BCBA 5th Edition Glossary Exam with Complete Solutions

A-B DESIGN - ANSWER-a two phase experimental design consisting of a pre-treatment baseline condition (A) followed by a treatment condition (B). A-B-A DESIGN - ANSWER-A three-phase experimental design consisting of an initial baseline phase (A) until steady state responding (or countertherapeutic trend) is obtained; an intervention phase in which the treatment condition (B) is implemented until the behavior has changed and steady state responding is obtained, and a return to baseline conditions (A) by withdrawing the independent variable to see whether responding "reverses" to levels observed in the initial baseline phase. #A-B-A-B Design #Reversal Design # Withdrawal Design A-B-A-B DESIGN - ANSWER-an experimental design consisting of (1) an initial baseline phase (A) until steady state responding (or counter-therapeutic trend) is obtained, (2) an initial intervention phase in which the treatment variable (B) is implemented until the behavior has changed and steady state responding is obtained, (3) a return to baseline conditions (A) by withdrawing the independent variable to see whether responding "reverses" to levels observed in the initial baseline phase, and (4) a second intervention phase (B) to see whether initial treatment effects are replicated. (Also called reversal design and withdrawal design) ABATIVE EFFECT (OF A MOTIVATING OPERATION) - ANSWER-A decrease in the current frequency of behavior that has been reinforced by the stimulus that is increased in reinforcing effectiveness by the same motivating operation. For example, food ingestion abates (decreases the current frequency of) behavior that has been reinforced by food. ABC RECORDING/ANECDOTAL OBSERVATION - ANSWER-a form of direct, continuous observation in which the observer records a descriptive, temporally sequenced account of all behavior(s) of interest and the antecedent conditions and consequences for those behaviors as those events occur in the client's natural environment ABOLISHING OPERATION (AO) - ANSWER-A motivating operation that decreases the reinforcing effectiveness of a stimulus, object, or event. For example, the reinforcing effectiveness of food is abolished as a result of food ingestion. ACCEPTANCE AND COMMITMENT THEARPY (ACT) - ANSWER-An evidence-based behavior therapy focusing on general well-being, defined as making reliable contact with high-priority positive reinforcers. ACCURACY (OF MEASUREMENT) - ANSWER-The extent to which observed values, the data produced by measuring an event, match the true state, or true values, of the event as it exists in nature #Observed Value #True Value ADAPTED ALTERNATING TREATMENTS DESIGN - ANSWER-A variation of the multielement design for comparing the efficiency of instructional procedures. The comparison phase of the design features the alternating application of two (usually) or more different teaching methods, each method applied to different but equivalent sets of instructional items. All items are topographically different members of the same response or skill class, such as reading printed words, defining vocabulary terms, spelling words, answering math problems, and stating history facts. ADD-IN COMPONENT ANALYSIS - ANSWER-A method for conducting a component analysis in which components are assessed individually or in combination before the complete treatment package is presented. The add-in method can identify sufficient components. Sequence and floor or ceiling effects may mask the effects of components added in toward the end of the analysis. ADJUNCTIVE BEHAVIOR/SCHEDULE-INDUCED BEHAVIOR - ANSWER-Behavior that occurs as a collateral effect of a schedule of periodic reinforcement for other behavior; time-filling or interim activities that are induced by schedules of reinforcement during times when reinforcement is unlikely to be delivered. AFFIRMATION OF THE CONSEQUENT - ANSWER-A three-step form of reasoning that begins with a true antecedent-consequent (if-A-then-B) statement and proceeds as follows: (1) If A is true,then B is true; (2) B is found to be true; (3) therefore, A is true. Although other factors could be responsible for the truthfulness of A, a sound experiment affirms several if-A-then-B possibilities, each one reducing the likelihood of factors other than the independent variable being responsible for the observed changes in behavior. ALTERNATING TREATMENTS DESIGN - ANSWER-multi-element design ALTERNATIVE SCHEDULE (ALT) - ANSWER-Provides reinforcement when the response requirements of any of two or more simultaneously available component schedules are met. ANTECEDENT - ANSWER-An environmental condition or stimulus change existing or occurring prior to a behavior of interest. ANTECEDENT EXERCISE - ANSWER-An antecedent intervention, implemented independently of occurrences of the problem behavior, that usually has clients engage in some effortful form of aerobic activity (e.g. walking, jogging dancing, calisthenics, roller skating). Applied behavior analysts have used antecedent exercise in the treatment of many maladaptive behaviors such as self-injurious behavior (SIB), aggression, and diverse behaviors such as inappropriate vocalizations, repetitive movements, talking-out, out-of-seat, and stereotypic behaviors ANTECEDENT INTERVENTION - ANSWER-A behavior change strategy that manipulates antecedent stimuli based on (a) motivating operations (evocative and abative effects), (b) stimulus control (differential availability of reinforcement), and (c) contingency-independent interventions (e.g. protective equipment, and restraint). #Functional Communication Training # High-Probability Request Sequence #Noncontingent Reinforcement Contrast with #antecedent control, a behavior change intervention that manipulates contingency-dependent consequence events to affect stimulus control ANTECEDENT STIMULUS CLASS - ANSWER-A set of stimuli that share a common relationship. all stimuli in an antecedent stimulus class evoke the same operant behavior, or elicit the same respondent behavior #Arbitrary Stimulus Class #Feature Stimulus Class Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) - ANSWER-The science in which tactics derived from the principles of behavior are applied to improve socially significant behavior and experimentation is used to identify the variables responsible for the improvement in behavior. ARBITRARILY APPLICABLE RELATIONAL RESPONDING (AARR) - ANSWER-forming new stimulus classes with little or no reinforced practice ARBITRARY RELATIONS - ANSWER-Stimuli to which people respond in interlocked ways, not because of physical similarity, but because social-verbal reinforcement contingencies teach people to respond to them in this way. ARBITRARY STIMULUS CLASS - ANSWER-antecedent stimuli that evoke the same response but do not resemble each other in physical form or share a relational aspect such as bigger or under (e.g., peanuts, cheese, coconut milk, and chicken breasts are members of this if they evoke the response "sources of protein" Compare to #Feature Stimulus Class ARTIFACT - ANSWER-an outcome or result that appears to exist because of the way it is measured but in fact does not correspond to what actually occurred ASCENDING