This is the first comprehensive survey of Descriptive Psychology. It provides a systematic account of the basic formulations and characteristic methodologies of this discipline which was developed by Peter G. Ossorio of the University of Colorado at Boulder. Dr. Ossorio defines Descriptive Psychology as "a set of systematically related concepts which is designed to provide formal access to all the facts and possible facts concerning persons and behavioróand therefore everything else as well."

Aggressive behavior among children and adolescents has confounded parents and perplexed professionals—especially those tasked with its treatment and prevention—for countless years. As baffling as these behaviors are, however, recent advances in neuroscience focusing on brain development have helped to make increasing sense of their complexity. Focusing on their most prevalent forms, Oppositional Defiant Disorder and Conduct Disorder, Disruptive Behavior Disorders advances the understanding of DBD on a number of significant fronts. Its neurodevelopmental emphasis within an ecological approach offers links between brain structure and function and critical environmental influences and the development of these specific disorders. The book's findings and theories help to differentiate DBD within the contexts of normal development, non-pathological misbehavior and non-DBD forms of pathology. Throughout these chapters are myriad implications for accurate identification, effective intervention and future cross-disciplinary study. Key issues covered include: Gene-environment interaction models. Neurobiological processes and brain functions. Callous-unemotional traits and developmental pathways. Relationships between gender and DBD. Multiple pathways of familial transmission. Disruptive Behavior Disorders is a groundbreaking resource for researchers, scientist-practitioners and graduate students in clinical child and school psychology, psychiatry, educational psychology, prevention science, child mental health care, developmental psychology and social work.

APPLIED BEHAVIOR ANALYSIS Applied Behavior Analysis: Principles and Procedures for Modifying Behavior will serve as a resource for students who plan to become behavior analysts to design and conduct interventions to change clients’ behaviors. Author, Edward P. Sarafino provides an understanding of the fundamental techniques of applied behavior analysis by presenting its concepts and procedures in a logical sequence and giving clear definitions and examples of each technique. This book will guide readers to learn: how to identify and define the behavior to be changed and how a response is determined by its antecedents and consequences, usable, practical skills by specifically stating the purpose of each technique, describing how it is carried out, and presenting guidelines and tips to maximize its effectiveness, why and how to design a program to change a behavioral deficit or excess by conducting a functional assessment and then selecting and combining techniques that can be directed at the behavior itself and its antecedents and consequences, and, to illustrate why and how to collect and analyze data. Here is what reviewers have said about Applied Behavior Analysis: Principles and Procedures for Modifying Behavior: “Overall, this textbook provides a thorough, concise, and engaging introduction to applied behavior analysis.” Rafael Bejarano, Henderson State University This textbook “… provides good, basic explanations of concepts in Applied Behavior Analysis that are easy to grasp for undergraduate students.” Lisa Gurdin, Northeastern University This textbook is, “Comprehensive. Easily accessible” and it has “ Great illustrations and examples.” Joel Kevin Thompson, University of Southern Florida To learn more about Applied Behavior Analysis: Principles and Procedures for Modifying Behavior, please visit us at www.wiley.com/college/sarafino.

Descriptive Psychology and the Person Concept maps the common ground of behavioral science. The absence of a shared foundation has given us fragmentation, a siloed state of psychological theory and practice. And the science? The integrity of choice, accountability, reason, and intention are necessary commitments at the cornerstone of civilization and any person-centered psychotherapy, but when taught along with a “scientific requirement for reductionism and determinism, reside in contradictory intellectual universes. Peter Ossorio developed the Person Concept to remedy these problems. This book is an introduction to his work and the community of scientists, scholars, and practitioners of Descriptive Psychology. Ossorio offered these maxims that capture the discipline’s spirit: 1. The world makes sense, and so do people. They make sense to begin with. 2. It’s one world. Everything fits together. Everything is related to everything else. 3. Things are what they are and not something else instead. 4. Don’t count on the world being simpler than it has to be. The Person Concept is a single, coherent concept of interdependent component concepts: Individual Persons; Behavior as Intentional Action; Language and Verbal Behavior; Community and Culture; and World and Reality. Descriptive Psychology uses preempirical, theory-neutral formulations and methods, to make explicit the implicit structure of the behavioral sciences. The goal is a framework with a place for what is already known with room for what is yet to be found. Provides a way to compare theories, coordinate empirical findings, and negotiate competent disagreement Offers guidance for effective case formulation and integration of therapies Explores the dilemmas of personhood and the complexities of human and nonhuman action, investigating "what is a person, and how can we be sure?" Follows the implications of Hedonics, Prudence, Ethics, and Aesthetics as intrinsic perspectives and reasons for action Applies these concepts to personality and social dynamics, consciousness, relationship change, emotional behavior, deliberation, and judgment Provides a guide to establishing and restoring empathy--especially when it's difficult

This book represents an inquiry into an area of human behavior at once fascinating and exasperating. It is fascinating because it is a class of behavior that, while peculiarly resistant to cognitive analysis and clarification it remains, for most of us throughout our lives, a subjectively crucial issue. In Interpersonal Behavior Carson analyzes, describes, and explains the transactions that occur between persons. The analysis focuses upon the smallest possible unit of social interaction, the dyad, or two-person group. This book is as important today as when it first appeared in 1969 because it forces us to recognize that attributions to others are incomplete without reference to the circumstances in which a particular behavior occurs. Carson posits that, while personality characteristics may not be ephemeral, any observed stability is the product of whatever propensities can accurately be identified as existing "inside" the person, and the interpersonal situation in which they are expressed. Carson urges us to examine more carefully the effect of noncomplementarity on what appears to be stable personality characteristics. Carson introduces us to the principal interpersonal theorists in a series of expository chapters that are both lucid and authoritative. His long experience as a clinical psychologist enables him to make a telling application of interaction concepts of personality to the field of mental and emotional "illness." He makes clear that many people designated as "mental patients" have suffered real harm because they are perceived as having a "diseased" personality, rather than as people who, under certain circumstances, behave deviantly.