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121999Volume 12, Issue10December 1999

Presidential Column

Elizabeth D. Capaldi headshot
Elizabeth D. Capaldi
University of Buffalo
APS President 1999 - 2000
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In this Issue:
Banking on Psychological Principles

About the Observer

The Observer is the online magazine of the Association for Psychological Science and covers matters affecting the research, academic, and applied disciplines of psychology. The magazine reports on issues of interest to psychologist scientists worldwide and disseminates information about the activities, policies, and scientific values of APS.

APS members receive a monthly Observer newsletter that covers the latest content in the magazine. Members also may access the online archive of Observer articles going back to 1988.

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Up Front


  • Banking on Psychological Principles

    Universities are businesses, although we academics do not like to think of them as such. However, we are not in business to make a profit, but rather to produce teaching and research. Thus, our bottom line needs to be measured in quality and productivity of our teaching and our research. Money is important, of course. In times of constrained resources, generating additional revenue and using every dollar wisely are critical for achieving quality. Quality is expensive. At the University of Florida, the president and I introduced an incentive approach to management that we call the "Bank." Introduced in 1996, the Bank is a tool that helps the university use resources effectively, measure quality, and create incentives for improvement. It rests on the basic psychological principle that reinforcement leads to an increase in the behavior that precedes it.

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