Page 1 of 49
APPLIED BEHAVIOR ANALYSIS (ABA)
COMPETENCY EXAM PRACTICE 2026
COMPLETE (115) CURRENT TESTING
QUESTIONS AND CORRECT ANSWERS WITH
DETAILED RATIONALES.
BEHAVIOR
Prepare for the Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) Competency Exam with
focused review materials covering behaviorism principles, reinforcement
and punishment procedures, functional behavior assessment (FBA),
antecedent-behavior-consequence (ABC) analysis, data collection
methods, behavior intervention plans (BIP), skill acquisition strategies,
measurement and graphing of behavior, and ethical guidelines under the
BACB framework. Suitable for behavior technicians, therapists,
educators, and candidates preparing for ABA competency and
certification-related examinations.
MULTIPLE CHOICE.
Domain 1: Measurement & Data Collection (Questions 1–25)
1. Which of the following is a continuous measurement
procedure?
A. Momentary time sampling
B. Partial interval recording
C. Frequency/Count
D. Whole interval recording
Correct answer: C. Frequency/Count
, Page 2 of 49
Rationale: Continuous measurement captures every instance of a
behavior. Frequency (count) records the number of times a behavior
occurs and is considered a continuous measurement procedure.
Momentary time sampling, partial interval recording, and whole
interval recording are discontinuous measurement procedures.
2. A therapist records whether a client is engaged in a behavior
at the end of each 5-minute interval. This measurement
procedure is called:
A. Whole interval recording
B. Partial interval recording
C. Momentary time sampling
D. Duration recording
Correct answer: C. Momentary time sampling
Rationale: Momentary time sampling involves recording whether a
behavior is occurring at the exact moment an interval ends. This
differs from interval recording, which measures behavior throughout
the interval.
3. A behavior analyst wants to measure how long a client
engages in hand-flapping behavior. Which measurement
procedure should be used?
A. Frequency
B. Duration
C. Latency
D. Interresponse time
Correct answer: B. Duration
Rationale: Duration recording measures the total amount of time a
behavior occurs. Frequency measures how many times a behavior
occurs; latency measures the time between a stimulus and the
, Page 3 of 49
response; interresponse time measures the time between two
consecutive responses.
4. A therapist is measuring the time between the end of one
instance of a behavior and the beginning of the next instance.
This is known as:
A. Latency
B. Duration
C. Interresponse time (IRT)
D. Frequency
Correct answer: C. Interresponse time (IRT)
Rationale: Interresponse time (IRT) is the time between two
successive responses. Latency is the time from a stimulus to the
onset of a response.
5. Which of the following is an example of discontinuous
measurement?
A. Count
B. Rate
C. Partial interval recording
D. Duration
Correct answer: C. Partial interval recording
Rationale: Partial interval recording is a discontinuous
measurement procedure because it records only whether the
behavior occurred at any point during the interval, rather than every
instance. Count, rate, and duration are continuous measurement
procedures.
6. A therapist records that a behavior occurred at least once
during 10 out of 20 intervals. What percentage of intervals did
, Page 4 of 49
the behavior occur?
A. 10%
B. 20%
C. 50%
D. 100%
Correct answer: C. 50%
Rationale: To calculate the percentage of intervals, divide the
number of intervals in which the behavior occurred (10) by the total
number of intervals (20) and multiply by 100: 10/20 × 100 = 50%.
7. When collecting data using whole interval recording, the
behavior is recorded as occurring only if:
A. It occurs at any point during the interval
B. It occurs throughout the entire interval
C. It occurs at the end of the interval
D. It occurs at the beginning of the interval
Correct answer: B. It occurs throughout the entire interval
Rationale: Whole interval recording requires the behavior to occur
for the entire duration of the interval to be recorded as present. This
method tends to underestimate behavior and is typically used for
behaviors targeted for increase.
8. A behavior analyst is calculating the rate of a behavior. To
calculate rate, the analyst divides the number of responses by:
A. The number of intervals
B. The total time of the observation
C. The number of participants
D. The number of sessions
Correct answer: B. The total time of the observation
Rationale: Rate is calculated by dividing the count of responses by
APPLIED BEHAVIOR ANALYSIS (ABA)
COMPETENCY EXAM PRACTICE 2026
COMPLETE (115) CURRENT TESTING
QUESTIONS AND CORRECT ANSWERS WITH
DETAILED RATIONALES.
