Dr. Paloma Pedraza Rodriguez is Associate Teaching Faculty in the Department of Psychology at Florida International University and has been working in the field of applied behavior analysis since 2002. She earned her B.S. in Psychology from Florida State University, where she studied under Dr. Jon Bailey. She later received her M.S. in Applied Behavior Analysis from the Florida Institute of Technology under the mentorship of Dr. Jose Martinez-Diaz, and her Ph.D. in Developmental Science from Florida International University under Drs. Jack Gewirtz and Anibal Gutierrez.
During her doctoral training, Dr. Rodriguez was awarded a research grant from the Organization for Autism Research and subsequently published her work in the Development and Behavior Bulletin. She has been teaching behavior analysis courses at Florida International University since 2008 and currently serves as the Assistant Director of the Behavior Analysis Master’s Program.
Dr. Rodriguez is deeply committed to disseminating and advocating for the ethical and effective application of behavior analytic principles. She serves as Vice Chair of the Multicultural Special Interest Group at the Florida Association for Behavior Analysis, where she promotes the dissemination of applied behavior analysis to Latin American and other culturally diverse communities represented in South Florida by providing and coordinating workshops and trainings in multiple languages.
Her clinical and research interests focus on early intervention for children with autism, particularly the role of social interaction in the earliest stages of learning. In addition to her academic work, Dr. Rodriguez is the Clinical Director at First Steps Interventions, Inc., where she provides clinical oversight to her team of BCBAs.