BASELINE - ANSWER-A data path that shows an increasing trend in the response measure over time. Compare to #Descending Baseline AUDIENCE - ANSWER-Anyone who functions as a discriminative stimulus evoking verbal behavior. Different audiences may control different verbal behavior about the same topic because of a differential reinforcement history. Teens may describe the same event in different ways when talking to peers versus parents AUTOCLITIC - ANSWER-The autoclitic relation involves two interlocking levels of verbal behavior emitted in one utterance. One level is a primary response (e.g., "The ice is solid"), while the other type is the secondary autoclitic response (e.g., adding "I think"). Autoclitic behavior benefits the listener by providing additional information regarding the primary response. AUTOCLITIC FRAME - ANSWER-Provide structure among verbal operants in terms of order, agreement, grouping, and composition of larger units of verbal behavior such as sentences. Autoclitic frames help speakers generate novel utterances. For example, experience with the frame "the girl's (ball, dog, coat) may enable a child to say "the girl's hat" without prior teaching AUTOCLITIC MAND - ANSWER-An autoclitic mand involves supplemental control by an MO related to some aspect of the Speaker's primary verbal response. The autoclitic mand (e.g., "Believe me, they are wrong.") enjoins a Listener to take some specific action regarding the primary response, and the autoclitic behavior is reinforced by that action. AUTOCLITIC TACT - ANSWER-An autoclitic tact is controlled by some nonverbal feature of the primary response or its controlling variables, and the autoclitic response informs the listener of that feature. This behavior is reinforced by listeners who provide generalized reinforcement. AUTOMATIC CONTINGENCIES - ANSWER-Skinner (1957) used "automatic" to identify circumstances in which behavior is evoked, shaped, maintained, or weakened by environmental variables occurring without direct manipulation by other people. All behavioral principles (e.g., reinforcement, extinction, punishment) can affect our behavior automatically. AUTOMATIC PUNISHMENT - ANSWER-Punishment that occurs independent of the social mediation by others (i.e., a response product serves as a punisher independent of the social environment). AUTOMATIC REINFORCEMENT - ANSWER-reinforcement that occurs independent of the social mediation of others (e.g. scratching an insect bite relieves the itch) AUTOMATICITY (OF REINFORCEMENT) - ANSWER-Refers to the fact that behavior is modified by its consequences irrespective of the person's awareness; a person does not have to recognize or verbalize the relation between her behavior and a reinforcing consequence, or even know that a consequence has occurred, for reinforcement to "work." Contrast with #Automatic Reinforcement AVERSIVE STIMULUS - ANSWER-In general, an unpleasant or noxious stimulus; more technically, a stimulus change or condition that functions (a) to evoke a behavior that has terminated it in the past; (b) as a punisher when presented following behavior, and/or (c) as a reinforcer when withdrawn following behavior. AVOIDANCE CONTINGENCY - ANSWER-A contingency in which a response prevents or postpones the presentation of a stimulus. Compare to #Escape Contingency B-A-B DESIGN - ANSWER-A three-phase experimental design that begins with the treatment condition. After steady state responding has been obtained during the initial treatment phase (B), the treatment variable is withdrawn (A) to see whether responding changes in the absence of the independent variable. The treatment variable is then reintroduced (B) in an attempt to recapture the level of responding obtained during the first treatment phase. BACKUP REINFORCERS - ANSWER-Preferred items, activities, or privileges that participants obtain by exchanging earned tokens in a token economy. #Token Economy BACKWARD CHAINING - ANSWER-A teaching procedure in which a trainer completes all but the last behavior in a chain, which is performed by the learner, who then receives reinforcement for completing the chain. When the learner shows competence in performing the final step in the chain, the trainer performs all but the last two behaviors in the chain, the learner emits the final two steps to complete the chain, and reinforcement is delivered. This sequence is continued until the learner completes the entire chain independently. BACKWARD CHAINING WITH LEAPS AHEAD - ANSWER-a backward chaining procedure in which some steps in the task analysis are skipped; used to increase the efficiency of teaching long behavior chains when there is evidence that the skipped steps are in the learner's repertoire BAR GRAPH - ANSWER-A simple and versatile graphic format for summarizing behavioral data; shares most of the line graph's features except that it does not have distinct data points representing successive response measures through time. Also called a histogram. #Histogram BASELINE - ANSWER-A condition of an experiment in which the independent variable is not present; data obtained during baseline are the basis for determining the effects of the independent variable; a control condition that does not necessarily mean the absence of instruction or treatment, only the absence of a specific independent variable of experimental interest. BASELINE LOGIC - ANSWER-a term sometimes used to refer to the experimental reasoning inherent in single subject experimental designs; entails three elements: prediction, verification, and replication. #Steady State Strategy BEHAVIOR - ANSWER-that portion of an organism's interaction with its environment that involves movement of some part of the organism. See also: #Operant Behavior #Respondent Behavior #Response #Response Class BEHAVIOR ANALYST CERTIFICATION BOARD'S (BACB'S) PROFESSIONAL & ETHICAL COMPLIANCE CODE FOR BEHAVIOR ANALYSTS #THE COMPLIANCE CODE - ANSWER-#THE COMPLIANCE CODE Consolidates, updates, and replaces the BACB's Professional Disciplinary & Ethical Standards & Guidelines for Responsible Conduct for Behavior Analysts. THE COMPLIANCE CODE includes 10 sections relevant to professional and ethical behavior of behavior analysts, along with glossary of terms. Effective January 1, 2016, all BACB applicants, certificants, and registrants will be required to adhere to THE COMPLIANCE CODE BEHAVIOR CHAIN - ANSWER-A sequence of responses in which each response produces a stimulus change that functions as conditioned reinforcement for that response and as a discriminative stimulus for the next response in the chain; reinforcement for the last response in a chain maintains the reinforcing effectiveness of the stimulus changes produced by all previous responses in the chain. BEHAVIOR CHAIN INTERRUPTION STRATEGY - ANSWER-An intervention that relies on the participant's skill in performing the critical elements of a chain independently; the chain is interrupted, or a link in the chain is made unavailable at a predetermined time, so that another behavior can be prompted or emitted. BEHAVIOR CHAIN WITH A LIMITED HOLD - ANSWER-A contingency that specifies a time interval by which a behavior chain must be completed for reinforcement to be delivered. BEHAVIOR