CONTROLLING BEHAVIOR CHANGERS' BEHAVIOR.

AN EMERGING METHODOLOGY OF PROGRAMING AVOIDS SOME OF THE UNFORTUNATE EFFECTS ON PROGRAMER BEHAVIOR PRODUCED BY INTERPRETATIONS OF TWO EARLIER METHODOLOGIES. WHILE SKINNERIAN PROGRAMING OFTEN HAS LED TO TRIVIAL PROGRAMS THROUGH PROBLEMS OF APPLICATION OF THE CRITERIA OF SPECIFIED BEHAVIORAL OBJECTIVES AND LOW ERROR RATES, CROWDERIAN PROGRAMING HAS MET MANY PRACTICAL PROBLEMS STEMMING PRINCIPALLY FROM THE PROGRAMER'S INABILITY TO ADEQUATELY EVALUATE THE RELIABILITY OF HIS CRUCIAL MULTIPLE CHOICE ITMES. SINCE 1962, A NEW METHODOLOGY HAS BEEN DEVELOPING THROUGH A MONTHLY COURSE IN PROGRAMED INSTRUCTION GIVEN AT THE UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN FOR INDUSTRIAL TRAINING PERSONNEL. THE PROCESS, WHICH HAS ALTERNATIVE PROCEDURES AT VARIOUS PHASES OF THE PROGRAM'S DEVELOPMENT, INVOLVES WORKING SYSTEMATICALLY BACKWARD FROM A FINAL TEST INSTRUMENT WHICH IS BOTH A NORMAL CRITERION TEST AND A TRANSFER TEST MEASURING PERFORMANCE ON DIFFERENT BUT RELATED TASKS. THE PROGRAM IS STRUCTERED ON THIS TEST, AND DEVELOPED THROUGH LEAN PROGRAMING IN EARLY DRAFTS AND USE OF STUDENT PERFORMANCE DATA FOR SUCCESSIVE APPROXIMATION OF THE NEEDED INSTRUCTION. CONTINGENCIES SHOULD BE PROVIDED WHICH ENCOURAGE EMPIRICAL DEVELOPMENT OF PROGRAMS. EVALUATERS OF PROGRAMS SHOULD CONSIDER BEHAVIOR PRODUCED RATHER THAN FORMAL ASPECTS OF PROGRAMS, AND SHOULD CONSIDER EFFICIENCY MORE IN TERMS OF STUDENT TIME AND LONG TERM VALUE. (BB)