BCBA Exam Cooper definitions,
BCBA|Questions and Answers|
Well Analyzed
A-B design - -A two-phase experimental design consisting of a pre-
treatment baseline condition followed by a treatment condition.
-A-B-A design - -A three-phase experimental design consisting of an
initial baseline phase until steady state responding (or counter-
therapeutic trend) is obtained, an intervention phase in which the
treatment condition is implemented until the behavior has changed and
steady state responding is obtained, and a return to baseline conditions
by withdrawing the independent variable to see whether responding
"reverses" to levels observed in the initial baseline phase.
-Reversal/Withdrawl Design (A-B-A-B design) - -An experimental design
consisting of an initial baseline phase until steady state responding (or
counter-therapeutic trend) is obtained; an initial intervention phase in
which the treatment variable is implemented until the behavior has
changed and steady state responding is obtained; a return to baseline
conditions by withdrawing the independent variable to see whether
responding "reverses" to levels observed in the initial baseline phase; a
second intervention phase to see whether initial treatment effects are
replicated.
-abative effect - -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.
-abolishing operation (AO) - -A motivating operation that decreases the
reinforcing effectiveness of a stimulus, object, or event.
-accuracy - -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.
-adjunctive behavior/schedule-induced behavior - -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 - -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/concurrent schedule
design/multielement design - -An experimental design in which two or
more conditions (one of which may be a no-treatment control condition)
are presented in rapidly aternating succession independent of the level
of responding; differences in responding between or among conditions
are attributed to the effects of the conditions.
-multiple schedule design - -An experimental design in which two or
more conditions are compared to baseline as well as each other.
-alternative schedule - -Provides reinforcement whenever the
requirement of either a ratio schedule or an interval schedule - the basic
schedules that makeup the alternative schedule - is met, regardless of
which of the component schedule's requirements is met first.
-anecdotal observation/ABC recording - -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.
-antecedent - -An environmental condition or stimulus change existing
or occurring prior to a behavior of interest.
-antecedent intervention - -A behavior change strategy that
manipulates contingency-independent antecedent stimuli.
-antecedent control - -A behavior change intervention that manipulates
contingency dependent consequence event to affect stimulus control.
-antecedent stimulus class - -A set of stimuli that share a common
relationship and evoke the same operant behavior, or elicit the same
respondent behavior.
-applied behavior analysis (ABA) - -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 of behavior.
-arbitrary stimulus class - -Antecedent stimuli that evoke the same
response but do not resemble each other in physical form or share a
relational aspect such as a bigger or under.
-artifact - -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 - -A data path that shows an increasing trend in the
response measure over time.
-audience - -Anyone who functions as a discriminative stimulus evoking
verbal behavior. Different ones may control different verbal behavior
about the same topic because of a differential reinforcement history.
-automatic punishment - -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 - -Reinforcement that occurs independent of
the social mediation of others. (e.g. scratching an insect bite relieves
the itch.)
-automaticity of reinforcement - -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".
-aversive stimulus - -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 a behavior.
-avoidance contingency - -A contingency in which a response prevents
or postpones the presentation of a stimulus.
-B-A-B design - -A three-phase experimental design that begins with the
treatment condition. After steady state responding has been obtained
during the initial treatment phase, the treatment variable is withdrawn
to see whether responding changes in the absence of the independent
variable. The treatment variable is then reintroduced in an attempt to
recapture the level of responding obtained during the first treatment
phase.
-backup reinforcers - -Tangible objects, activities, or privileges that
serve as reinforcers and that can be purchased with tokens.
-backward chaining - -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 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 - -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 learners repertoire.
-bar graph/histogram - -A simple and versatile graphic format for
summarizing behavioral data; shares most of the line graphs's features
except that it does not have distinct data points representing successive
response measures through time.
-baseline - -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 - -A term sometimes used to refer to the experimental
reasoning inherent in single-subject experimental designs; entails three
elements: prediction, verification, and replication.
-behavior - -The activity of living organisms; includes everything that
people do. A technical definition: "that portion of an organism's
interaction with its environment that is characterized by detectable
displacement in space through time of some part of the organism and
that results in a measurable change in at least one aspect of the
environment.
-behavior-altering effect - -An alteration in the current frequency of
behavior that has been reinforced by the stimulus that is altered in
effectiveness by the same motivating operation.
-behavior chain - -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 - -An intervention that relies on
the participant's skill in performing the critical elements of a chain
independently; the chain is interrupted occasionally so that another
behavior can be emitted.
-behavior chain with a limited hold - -A contingency that specifies a
time interval by which a behavior chain must be completed for
reinforcement to be delivered.