CHANGE TACTIC - ANSWER-A technologically consistent method for changing behavior derived from one or more principles of behavior (e.g., differential reinforcement of other behavior, response cost); possesses sufficient generality across subjects, settings, and/or behaviors to warrant its codification and dissemination. BEHAVIOR CHECKLIST - ANSWER-An itemized list that provides descriptions of specific skills (usually in hierarchical order) and the conditions under which each skill should be observed. Some checklists are designed to assess one particular behavior or skill area. Others address multiple behaviors or skill areas. Most use a Likert scale to rate responses. BEHAVIOR TRAP - ANSWER-An interrelated community of contingencies of reinforcement that can be especially powerful, producing substantial and long-lasting behavior changes. Effective behavior traps share 4 essential features: A) they are "baited" with virtually irresistible reinforcers that "lure" the student to the trap; B) only a low-effort response already in the student's repertoire is necessary to enter the trap; C) once inside the trap, interrelated contingencies of reinforcement motivate the student to acquire, extend, and maintain targeted academic and/or social skills; and D) they can remain effective for a long time because students show few, if any, satiation effects BEHAVIOR-ALTERING EFFECT #MOTIVATING OPERATION - ANSWER-Either (a) an increase in the current frequency of behavior that has been reinforced by some stimulus, object, or event, called an evocative efect: or (b) a decrease in the current frequency of behavior that has been reinforced by some stimulus, object, or event, called an abative effect. For example, the current frequency of behavior that has been reinforced with food, such as opening the fridge, is evoked (increased) or abated (decreased) by food deprivation or food ingestion, respectively BEHAVIORAL ASSESSMENT - ANSWER-A form of assessment that includes indirect and direct procedures such as interviews, checklists, and tests to identify and define the specific target behavior. In addition to identifying behavior(s) to change, comprehensive behavioral assessment can uncover functional relations between variables; it provides context on the resources, assets, significant others, competing contingencies, maintenance and generalization factors, and reinforcers (or punishers) that can be combined to improve the efficiency of an intervention. BEHAVIOR CONTRACT - ANSWER-CONTINGENCY CONTRACT BEHAVIORAL CONTRAST - ANSWER-The phenomenon in which a change in one component of a multiple schedule that increases or decreases the rate of responding on that component is accompanied by a change in the response rate in the opposite direction on the other, unaltered component of the schedule. BEHAVIORAL CUSP - ANSWER-a behavior that has sudden and dramatic consequences that extend well beyond the idiosyncratic change itself because it exposes the person to new environments, reinforcers, contingencies, responses, and stimulus controls #Pivotal Behavior BEHAVIORAL INFLEXIBILITY - ANSWER-An insensitivity to external stimuli occurring when private events interfere with well-being behaviors on which high-priority positive reinforcers are contingent. BEHAVIORAL MOMENTUM - ANSWER-Describes the resistance to change in a behavior's rate of responding following an alteration in reinforcement conditions. The momentum metaphor has also been used to describe the effects produced by the high-probability (high-p) request sequence. #High-probability Request Sequence #High-p BEHAVIORISM - ANSWER-The philosophy of a science of behavior; there are various forms of behaviorism. #Methodological Behaviorism #Radical Behaviorism BELIEVABILITY - ANSWER-the extent to which the researcher convinces herself and others that the data are trustworthy and deserve interpretation. Measures of interobserver agreement (IOA) are the most often used index of believability in applied behavior analysis #Interobserver Agreement #IOA BIDIRECTIONAL NAMING (BiN) - ANSWER-a higher-order verbal cusp consisting of the fusing together of the speaker and listener repertoires in bidirectional relations. A new word acquired as listener can generate a tact without further training, and a new word acquired as a tact can generate a listener relation without further training (these effects are consistent with emergent symmetry and mutual entailment) BONUS RESPONSE COST - ANSWER-A procedure for implementing response cost in which the person is provided a reservoir of reinforcers that are removed in predetermined amounts contingent on the occurrence of the target behavior BRIEF FUNCTIONAL ANALYSIS - ANSWER-An analysis in which only one or two 5 to 10-min sessions are conducted for each condition. A convincing demonstration of function may be achieved by either alternating a condition that produces problem behavior with one that does not or conducting a contingency reversal. Brief functional analysis may reveal a functional relation in fewer sessions than a full functional analysis CALIBRATION - ANSWER-the process of comparing the data produced by a measurement system to a known standard or true value and, when sources of error are found, using that information to correct or improve the measurement system CAUSAL RELATIONS - ANSWER-If-then relationships (e.g., if A, then B; if B, then C) that are a central feature of understanding and doing science. With respect to stimulus relations, causal relations can define the structure of a stimulus class or define the behavior function through which stimuli in a class are transformed. CELERATION - ANSWER-the change (acceleration or deceleration) in rate of responding over time; based on count per unit of time (rate); expressed as a factor by which responding is accelerating or decelerating (multiplying or dividing); displayed with a trend line on a Standard Celeration Chart. CELERATION is a generic term without specific reference to accelerating or decelerating rates of response #Standard Celeration Chart CELERATION TIME PERIOD - ANSWER-a unit of time (e.g., per week, per month) in which celeration is plotted on a Standard Celeration Chart #Celeration #Celeration Trend Line CELERATION TREND LINE - ANSWER-The celeration trend line is measured as a factor by which rate multiplies or divides across the celeration time periods (e.g., rate per week, rate per month, rate per year, and rate per decade). #Celeration CHAINED SCHEDULE - ANSWER-A schedule of reinforcement in which the response requirements of two or more basic schedules must be met in a specific sequence before reinforcement is delivered; a discriminative stimulus is correlated with each component of the schedule CHAINING - ANSWER-various methods for linking specific sequences of stimuli and responses to form new performances #Backward Chaining #Backward Chaining with Leaps Ahead #Behavior Chain #Forward Chaining CHANGING CRITERION DESIGN - ANSWER-An experimental Design in which an initial baseline phase is followed by a series of treatment phases consisting of successive and gradually changing criteria for reinforcement or punishment. Experimental control is evidenced by the extent the level of responding