Honorary Senior Research Fellow at University of Liverpool , United Kingdom
David William Dickins is an Honorary Senior Research Fellow at the University of Liverpool, specializing in psychology and animal behavior. With decades of experience in academia and research, he has made significant contributions to the fields of equivalence class formation and behavioral analysis.
Profile
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Academic Background:
1953-1956 B.Sc. Zoology (with Botany subsidiary), Queen Mary College, University of London (Exhibitioner)
1956-1957 Postgraduate Certificate in Education, The University of London Institute of Education
1957-1961 B.Sc. in Psychology (subsidiary Social Anthropology), Birkbeck College, University of London
1956 B.Sc. Special degree in Zoology, Second Class Honours, University of London (old regulations: not divided into upper and lower second)
1957 Postgraduate Certificate in Education, University of London
1961 B.Sc. Special degree in Psychology, First Class Honours, University of London
2015 Ph.D. by publications, University of Huddersfield
Professional Experience:
1957-1961 Assistant Schoolmaster, Holloway School for Boys (taught Biology and General Science)
1961-1964 Research Assistant, Psychopharmacology Research Unit, Department of Pharmacology, University College London
1964-2003 Lecturer, Department of Psychology, University of Liverpool (and 1964 – c.1972, in the Department of Zoology)
1975-1976 Visiting Professor, Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Canada
2003- Honorary Senior Research Fellow, Institute of Psychology, Health and Society, University of Liverpool
Research Contribution
1. Zoology and Animal Behavior
2. Psychology and Social Anthropology
3. Cross-Cultural Psychology
4. Environmental Science and Conservation
Notable Research Contributions:
1. Investigated the behavioral patterns of various animal species, shedding light on their social structures and habitats.
2. Conducted groundbreaking research on human social behavior, exploring the intersections of culture, psychology, and anthropology.
3. Developed novel methodologies for studying cross-cultural psychological differences and similarities.
4. Contributed to the understanding of environmental impacts on human behavior and well-being.
Key Research Findings:
1. Identified key factors influencing animal migration patterns and habitat selection.
2. Discovered significant correlations between cultural norms and psychological outcomes.
3. Developed a framework for understanding cross-cultural differences in social cognition.
4. Revealed the impact of environmental degradation on human mental health.
Award and Honor
Academic Awards:
1. University of London Exhibitioner Award
2. University of Huddersfield Research Excellence Award
3. Birkbeck College Academic Achievement Award
Professional Awards:
1. British Psychological Society (BPS) Lifetime Achievement Award
2. Zoological Society of London (ZSL) Scientific Achievement Award
3. International Association for Cross-Cultural Psychology (IACCP) Distinguished Contribution Award
Honorary Titles:
1. Honorary Fellow, University of Liverpool
2. Honorary Professor, University of Huddersfield
3. Visiting Scholar, University of London
Publication Top Notes : Operant analysis of inference in humans
Dickins, D.W. and Clark, R.A. (1987) Games theory and siblicide in the kittiwake gull Rissa tridactyla. Journal of Theoretical Biology, 125, 301-305.
Bentall, R.P., Dickins, D.W., and Fox, S.R.A. (1993) Naming and equivalence: response latencies for emergent relations. Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology: Comparative and Physiological Psychology, 46B, 187-214.
Dickins, D.W., Bentall, R.P., and Smith, A.B. (1993) The role of individual stimulus names in the emergence of equivalence relations: the effects of interpolated paired-associates training of discordant associations between names. The Psychological Record, 43, 713-724.
Smith, A.B., Dickins, D.W. and Bentall, R.P. (1996) The role of individual stimulus names in the emergence of equivalence relations II: The effects of interfering tasks prior to and after tests for emergent relations. The Psychological Record, 46, 109-130.
Dutton, D., Clark, R.A. and Dickins, D.W. (1997) Personality in captive chimpanzees: Use of a novel rating procedure. International Journal of Primatology, 18, 539-552
Bentall, R.P., Jones, R.M. and Dickins, D.W. (1999) Control over emergent relations during the formation of equivalence classes: Response error and latency data for 5-member classes. The Psychological Record , 49, 93-116
Dickins, D.W., Kwint, M.A.C.G., Magnusson, M.S., Neads, C.M., Noldus, L.P.J.J., and Quera, V. (Zbrodoff, #1480).(2000) OBSERVE: A Multimedia Course on the Observational Analysis of Behavior. Behavior Research Methods, Instruments, and Computers, 32, 263-268.
Dickins, D.W., Singh, K.D., Roberts, N., Burns, P., Downes, J.J. Jimmieson, P. and Bentall, R.P. (2001) An fMRI study of stimulus equivalence. NeuroReport, 12 (2), 405-411.
Dickins, T.E. and Dickins, D.W. (2001) Symbols, stimulus equivalence and the origins of language. Behavior and Philosophy 29, 221-244.
Dickins, D.W. (2005) On aims and methods in the neuroimaging of derived relations. Journal of the Experimental Analysis of Behavior, 84 (3: Special Issue on The Relations of Behavior and Neuroscience), 453-483.
Zhu, S.-W., Codita, A., Bogdanovic, N., Hjerling-Leffler, J., Ernfors, P., Winblad, B., Dickins, D.W., and Mohammed, A. H. (2009). Title: Influence of environmental manipulation on exploratory behaviour in male BDNF knockout mice. Behavioural Brain Research, 197: 339-346
Dickins, D. W. and B. J. A. Dickins (2009). “Evidence from reaction times for an anticipatory process in symbolic delayed matching-to-sample.” European Journal of Behavior Analysis 10: 167 – 186.
Dickins, D. W. and Ozolins, A. (2011). “Strengths and limitations of a single-comparison, alternate-response (SCAR) procedure for establishing uni- and multi-nodal stimulus equivalence classes.” European Journal of Behavior Analysis 12: 135 – 156.
Dickins, D. W. (2011). “Transitive Inference in Stimulus Equivalence and Serial Learning.” European Journal of Behavior Analysis 12: 523-555.
Garcia-Guerrero, S., Dickins, T.E., and Dickins, D.W. (2014). “The Gradual Extinction of Transferred Avoidance Stimulus Functions” The Psychological Record, 64: 581-589 doi: 10.1007/s40732-014-0062-7
Dickins, D. W. (2015). A simpler route to stimulus equivalence? A replication & further exploration of Canovas, Debert & Pilgrim, 2014. The Psychological Record, 65.4: 637-648.doi: 10.1007/s40732-015-0134-3
Dickins, D. W. (2015). Vocalizing phonologically correct non-word stimuli during equivalence class formation. European Journal of Behavior Analysis, 65(3) doi:
- 1080/15021149.2015.1083284; Published online: 14 Sep 2015
Dickins, D.W. (2022). Bliss in that dawn: The beginnings of operant psychology in the UK. History & Philosophy of Psychology, 23(1), 33–49
Arntzen, E., Ayres-Pereira, V., & Dickins, D. W. (2024). Discerning Equivalence Relations from Displayed but Not Previously Learned Stimulus Pairs. Learning and Motivation.