BEHAVIOR
Prepare for the Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) Competency Exam with
focused review materials covering behaviorism principles, reinforcement
and punishment procedures, functional behavior assessment (FBA),
antecedent-behavior-consequence (ABC) analysis, data collection
methods, behavior intervention plans (BIP), skill acquisition strategies,
measurement and graphing of behavior, and ethical guidelines under the
BACB framework. Suitable for behavior technicians, therapists,
educators, and candidates preparing for ABA competency and
certification-related examinations.
MULTIPLE CHOICE.
Domain 1: Measurement & Data Collection (Questions 1–25)
1. Which of the following is a continuous measurement
procedure?
A. Momentary time sampling
B. Partial interval recording
C. Frequency/Count
D. Whole interval recording
Correct answer: C. Frequency/Count
, Page 2 of 49
Rationale: Continuous measurement captures every instance of a
behavior. Frequency (count) records the number of times a behavior
occurs and is considered a continuous measurement procedure.
Momentary time sampling, partial interval recording, and whole
interval recording are discontinuous measurement procedures.
2. A therapist records whether a client is engaged in a behavior
at the end of each 5-minute interval. This measurement
procedure is called:
A. Whole interval recording
B. Partial interval recording
C. Momentary time sampling
D. Duration recording
Correct answer: C. Momentary time sampling
Rationale: Momentary time sampling involves recording whether a
behavior is occurring at the exact moment an interval ends. This
differs from interval recording, which measures behavior throughout
the interval.
3. A behavior analyst wants to measure how long a client
engages in hand-flapping behavior. Which measurement
procedure should be used?
A. Frequency
B. Duration
C. Latency
D. Interresponse time
Correct answer: B. Duration
Rationale: Duration recording measures the total amount of time a
behavior occurs. Frequency measures how many times a behavior
occurs; latency measures the time between a stimulus and the
, Page 3 of 49
response; interresponse time measures the time between two
consecutive responses.
4. A therapist is measuring the time between the end of one
instance of a behavior and the beginning of the next instance.
This is known as:
A. Latency
B. Duration
C. Interresponse time (IRT)
D. Frequency
Correct answer: C. Interresponse time (IRT)
Rationale: Interresponse time (IRT) is the time between two
successive responses. Latency is the time from a stimulus to the
onset of a response.
5. Which of the following is an example of discontinuous
measurement?
A. Count
B. Rate
C. Partial interval recording
D. Duration
Correct answer: C. Partial interval recording
Rationale: Partial interval recording is a discontinuous
measurement procedure because it records only whether the
behavior occurred at any point during the interval, rather than every
instance. Count, rate, and duration are continuous measurement
procedures.
6. A therapist records that a behavior occurred at least once
during 10 out of 20 intervals. What percentage of intervals did
, Page 4 of 49
the behavior occur?
A. 10%
B. 20%
C. 50%
D. 100%
Correct answer: C. 50%
Rationale: To calculate the percentage of intervals, divide the
number of intervals in which the behavior occurred (10) by the total
number of intervals (20) and multiply by 100: 10/20 × 100 = 50%.
7. When collecting data using whole interval recording, the
behavior is recorded as occurring only if:
A. It occurs at any point during the interval
B. It occurs throughout the entire interval
C. It occurs at the end of the interval
D. It occurs at the beginning of the interval
Correct answer: B. It occurs throughout the entire interval
Rationale: Whole interval recording requires the behavior to occur
for the entire duration of the interval to be recorded as present. This
method tends to underestimate behavior and is typically used for
behaviors targeted for increase.
8. A behavior analyst is calculating the rate of a behavior. To
calculate rate, the analyst divides the number of responses by:
A. The number of intervals
B. The total time of the observation
C. The number of participants
D. The number of sessions
Correct answer: B. The total time of the observation
Rationale: Rate is calculated by dividing the count of responses by