changes to conform to each new criterion. CLASS EXPANSION - ANSWER-A new member is added to a demonstrated stimulus equivalence class as the result of teaching a new conditional discrimination. CLASS MERGER - ANSWER-Independent equivalence classes are combined as the result of teaching a new but interrelated conditional discrimination. CLASS-SPECIFIC REINFORCEMENT - ANSWER-A match-to-sample procedure in which not only is the correct comparison choice conditional on the sample stimulus, but the type of consequence delivered is, too; class-specific consequences themselves become members of the equivalence classes. CLICKER TRAINING - ANSWER-A term popularized by Pryor (1999) for shaping behavior using conditioned reinforcement in the form of an auditory stimulus. A handheld device produces a click sound when pressed. The trainer pairs other forms of reinforcement (e.g., edible treats) with the click sound so that the sound becomes a conditioned reinforcer. CODIC - ANSWER-A type of verbal behavior where the form of the response is under the functional control of a verbal stimulus with point-to-point correspondence, but without formal similarity. There is also a history of generalized reinforcement. COMBINATORIAL ENTAILMENT - ANSWER-A relation involving two stimuli that both participate in mutual entailment with some common third stimulus #Mutual Entailment COMPLIANCE CODE - ANSWER-Behavior Analyst Certification Board's (BACB's) Professional and Ethical Compliance Code for Behavior Analysts COMPONENT ANALYSIS - ANSWER-Any experiment designed to identify the active elements of a treatment condition, the relative contributions of different variables in a treatment package, and/or the necessary and sufficient components of an intervention. Component analyses take many forms, but the basic strategy is to compare levels of responding across successive phases in which the intervention is implemented with one or more components left out. COMPOUND SCHEDULE OF REINFORCEMENT - ANSWER-A schedule of reinforcement consisting of two or more elements of continuous reinforcement (CRF), the four intermittent schedules of reinforcement (FR, VR, FI, VI), differential reinforcement of various rates of responding (DRH, DRL), and extinction. The elements from these basic schedules can occur successively or simultaneously and with or without discriminative stimuli; reinforcement may be contingent on meeting the requirements of each element of the schedule independently or in combination with all elements. COMPOUND VERBAL DISCRIMINATION - ANSWER-Involves two or more verbal SDs (convergent multiple control) that each independently evoke behavior, but when they both occur in the same antecedent configuration, a different SD is generated, and a more specific behavior is evoked. CONCEPT - ANSWER-a stimulus class whose members share a common set of features CONCEPT FORMATION - ANSWER-a complex example of stimulus control that requires stimulus generalization within a class of stimuli and discrimination between classes of stimuli CONCURRENT CHAINS DESIGN #CONCURRENT SCHEDULES DESIGN - ANSWER-An experimental design in which participants are presented with two or more response options; each option is associated with a distinctive discriminative stimulus and leads to a different set of treatment procedures. (Also called concurrent schedule design.) CONCURRENT SCHEDULE (CONC) - ANSWER-A schedule of reinforcement in which two or more contingencies of reinforcement (elements) operate independently and simultaneously for two or more behaviors. CONDITIONAL DISCRIMINATION - ANSWER-Performance in a match-to-sample procedure in which discrimination between the comparison stimuli is conditional on, or depends on, the sample stimulus present on each trial. CONDITIONAL PROBABILITY - ANSWER-the likelihood that a target problem behavior will occur in a given circumstance; computed by calculating (a) the proportion of occurrences of behavior that were preceded by a specific antecedent variable and (b) the proportion of occurrences of problem behavior that were followed by a specific consequence. Conditional probabilities range from 0.0 to 1.0; the closer the conditional probability is to 1.0, the stronger the relationship is between the target behavior and the antecedent/consequence variables CONDITIONED MOTIVATION OPERATION (CMO) - ANSWER-A motivating operation whose value-altering effect depends on a learning history. For example, because of the relation between locked doors and keys, having to open a locked door is a CMO that makes keys more effective as reinforcers, and evokes behavior that has obtained such keys. CONDITIONED NEGATIVE REINFORCER - ANSWER-A previously neutral stimulus change that functions as a negative reinforcer because of prior pairing with one or more negative reinforcers. #Negative Reinforcer #Compare to Unconditioned Punisher CONDITIONED PUNISHER - ANSWER-A previously neutral stimulus change that functions as a punisher because of prior pairing with one or more other punishers. #Secondary Punisher #Learned Punisher #Compare to Conditioned Punisher CONDITIONED REFLEX - ANSWER-A learned stimulus-response functional relation consisting of an antecedent stimulus (e.g. sound of refrigerator door opening) and the response it elicits (e.g salivation); each person's repertoire of conditioned reflexes is the product of his or her history of interactions with the environment (ontogeny). #Respondent Conditioning #Unconditioned Reflex CONDITIONED REINFORCER - ANSWER-a stimulus change that functions as a reinforcer because of prior pairing with one or more other reinforcers #Secondary Reinforcer #Learned Reinforcer CONDITIONED STIMULUS (CS) - ANSWER-the stimulus component of a conditioned reflex; a formerly neutral stimulus change that elicits respondent behavior only after it has been paired with an unconditioned stimulus (US) or another CS CONFIDENTIALITY - ANSWER-Describes a situation of trust insofar as any information regarding a person receiving or having received services may not be discussed with or otherwise made available to another person or group, unless that person has provided explicit authorization for release of such information. CONFLICT OF INTEREST - ANSWER-A situation in which a person in a position of responsibility or trust has competing professional or personal interests that make it difficult to fulfill his or her duties impartially. CONFOUNDING VARIABLE - ANSWER-An uncontrolled factor known or suspected to exert influence on the dependent variable. CONJUNCTIVE SCHEDULE (CONJ) - ANSWER-A schedule of reinforcement that is in effect whenever reinforcement follows the completion of response requirements for two or more schedules of reinforcement. CONSEQUENCE - ANSWER-a stimulus change that follows a behavior of interest. Some consequences, especially those that are immediate and relevant to current motivational states, have significant influence on future behavior, others have little effect #Punisher & Reinforcer CONSTANT TIME DELAY - ANSWER-A procedure for transferring stimulus control from contrived response prompts to naturally existing stimuli. After the student has responded correctly to several 0-sec delay trials, after which presentation