Assigment .Apa seven . All instructions attached.

Parsimony

For this week’s Discussion, you examined a common set of assumptions characterizing the behavior of behavior analysts. One of those assumptions is the Law of Parsimony. The history and etymology of the word parsimony is from the Latin  pars-, meaning “to act sparingly, be thrifty (with), refrain from” (Merriam-Webster, n.d.). By extension, the Law of Parsimony posits that given two explanations for a given phenomenon, you should choose the simplest scientific explanation that fits the evidence.

 

Ultimately, an important purpose for using parsimonious interpretations is to enable a principle of economy when determining where new findings might incorporate into the existing knowledge base of a given field. By way of illustration, consider the following review regarding negative symptoms in schizophrenia. In the review, the authors identify a lengthy list of nearly 20 negative schizophrenia symptoms ranging from different forms of affect issues to poor grooming to asociality. Applying the law of parsimony (referred to as Occam’s Razor in the review) the authors simplified their evidence by stating, “…we propose that while negative symptoms are varied and broad in both their clinical presentation and longitudinal course, they can all be subsumed under the concept of avolition. As the primary construct, avolition translates to decreased functional performance, a hallmark of schizophrenia's longer-term outcome but identifiable in its earliest stages” (Foussias, & Remington, 2010). Note: In ABA, parsimony refers to ruling out simpler, behavior-analytic explanations (e.g., reinforcement, environmental variables) before assuming complex internal causes — not simply simplifying the way we communicate about behavior.

For this Assignment, you will consider why parsimony is an important construct a behavior analyst might use when communicating interventions to a parent or teacher.

References:

· Foussias, G., & Remington, G. (2010). Negative symptoms in schizophrenia: Avolition and Occam’s razor.  Schizophrenia Bulletin ,  36 (2), 359–369. https://doi.org/10.1093/schbul/sbn094

· Merriam-Webster. (n.d.). Parsimony. Retrieved February 6, 2021, from https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/parsimony

Resources

Be sure to review the Learning Resources before completing this activity. Click the weekly resources link to access the resources. 

WEEKLY RESOURCES

To Prepare:

· Review this week’s Learning Resources about parsimony.

· Consider practical ways parsimony might be used by a behavior analyst. 

Assignment (1 page)

· Write an explanation addressing why parsimony is important for a behavior analyst when communicating a prospective intervention to a parent or teacher. Be parsimonious in your response.

Be sure to support your Assignment with specific references to behavior-analytic theory and research. In addition to the Learning Resources, search the Walden Library and/or the internet for peer-reviewed articles to support your Assignment. Use proper APA format and citations, including those in the Learning Resources. 

By Day 7 of Week 2

Submit your Assignment.

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Rubric

PSYC_6717_Week2_Assignment_Rubric

PSYC_6717_Week2_Assignment_Rubric
Criteria	Ratings	Pts
This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeContent	12 to >10.25 ptsExcellentAssignment demonstrates an excellent understanding of all of the concepts and key points presented in the text/s and Learning Resources. Assignment provides significant detail including multiple relevant examples, discerning ideas, and evidence from scholarly sources (i.e., Learning Resources, Walden Library, and/or internet). 10.25 to >8.25 ptsGoodAssignment demonstrates a good understanding of most of the concepts and key points presented in the text/s and Learning Resources. Assignment includes moderate detail, discerning ideas, and sufficient evidence from scholarly sources (i.e., Learning Resources, Walden Library, and/or internet). 8.25 to >4.5 ptsFairAssignment demonstrates a fair understanding of the concepts and key points as presented in the text/s and Learning Resources. Assignment may be lacking in detail and specificity and/or may not include sufficient pertinent examples, discerning ideas, evidence from scholarly sources (i.e., Learning Resources, Walden Library, and/or internet). 4.5 to >0 ptsPoorAssignment demonstrates poor understanding of the concepts and key points of the text/s and Learning Resources. Assignment is missing detail and specificity and/or does not include any pertinent examples discerning ideas, or sufficient evidence from scholarly sources (i.e., Learning Resources, Walden Library, and/or internet).	12 pts
This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeWriting	3 to >2.0 ptsExcellentAssignment is well organized, uses scholarly tone, follows APA style, uses original writing and proper paraphrasing, contains very few or no writing and/or spelling errors, and is fully consistent with graduate-level writing style. Assignment contains multiple, appropriate and exemplary sources expected/required for the assignment (i.e., Learning Resources, Walden Library, and/or internet). 2 to >1.0 ptsGoodAssignment is mostly consistent with graduate-level writing style. Assignment may have some small or infrequent organization, scholarly tone, or APA style issues, and/or may contain a few writing and spelling errors, and/or somewhat less than the expected number of or type of sources (i.e., scholarly sources from the Learning Resources, Walden Library, and/or internet). 1 to >0.0 ptsFairAssignment is somewhat below graduate-level writing style, with multiple smaller or a few major problems. Assignment may be lacking in organization, scholarly tone, APA style, and/or contain many writing and/or spelling errors, or shows moderate reliance on quoting versus original writing and paraphrasing. Assignment may contain inferior sources (number or quality of scholarly sources from the Learning Resources, Walden Library, and/or internet). 0 ptsPoorAssignment is well below graduate-level writing style expectations for organization, scholarly tone, APA style, and writing, or relies excessively on quoting. Assignment may contain few or no quality sources (i.e., scholarly sources from the Learning Resources, Walden Library, and/or internet).	3 pts

Total Points: 15