenomena they observe. At this point in your studies, it is important to start considering the impact of mentalistic statements in your vocabulary to help you to begin thinking like a behavior analyst.

Instructions

Your instructor will share the Mentalism and Radical Behaviorism Template you will use to complete this assignment.

Complete the following in the provided table:

• Column 1: Identify whether the statement is mentalistic or behavioristic for each scenario.
• Column 2: Explain the reasoning behind your choices. Some of the scenarios are similar and you may reuse your justification in multiple scenariosbut you must restate the explanation for each scenario and provide in-text citations to back up where those facts came from.
• Column 3: Provide a behavioristic explanation as an alternative for each of the mentalistic explanations you identify. You do not need to include an explanation if you label the example as behavioristic.

Answer the following questions below the table. Each answer should be no more than two paragraphs and should expand on the last answer with new ideas. Ensure there are in-text citations to back up where your facts come from.

• How does a behavior analytic approach differ from other fields of psychology?
• What is the problem with a behavior analyst using a mentalistic approach?
• Why is it important for a behavior analyst to use a behavioristic approach and not use a mentalistic approach in their practice?

Refer to the Mentalism and Radical Behaviorism rubric to ensure you understand the grading criteria for this assignment.

Additional Requirements

Your assignment should also meet the following requirements:

• Written communication: Should be free of errors that detract from the overall message.
• Resources: Reference your Cooper et al., (2020) course textbook and other course readings that support your responses.
• Length: 23 double-spaced pages, in addition to the title page and references page.

Competencies Measured

By successfully completing this assignment, you will demonstrate your proficiency in the following course competencies and rubric criteria:

• Competency 3: Distinguish between different branches in the field of behavior analysis.
• Identify correctly four or five of the statements as either mentalistic or behavioristic.
• Explain the reasons for the behaviors chosen.
• Describe alternative behavioristic explanations for the mentalistic statements.
• Explain how the behavior analytic approach is different from most other psychology fields.
• Explain the problem with a behavior analyst using a mentalistic approach.
• Explain why it is important for a behavior analyst to use a behavior analytic approach.
• Competency 4: Communicate in a manner that is scholarly and consistent with expectations for professionals in the field of psychology.
• Demonstrate an academic writing style through well-organized prose that follows assignment guidelines.
• Demonstrate compliance with APA style and referencing guidelines.

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APA Cheat Sheet

Quick APA checklist:

Make every section with facts has citations, this is your credibility that what you are saying is accurate.

Check the formatting of your intext or parenthetical citations (intext citations are when part of the text is included

in the sentence structure and parenthetical citations are when the entire citation is inside of a parenthesis)

All paragraphs should be double spaced

Any text in a table should be single spaced

Do not add additional spaces in the templates provided- they are set up according to APA 7th edition format

Any reference listed in your citations MUST be on the reference page, do not cite secondary sources.

Citation Cheat Sheet

One author intext citation: Williams (2025); One author parenthetical citation: (Williams, 2025)

Two author intext citation: Williams and Clark (2024); Two author parenthetical citation (Williams & Clark, 2024)

Three or more authors intext citation: Cooper et al. (2020); Three or more authors

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APA Cheat Sheet

General Reminders/Suggestions:

Make sure that you are writing in complete sentences and fully explaining your ideas

Make sure that you indent the first line of a new paragraph

Use the Capella Writing Center, they are incredibly helpful and can help you develop your scholarly writing

tone

We are here to help you develop APA fluency and your scholarly writing tone, give yourself some grace if it

takes a little extra time!

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