Publications

I write blog posts about behaviour management, but also scientific papers. Below is a selection of relevant publications. In addition to these, I’ve authored about a dozen more  scientific articles. If you’re interested in reading them, just click the hyperlinks below and I’ll email them to you!

The Learning Teacher’s magazine: What teachers could learn from animal trainers. I have the distinct feeling that the average teacher’s education doesn’t provide tools to handle unruly behaviour. Animal trainers are faced with many of the same challenges, and can’t resort to language to solve them – they have a plethora of useful techniques…  

Journal of Veterinary Behaviour: To feed or not to feed – counterconditioning in the veterinary clinic. When consulting with veterinarians I found them reluctant to use treats to reduce fear during consultations in the vet clinic, because of the fear of complications in association with sedation. So, I went to the literature to see for myself how risky it is. It turns out that there are mostly disadvantages with not feeding treats, and mostly advantages with doing so.

Applied Animal Behaviour Science: I started out by writing a critique on an article discussing whether training is enrichment, and also wrote Training is enrichment – and beyond! – arguing that not only is some training enrichment, but you can obtain certain welfare effects with training that are inaccessible with conventional enrichment. 

Journal of Neuroscience Methods: Can conditioned reinforcers and variable-ratio schedules make food- and fluid control redundant? A comment on the NC3Rs Working Group’s report.  My first critique article discussing the NC3Rs expert group’s paper on the use of deprivation in behavioural neuroscience. I discussed some overlooked techniques to increase motivation without having to resort to ethically questionable techniques affecting welfare. The Working Group responded, after which I got the final say in Questioning the necessity of food- and fluid regimes. 

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