of the response prompt follows the instructional stimulus by a predetermined and fixed delay (usually 3 or 4 seconds) for all subsequent trials. #Progressive Time Delay CONTEXTUAL CONTROL - ANSWER-The situation or context in which a stimulus (or stimulus class) occurs determines its function. More specifically: a type of stimulus control requiring three levels of antecedent stimuli, such that the functions of the stimuli in a conditional discrimination vary depending on the context. Contextual control training requires a five-term contingency. It allows for the same stimuli to be members of more than one equivalence class, depending on the context. CONTEXTUAL STIMULUS - ANSWER-Signals the type of relational responding that will be reinforced. CONTINGENCY - ANSWER-Refers to dependent and/or temporal relations between operant behavior and its controlling variables. #Contingent #Three-term Contingency CONTINGENCY CONTRACT - ANSWER-A mutually agreed upon document between parties (e.g., parent and child) that specifies a contingent relationship between the completion of specified behavior(s) and access to specified reinforcer(s). #Behavior Contract CONTINGENCY REVERSAL - ANSWER-exchanging the reinforcement contingencies for two topographically different responses. For example, if Behavior A results in reinforcement on an FR 1 schedule of reinforcement and Behavior B results in reinforcement being withheld (extinction), a contingency reversal consists of changing the contingencies such that Behavior A now results in extinction and Behavior B results in reinforcement on an FR 1 schedule CONTINGENCY-SHAPED BEHAVIOR - ANSWER-Behavior acquired by direct experience with contingencies. CONTINGENT - ANSWER-Describes reinforcement (or punishment) that is delivered only after the target behavior has occurred. CONTINGENCY SPACE ANALYSIS - ANSWER-A graphic display of the probability of one event (e.g., a particular consequence) given the occurrence (or not) of another event (e.g., the presence or absence of a particular behavior). Contingencies are considered positive (i.e., a specific consequence is more likely to occur), negative (i.e., a specific consequence is less likely to occur), or neutral (i.e., a specific consequence is neither more or less likely to occur). CONTINGENT OBSERVATION - ANSWER-A procedure for implementing time-out in which the person is repositioned within an existing setting such that observation of ongoing activities remains, but access to reinforcement is lost. CONTINUOUS MEASUREMENT - ANSWER-Measurement conducted in a manner such that all instances of the response class(es) of interest are detected during the observation period CONTINUOUS REINFORCEMEN (CRF) - ANSWER-a schedule of reinforcement that provides reinforcement for each occurrence of the target behavior CONTRIVED CONTINGENCY - ANSWER-Any contingency of reinforcement (or punishment) designed and implemented by a behavior analyst or practitioner to achieve the acquisition, maintenance, and/or generalization of a targeted behavior change. #Contrast with Naturally Existing Contingency CONTRIVED MEDIATING STIMULUS - ANSWER-Any stimulus made functional for the target behavior in the instructional setting that later prompts or aids the learner in performing the target behavior in a generalization setting. COPYING TEXT - ANSWER-An elementary verbal operant involving a written response that is evoked by a written verbal discriminative stimulus that has formal similarity and a history of generalized reinforcement COUNT - ANSWER-A simple tally of the number of occurrences of a behavior. The observation period, or counting time, should always be noted when reporting COUNT MEASURES COUNTERCONTROL - ANSWER-Behavior evoked by coercion or aversive forms of external control; takes many forms, including escape, attack, passive resistance; "an emotional reaction of anger or frustration including operant behavior which injures or is otherwise aversive to the controller" COUNTING TIME - ANSWER-the period of time in which a count of the number of responses emitted was recorded. CUMULATIVE RECORD - ANSWER-A type of graph on which the cumulative number of responses emitted is represented on the vertical axis; the steeper the slope of the data path, the greater the response rate. CUMULATIVE RECORDER - ANSWER-a devise that automatically draws cumulative records (graphs) that show the rate of response in real time; each time a response is emitted, a pen moves upward across paper that continuously moves at a constant speed DATA - ANSWER-the results of measurement, usually in quantifiable form; in applied behavior analysis, it refers to measures of some quantifiable dimension of a behavior. the word DATA is plural form of datum DATA PATH - ANSWER-The level and trend of behavior between successive data points; created by drawing a straight line from the center of each data point in a given data set to the center of the next data point in the same set. DEICTIC RELATION - ANSWER-A relation between the self, as one stimulus, and other stimuli from the external world. DELAY DISCOUNTING #Temporal Discounting - ANSWER-A phenomenon in which delayed rewards, regardless of their significance and magnitude (e.g., enough money for a secure retirement), exert decreasing influence over choice-making behavior as a function of their temporal distance from present circumstances. Both humans and nonhuman laboratory animals discount the value of delayed rewards; the greater the delay to the reward, the greater the discount (i.e., the less value or influence the reward has on current behavior). #Temporal Discounting DELAYED MULTIPLE BASELINE DESIGN - ANSWER-A variation of the multiple baseline design in which an initial baseline, and perhaps intervention, are begIn for one behavior (or setting, or subject), and subsequent baselines for additional behaviors begIn in a staggered or delayed fashion. DEPENDENT GROUP CONTINGENCY - ANSWER-A contingency in which reinforcement for all members of a group is dependent on the behavior of one member of the group or the behavior of a select group of members within the larger group. DEPENDENT VARIABLE - ANSWER-the measured behavior in an experiment to determine if it changes as a result of manipulations of the independent variable; in applied behavior analysis, it represents some measure of a socially significant behavior #Target Behavior #Compare to Independent Variable DEPRIVATION - ANSWER-the state of an organism with respect to how much time has elapsed since it has consumed or contacted a particular type of reinforcer; also refers to a procedure for increasing the effectiveness of a reinforcer (e.g. with-holding a person's access to a reinforcer for a specified period prior to a session) #Motivation Operation (MO) #Contrast with Satiation DERIVED STIMULUS RELATIONS - ANSWER-Responding indicating a relation (e.g., same as, opposite, different from, better than) between two or more stimuli that emerges as an indirect function of related instruction or experience. #Emergent Stimulus Relations DESCENDING BASELINE - ANSWER-a data path that shows a decreasing trend in the response measure over time. #Compare to Ascending Baseline DESCRIPTIVE FUNCTIONAL BEHAVIOR ASSESSMENT - ANSWER-direct observation of problem behavior and the antecedent and consequent events under naturally occurring conditions DETERMINISM - ANSWER-the assumption that the universe is a lawful and orderly place in which phenomena occur in relation to other events and not in a willy-nilly, accidental fashion DIFFERENTIAL REINFORCEMENT - ANSWER-Reinforcing only those responses within a response class that meet a specific criterion along some dimension(s) (i.e. frequency, topography, duration, latency, or magnitude) and placing all other responses in the class on extinction. #DRA, DRI, DRO #Stimulus Discrimination Training #Shaping DIFFERENTIAL REINFORCEMENT OF ALTERNATIVE BEHAVIOR DRA - ANSWER-a procedure for decreasing problem behavior in which reinforcement is delivered for a behaivor that serves as a desirable alternative to the behavior targeted for reduction and withehld following instances of the problem behavior (e.g. reinforcing completion of academic worksheet items when the behavior targeted for reduction is talk-outs) DIFFERENTIAL REINFORCEMENT OF DIMINISHING RATES DRD - ANSWER-a schedule of reinforcement in which reinforcement is provided at the end of a predetermined interval contingent on the number of responses emitted during the interval being fewer than a gradually decreasing criterion based on the individual's performance in previous intervals (e.g. fewer than five responses per 5 minutes, fewer than four responses per 5 minutes, fewer than three response per 5 minutes) DIFFERENTIAL REINFORCEMENT OF HIGH RATES DRH - ANSWER-a schedule of reinforcement in which reinforcement is provided at the end of a predetermined interval contingent on the number of responses emitted during the interval being greater than a gradually increasing criterion based on the individual's performance in previous intervals (e.g. more than three responses per 5 minutes, more than five responses per 5 minutes, more than eight responses per 5 minutes) DIFFERENTIAL REINFORCEMENT OF INCOMPATIBLE BEHAVIOR DRI - ANSWER-a procedure for decreasing problem behavior in which reinforcement is delivered for a behavior that is topographically incompatible with the behavior targeted for reduction and withheld following instances of the problem behavior (e.g. sitting in seat is incompatible with walking around the room DIFFERENTIAL REINFORCEMENT OF LOW RATES DRL - ANSWER-A schedule of reinforcement in which reinforcement (a) follows each occurrence of the target behavior that is separated from the previous response by a minimum interresponse time (IRT), or (b) is contingent on the number of responses within a period of time not exceeding a predetermined criterion. Practitioners use DRL schedules to decrease the rate of behaviors that occur too frequently but should be maintained in the learner's repertoire. #Full-session DRL #Interval DRL #Spaced-responding DRL DIFFERENTIAL REINFORCEMENT OF OTHER BEHAVIOR DRO - ANSWER-a procedure for decreasing problem behavior in which reinforcement is contingent on the absence of the problem behavior during or at specific times (i.e. momentary DRO) #Differential Reinforcement of Zero Rates of Responding or Omission Training #Fixed-interval DRO #Fix-momentary DRO #Variable-interval DRO #Variable-momentary DRO DIRECT MEASUREMENT - ANSWER-Occurs when the behavior that is measured is the same as the behavior that is the focus of the investigation DIRECT REPLICATION - ANSWER-An experiment in which the researcher attempts to duplicate exactly the conditions of an earlier experiment DISCIPLINARY STANDARDS - ANSWER-Statements describing corrective, disciplinary, and revocation actions, depending on the circumstances for violations of a professional; see the BACB Compliance Code. DISCONTINUOUS MEASUREMENT - ANSWER-measurement conducted in a manner such that some instances of the response class(es) of interest may not be detected DISCRETE TRIAL - ANSWER-any operant whose response rate is controlled by a given opportunity to emit the response. Each discrete response occurs when an opportunity to respond exists #Discrete trial #Restricted Operant #Controlled Operant #Contrast with Free Operant DISCRIMINATED AVOIDANCE - ANSWER-A contingency in which responding in the presence of a signal prevents the onset of a stimulus from which escape is a reinforcer. #Discriminative Stimulus #Discriminated Operant #Free-operant Avoidance #Stimulus Control DISCRIMINATED OPERANT - ANSWER-An operant that occurs more frequently under some antecedent conditions than under others. #Discriminative Stimulus Sd #Stimulus Control DISCRIMINATIVE STIMULUS Sd - ANSWER-a stimulus in the presence of which a given behavior has been reinforced and in the absence of which that behavior has not been reinforced; as a result of this history, an Sd evokes operant behavior because its presence signals the availabiltiy of reinforcement #Differential Reinforcement #Stimulus Control #Stimulus Delta #Stimulus Discrimination Training DISCRIMINATIVE STIMULUS FOR PUNISHMENT SDP - ANSWER-a stimulus in the presence of which a given behavior has been punished and in the absence of which that behavior has not been punished; as a result of this history, the behavior occurs less often in the presence of the SDP than in its absence DISTINCTION RELATION - ANSWER-Responding jointly to two stimuli on the basis of their differences. DOUBLE-BLIND CONTROL - ANSWER-a procedure that prevents the subject and the experimenter(s) from detecting the presence or absence of the treatment variable; used to eliminate confounding of results by subject expectations, parent and teacher expectations, differential treatment by others, and observer bias #Placebo Control DRI/DRA REVERSAL TECHNIQUE - ANSWER-an experimental technique that demonstrates the effects of reinforcement; it uses a differential reinforcement of an incompatible or alternative behavior (DRI/DRA) as a control condition instead of a no-reinforcement ((baseline) condition. during the DRI/DRA condition, the stimulus change used as reinforcement in the reinforcement condition is presented contingent on occurrences of a specified behavior that is either incompatible with the target behavior or an alternative to the target behavior. a higher level of responding during the reinforcement condition than during the DRI/DRA condition demonstrated that the changes in behavior are the result of CONTINGENT REINFORCEMENT, not simply the presentation of or contact with the stimulus event REVERSAL TECHNIQUES - ANSWER-#DRO/DRI/DRA Reversal Technique #Noncontingent Reinforcement Reversal Technique NCR DRO REVERSAL TECHNIQUE - ANSWER-an experimental technique for demonstrating the effects of reinforcement by using differential reinforcement of other behavior (DRO) as a control condition instead of a no-reinforcement (baseline) condition. during DRO condition, the stimulus change used as reinforcement in the reinforcement condition is presented contingent on the absence of the target behavior for a specified tiem period. a higher level of responding during the reinforcement condition than during the DRO condition demonstrates that the changes in behavior are the result of CONTINGENT REINFORCEMENT, not simply the preentation of or contact with the simtul