-behavior change tactic - -A technologically consistent method for
changing behavior derived from one or more principles of behavior;
BCBA|Questions and Answers|
Well Analyzed
A-B design - -A two-phase experimental design consisting of a pre-
treatment baseline condition followed by a treatment condition.
-A-B-A design - -A three-phase experimental design consisting of an
initial baseline phase until steady state responding (or counter-
therapeutic trend) is obtained, an intervention phase in which the
treatment condition is implemented until the behavior has changed and
steady state responding is obtained, and a return to baseline conditions
by withdrawing the independent variable to see whether responding
"reverses" to levels observed in the initial baseline phase.
-Reversal/Withdrawl Design (A-B-A-B design) - -An experimental design
consisting of an initial baseline phase until steady state responding (or
counter-therapeutic trend) is obtained; an initial intervention phase in
which the treatment variable is implemented until the behavior has
changed and steady state responding is obtained; a return to baseline
conditions by withdrawing the independent variable to see whether
responding "reverses" to levels observed in the initial baseline phase; a
second intervention phase to see whether initial treatment effects are
replicated.
-abative effect - -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.
-abolishing operation (AO) - -A motivating operation that decreases the
reinforcing effectiveness of a stimulus, object, or event.
-accuracy - -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.
-adjunctive behavior/schedule-induced behavior - -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 - -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/concurrent schedule
design/multielement design - -An experimental design in which two or
more conditions (one of which may be a no-treatment control condition)
are presented in rapidly aternating succession independent of the level
of responding; differences in responding between or among conditions
are attributed to the effects of the conditions.
-multiple schedule design - -An experimental design in which two or
more conditions are compared to baseline as well as each other.
-alternative schedule - -Provides reinforcement whenever the
requirement of either a ratio schedule or an interval schedule - the basic
schedules that makeup the alternative schedule - is met, regardless of
which of the component schedule's requirements is met first.
-anecdotal observation/ABC recording - -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.
-antecedent - -An environmental condition or stimulus change existing
or occurring prior to a behavior of interest.
-antecedent intervention - -A behavior change strategy that
manipulates contingency-independent antecedent stimuli.
-antecedent control - -A behavior change intervention that manipulates
contingency dependent consequence event to affect stimulus control.
-antecedent stimulus class - -A set of stimuli that share a common
relationship and evoke the same operant behavior, or elicit the same
respondent behavior.
-applied behavior analysis (ABA) - -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 of behavior.
-arbitrary stimulus class - -Antecedent stimuli that evoke the same
response but do not resemble each other in physical form or share a
relational aspect such as a bigger or under.
-artifact - -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 - -A data path that shows an increasing trend in the
response measure over time.
-audience - -Anyone who functions as a discriminative stimulus evoking
verbal behavior. Different ones may control different verbal behavior
about the same topic because of a differential reinforcement history.
-automatic punishment - -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 - -Reinforcement that occurs independent of
the social mediation of others. (e.g. scratching an insect bite relieves
the itch.)
-automaticity of reinforcement - -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".
-aversive stimulus - -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 a behavior.
-avoidance contingency - -A contingency in which a response prevents
or postpones the presentation of a stimulus.
-B-A-B design - -A three-phase experimental design that begins with the
treatment condition. After steady state responding has been obtained
during the initial treatment phase, the treatment variable is withdrawn
to see whether responding changes in the absence of the independent
variable. The treatment variable is then reintroduced in an attempt to
recapture the level of responding obtained during the first treatment
phase.
-backup reinforcers - -Tangible objects, activities, or privileges that
serve as reinforcers and that can be purchased with tokens.
-backward chaining - -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 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 - -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 learners repertoire.
-bar graph/histogram - -A simple and versatile graphic format for
summarizing behavioral data; shares most of the line graphs's features
except that it does not have distinct data points representing successive
response measures through time.
-baseline - -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 - -A term sometimes used to refer to the experimental
reasoning inherent in single-subject experimental designs; entails three
elements: prediction, verification, and replication.
-behavior - -The activity of living organisms; includes everything that
people do. A technical definition: "that portion of an organism's
interaction with its environment that is characterized by detectable
displacement in space through time of some part of the organism and
that results in a measurable change in at least one aspect of the
environment.
-behavior-altering effect - -An alteration in the current frequency of
behavior that has been reinforced by the stimulus that is altered in
effectiveness by the same motivating operation.
-behavior chain - -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 - -An intervention that relies on
the participant's skill in performing the critical elements of a chain
independently; the chain is interrupted occasionally so that another
behavior can be emitted.
-behavior chain with a limited hold - -A contingency that specifies a
time interval by which a behavior chain must be completed for
reinforcement to be delivered.
-behavior change tactic - -A technologically consistent method for
changing behavior derived from one or more principles of behavior;
