T. Mary Foster

Therese Mary Foster is a New Zealand behavioural psychologist, and is professor emerita at the University of Waikato. Her research focuses on animal behaviour and behavioural analysis.

Therese Mary Foster
Academic background
Alma mater	University of Auckland
Theses	An investigation into choice between fixed-interval and mixed-interval schedules of reinforcement (1973) An analysis of concurrent-chain choice (1976)
Doctoral advisor	Michael Davison
Academic work
Institutions	University of Waikato

Academic career

Foster completed a MSc in psychology titled An investigation into choice between fixed-interval and mixed-interval schedules of reinforcement at the University of Auckland. She then went on to complete a PhD in psychology, also at Auckland, in 1976. Her thesis was on concurrent-chain choice, a type of reinforcement. Foster undertook professional training as a psychologist and then joined the faculty of the University of Waikato, rising to full professor. In 2017 Foster was appointed professor emerita.

Foster's research covers animal behaviour and psychology. Foster and William Temple set up the Animal Behaviour and Welfare Research Centre at Waikato. Foster was also responsible for co-leading the development of an applied behaviour analysis (ABA) programme at Waikato in 2006, with Dr James McEwan, aimed at training psychologists to work in education and disability. Foster has researched behaviour in animals including brushtail possums, cows, domestic chickens, dogs and horses, on subjects such as selective attention, visual discrimination and reinforcement timing. She trained chickens to use pecks to indicate their preferred choices, for instance they were able to indicate their preferred dust-bathing material, to communicate their preferred food, and whether they would prefer to be alone or with a more dominant chicken. She has also worked on human behaviour, in chronic pain patients and in autistic children.

Selected works

• Karen L Layton; Timothy L Edwards; T Mary Foster (November 2022). "Response-strengthening effects of same- and different-context DRA training: The effects of two disruptors". Journal of the Experimental Analysis of Behavior. 118 (3): 376–397. doi:10.1002/JEAB.796. ISSN 0022-5002. PMC 9804796. PMID 36054301. Wikidata Q125754758.
• Shinichi Nakagawa; T. Mary Foster (23 October 2004). "The case against retrospective statistical power analyses with an introduction to power analysis". Acta Ethologica. 7 (2): 103–108. doi:10.1007/S10211-004-0095-Z. ISSN 0873-9749. Wikidata Q57269623.
• R. Kilgour; T.M. Foster; W. Temple; L.R. Matthews; K.J. Bremner (April 1991). "Operant technology applied to solving farm animal problems. An assessment". Applied Animal Behaviour Science. 30 (1–2): 141–166. doi:10.1016/0168-1591(91)90092-C. ISSN 0168-1591. Wikidata Q125725274.
• B S. Cleland; Therese Mary Foster; W Temple (1 December 2000). "Resurgence: the role of extinction". Behavioural Processes. 52 (2–3): 117–129. doi:10.1016/S0376-6357(00)00131-5. ISSN 0376-6357. PMID 11164680. Wikidata Q73409800.
• S Gunnarsson; L.R Matthews; T.M Foster; W Temple (January 2000). "The demand for straw and feathers as litter substrates by laying hens". Applied Animal Behaviour Science. 65 (4): 321–330. doi:10.1016/S0168-1591(99)00065-9. ISSN 0168-1591. Wikidata Q125725275.
• Alan Poling; Timothy L. Edwards; Marc Weeden; T. Mary Foster (April 2011). "The Matching Law". Psychological Record. 61 (2): 313–322. doi:10.1007/BF03395762. ISSN 0033-2933. Wikidata Q125725276.