event DROP-OUT COMPONENT ANALYSIS - ANSWER-A method for conducting a component analysis in which the investigator presents the treatment package and then systematically removes components. If the treatment's effectiveness wanes when a component is removed, the researcher has identified a necessary component. #Contrast with Add-In Component Analysis DUPLIC - ANSWER-A type of verbal behavior where the form of the response is under the functional control of a verbal stimulus with formal similarity, and a history of generalized reinforcement. DURATION - ANSWER-the total time that behavior occurs; measured by elapsed time from the onset of a response to its end point ECHOIC - ANSWER-An elementary verbal operant involving a vocal response that is evoked by a vocal verbal SD that has formal similarity between an auditory verbal stimulus and an auditory verbal response product, and a history of generalized reinforcement. ECOLOGICAL ASSESSMENT - ANSWER-an assessment protocol that acknowledges complex interrelationships between environment and behavior - a method for obtaining data across multiple settings and persons ELEMENTARY VERBAL OPERANTS - ANSWER-Michael's (1982) term for Skinner's (1957) taxonomy of five different types of speaker behavior (i.e., expressive language) distinguished by their antecedent controlling variables and related history of consequences: mand, tact, intraverbal, duplic, and codic. #Echoic #Copying Text #Taking Dication #Textual Behavior EMERGENT STIMULUS RELATIONS - ANSWER-Stimulus relations that are not taught directly but emerge as an indirect function of related instruction or experience. #Derived Stimulus Relations EMPIRICISM - ANSWER-The objective observation of the phenomena of interest; objective observations are "independent of the individual prejudices, tastes, and private opinions of the scientist... Results of empirical methods are objective in that they are open to anyone's observation and do not depend on the subjective belief of the individual scientist. ENRICHED ENVIRONMENT - ANSWER-An intervention that provides noncontingent access to preferred sources of reinforcement (e.g., toys, games, social and recreation activities). This noncontingent access to preferred reinforcers arranges a competition between the enriched environment and the stimulation provided by the problem behavior. ENVIRONMENT - ANSWER-the conglomerate of real circumstances in which the organism or referenced part of the organism exists; behavior cannot occur in the absence of environment ENVIRONMENTAL ENRICHMENT (EE) - ANSWER-an antecedent intervention that provides noncontingent access to preferred sources of reinforcement (e.g. toys, games, social and recreation activities). this noncontingent access to preferred sources of reinforcement arranges a competition between the EE intervention and the stimulation provided by the problem behavior EQUAL-INTERVAL SCALE - ANSWER-a scale in which equal distances on the axis represent equal absolute amounts of the variable plotted on the axis (e.g. behavior change on an equal-interval vertical axis) EQUIVALENCE TEST - ANSWER-A probe for the emergence of untrained stimulus-stimulus relations that evaluates both symmetry and transitivity simultaneously. EQUIVALENCE-CLASS FORMATION #Stimulus Equivalence - ANSWER-The emergence of accurate responding to untrained and nonreinforced stimulus-stimulus relations following the reinforcement of responses to some stimulus-stimulus relations. Requires successful performances on three types of probe trials—reflexivity, symmetry, and transitivity—in the absence of reinforcement. ERRORLESS LEARNING - ANSWER-A variety of techniques for gradually transferring stimulus control with a minimum of errors. ESCAPE CONTINGENCY - ANSWER-a contingency in which a response terminates (produces escape from) an ongoing stimulus #Compare to Avoidance Contingency ESCAPE EXTINCTION - ANSWER-behaviors maintained with negative reinforcement are placed on escape extinction when those behaviors are not followed by termination of the aversive stimulus; emitting the target behavior does not enable the person to escape the aversive situation ESTABLISHING OPERATION (EO) - ANSWER-A motivating operation that increases the effectiveness of some stimulus, object, or event as a reinforcer. For example, food deprivation makes food an effective reinforcer. #Deprivation ETHICAL CODES OF BEHAVIOR - ANSWER-Documents generated or adopted by professional organizations that provide clear guidelines for their members when deciding a course of proper action in conducting their professional duties. ETHICS - ANSWER-Behaviors, practices, and decisions that address such basic and fundamental questions as: What is the right thing to do? What's worth doing? What does it mean to be a good behavior analytic practitioner? The Behavior Analyst Certification Board's (BACB's) Professional and Ethical Compliance Code for Behavior Analysts details ethical practice for behavior analysts EVENT RECORDING - ANSWER-measurement procedure for obtaining a tally or count of the number of times a behavior occurs EVOCATIVE EFFECT (OF A MOTIVATING OPERATION) - ANSWER-An increase in the current frequency of behavior that has been reinforced by the stimulus that is increased in reinforcing effectiveness by the same motivating operation. For example, food deprivation evokes (increases the current frequency of) behavior that has been reinforced by food. EXACT COUNT-PER-INTERVAL IOA - ANSWER-The percentage of total intervals in which two observers recorded the same count; the most stringent description of IOA for most data sets obtained by event recording EXCLUSION (TRAINING) - ANSWER-a procedure for building new arbitrary conditional discriminations based on the robust finding that learners will select a novel comparison stimulus over a known one in the presence of a novel sample EXCLUSION TIME-OUT - ANSWER-a procedure for implementing time-out in which, contingent on the occurrence of a target behavior, the person is removed physically from the current environment for a specified period EXPERIMENT - ANSWER-a carefully controlled comparison of some measure of the phenomenon of interest (the dependent variable) under two or more different conditions in which only one factor at a time (the independent variable) differs from one condition to another EXPERIMENTAL ANALYSIS OF BEHAVIOR (EAB) - ANSWER-a natural science approach to the study of behavior as a subject matter in its own right founded by B.F.Skinner; methodological features include rate of response as a basic dependent variable, repeated or continuous measurement of clearly defined response classes, within-subject experimental comparisons instead of group design, visual analysis of graphed data instead of statistical inference, and an emphasis on describing functional relations between behavior and controlling variables in the environment over formal theory testing EXPERIMENTAL CONTROL - ANSWER-Two meanings: (a) the outcome of an experiment that demonstrates convincingly a functional relations, meaning that experimental control is achieved when a predictable change in behavior (the dependent variable_ can be reliably produced by manipulating a specific aspect of the environment (the independent variable); and (b) the extent to which a researcher maintains precise control of the independent variable by presenting it, with drawing it, and/or varying its value, and also by eliminating or holding constant all confounding and extraneous variables. #Confounding Variable #Extraneous Variable #Indepedent Variable EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN - ANSWER-the particular type and sequence of conditions in a study so that meaningful comparisons of the effects of the presence and absence (or different values) of the independent variable can be made EXPLANATORY FICTION - ANSWER-a fictitious or hypothetical variable that often takes form of another name for the observed phenomenon it claims to explain and contributes nothing to a functional account or understanding of the phenomenon, such as "intelligence" or "cognitive awareness" as explanations for why an organism pushes the lever when the light is on and food is available but does not push the lever when the light is off and no food is available. EXTERNAL VALIDITY - ANSWER-the degree to which a study's findings have generality to other subjects, settings, and/or behaviors #Compare to Internal Validity EXTINCTION - ANSWER-The discontinuing of a reinforcement of a previously reinforced behavior (i.e. responses no longer produce reinforcement); the primary effect is a decrease in the frequency of the behavior until it reaches a prereinforced level or ultimately ceases to occur #Extinction Burse #Sponteneous Recovery EXTINCTION BURST - ANSWER-an increase in the frequency of responding when an extinction procedure is initially implemented EXTINCTION-INDUCED VARIABILITY - ANSWER-Phenomenon in which diverse and novel forms of behavior are sometimes observed during the extinction process. EXTRANEOUS VARIABLE - ANSWER-Any aspect of the experimental setting (e.g., lighting, temperature) that must be held constant to prevent unplanned environmental variation. FADING - ANSWER-a procedure for transferring stimulus control in which features of an antecedent stimulus (e.g., shape, size, position, color) controlling a behavior are gradually changed to a new stimulus while maintaining the current behavior; stimulus features can be faded in (enhanced) or out (reduced) FEATURE STIMULUS CLASS - ANSWER-stimuli that share common physical forms or structures (e.g., made from wood, four legs, round, blue) or common relative relationships (e.g., bigger than, hotter than, higher than, next to) #Compare to Arbitrary Stimulus Class FIXED INTERVAL FI - ANSWER-a schedule of reinforcement in which reinforcement is delivered for the first response emitted following the passage of a fixed duration of time since the last response was reinforced (e.g. on an EI 3-min schedule, the first response following the passage of 3 minuets is reinforced) FIXED RATIO FR - ANSWER-a schedule of reinforcement requiring a fixed number of responses for reinforcement (e.g. an FR 4 schedule of reinforcement follows every 4th response) FIXED-INTERVAL DRO FI-DRO - ANSWER-a DRO procedure in which reinforcement is available at the end of intervals of fixed duration and delivered contingent on the absence of the problem behavior during each interval #Differential Reinforcement of Other Behavior #DRO FIXED-MOMENTARY DRO FM-DROM - ANSWER-a DRO procedure in which reinforcement is available at specific moments in time, which are separated by a fixed amount of time, and delivered contingent on the problem not occurring at those moments #Differential Reinforcement of Other Behavior #DRO FIXED-TIME SCHEDULE FT - ANSWER-A schedule for the delivery of non-contingent stimuli in which a time interval remains the same from one delivery to the next. #NCR FORMAL SIMILARITY - ANSWER-Occurs when the controlling antecedent stimulus and the response or response product A) share the same sense mode (e.g. both stimulus and response are visual, auditory, or tactile) and B) physically resemble each other. Verbal relations with formal similarity are: #Echoic #Copying a Text #Imitation as it relates to Sign Language FORWARD CHAINING - ANSWER-a method for teaching behavior chains that begins with the learner being prompted and taught to perform the fist behavior in the task analysis; the trainer completes the remaining steps in the chain. When the learner shows competence in performing the first step in the chain, he is then taught to perform the first two behaviors in the chain, with the training completing the chain. This process is continued until the learner completes the entire chain independently FRAUDULENT CONDUCT - ANSWER-Intentional, willful, and deceitful behavior; such behavior can cause harm to others. FREE OPERANT - ANSWER-any operant behavior that results in minimal displacement of the participant in time and space. a free operant can be emitted at nearly any time; it is discrete, it requires minimal time for completion, and it can produce a wide range of response rates. Examples in ABA include A) the number of words read during a 1-min counting period, B) the number of hand slaps per 6 seconds, and C) the number of letter strokes written in 3 minutes #Contrast with Discrete Trial FREE-OPERANT AVOIDANCE - ANSWER-A contingency in which responses at any time during an interval prior to the scheduled onset of an aversive stimulus delays the presentation of the aversive stimulus. #Contrast with Discriminated Avoidance FREQUENCY - ANSWER-how often a behavior occurs. some behavior analysts use FREQUENCY to mean RATE (a ratio of responses per standard unit of time); others use FREQUENCY as a synonym for count FULL-SESSION DRL - ANSWER-a procedure for implementing DRL in which reinforcement is delivered at the end of the session if the total number of responses emitted during the session does not exceed a criterion limit #Differential Reinforcement of Low Rates #DRL FUNCTION-ALTERING EFFECT (RELEVANT TO OPERANT RELATIONS - ANSWER-a change in an organism's repertoire of MO, stimulus, and response relations, caused by reinforcement, punishment, an extinction procedure, or a recovery from punishment procedure. respondent function-altering effects result from the pairing and unpairing of antecedent stimuli FUNCTION-BASED DEFINITION - ANSWER-designates responses as members of the targeted response class solely in terms of their common effect on the environment FUNCTIONAL ANALYSIS - ANSWER-A term with two meanings in contemporary behavior analysis literature. In its original and most fundamental usage, functional analysis denotes demonstrations of functional relations between environmental variables and behavior. In the context of determining the purposes (functions) of problem behavior for an individual, functional analysis entails experimentally arranging antecedents and consequences representing those in the person's natural routines so that their separate effects on problem behavior can be observed and measured. FUNCTIONAL BEHAVIOR ASSESSMENT FBA - ANSWER-a systematic method of assessment for obtaining information about the purposes (functions) a problem behavior serves for a person; results are used to guide the design of an intervention for decreasing the problem behavior and increasing appropriate behavior