Functional Behavior Assessment - Midterm

Procedural safeguards

measures taken to minimize the risk of physical or emotional harm to an individual being assessed, the assessor, or any bystanders present during the assessment process; particularly necessary to plan for and implement when an experimental manipulation is being conducted

Direct assessment

observation of the target behavior's occurrence wherein frequency, duration, and magnitude data are collected. Additionally, notes regarding the environmental variables surrounding the behavior and temporal patterns are collected.

Reinforcement

occurs when the future frequency of a behavior increases following a particular consequence

Positive Reinforcement

occurs when the future frequency of a behavior increases following the presentation of a stimulus

True or False: behavior analysts must focus on socially significant behaviors because those the only behaviors that are possible for them to change.

False

True or False: behavior-change programs can be developed at the same time as conducting a functional behavior assessment.

False

True or False: changing a person's behavior to maximize their academic ability is automatically more socially significant than changing their behavior to maximize their adaptive ability

False

True or False: consent must be obtained prior to conducting a functional behavior assessment, and, in cases of extremely dangerous behaviors, verbal consent is sufficient.

False

True or False: determining social significance does not require consideration of the context in which the behavior occurs; if the behavior could be problematic in any hypothetical context, it is socially significant and needs to be changed.

False

True or False: learners whose behaviors have been identified through functional behavior assessments as having the same function can be given the exact same behavior-change plan, as long as only the names are changed on the plan itself

False

True or False: the social significance of a behavior is best identified by examining the individual's social abilities exclusively.

False

Multimodal

Involving multiple modes of assessment within the FBA process (e.g. interviews, direct observation, systematic manipulation)

Written consent is needed when performing which of the following activities relating to functional behavior assessment?

Prior to conducting the functional behavior assessment and prior to accessing learner records from their sources.

Written approval must be obtained from the learner prior to which of the following activities relating to functional behavior assessment?

Prior to planning the FBA procedures and prior to planning the behavior-change procedures or modification to the behavior-change procedure.

Social significance is determined by evaluating the potential for the behavior change to improve the individual's...

Safety, adaptive functioning and social functioning

The Ethics Code for Behavior analysts outlines:

Specific requirements and guidelines for behavior analysts to follow with respect to their work conducting functional behavior assessments, as well as other activities typically performed by behavior analysts.

The learner should be involved in which of the following activities relating to functional behavior assessment? Select the response that is most comprehensive.

The behavior analyst should include the learner in determining the assessment procedures to be used and obtain written approval before implementing assessment procedures; behavior analysts should explain assessment results in a reasonably understandable way; learners should provide consent for the behavior analyst to access protected records from other sources; learners should be involved in planning behavior-change programs and should provide consent for the program as well as any significant modifications to the program.

Function of Behavior

The purpose the behavior serves for the individual. The answer to the question, "why is this behavior occurring?"

True or False: Assessment results need to be explained to the learner in easily understandable language, and learners need to be involved in the development of the behavior-change rule.

True

True or False: behavior analysts have a duty to focus on socially significant behaviors because those are behaviors determined to have the greatest positive impact on the individual's life.

True

True or False: behaviors that have the potential to cause harm to those around the individual learner are highly socially significant and need to be changed.

True

True or False: members of the individual's environment can contribute to the evaluation of the social significance of a particular behavior of concern

True

True or false: a target behavior can be any behavior selected for change.

True

True or false: determining social significance should include an evaluation of whether the behavior change will improve the lives of those around the individual learner, as well as that of the learner.

True

True or False: learners need to provide written approval if a significant change will be made to the behavior-change plan.

True/parents if learner is under 18.

True or False: consent needs to be obtained from the learner prior to accessing their school, hospital, or other providers' protected records.

True: from the parents if not 18

True or false: if environmental constraints exist that hinder implementation of the behavior-change plan, the constraints should be removed if possible, or they should be documented in writing.

True; removed if possible

Automatic Reinforcement

occurs when the future frequency of a behavior increases following the presentation, removal, or termination of a stimulus, independent of the mediation of others

Antecedent-Behavior-Consequence/contingency/3 term contingency

a temporal sequence of the antecedent, behavior, and consequence that is potentially dependent (i.e. the behavior may be dependent on certain antecedents or consequences being present). It is the basic unit of analysis of operating behavior.

Functional Analysis

a type of experimental manipulation that involves systematically manipulating the variables that are present following the typical occurrence of a behavior

Structural Analysis

a type of experimental manipulation that involves systematically manipulating the variables that are prior to the typical occurrence of a behavior

Hypothesis statement

an educated guess regarding the function of a behavior

Function based intervention

an intervention specifically designed to enable the individual learner to engage in a behavior to serve the same function as the target behavior

Applied Behavior Analysis

applies the basic principles of behavior analysis with the objective of influencing socially significant behavior through a systematic assessment of environmental events and application of behavior-change practices

Descriptive Assessment

direct observation of behavior and environmental events

Consequences

environmental conditions, events or stimuli that occur immediately following a target behavior's occurrence

Antecedents

environmental conditions, events, or stimuli that occur immediately prior to a target behavior's occurrence

Service Delivery

focuses on the practitioners who deliver ABA services and models through which ABA is disseminated

Negative Reinforcement

occurs when the future frequency of a behavior increases following the removal or termination of an aversive stimulus

When attempting to determine the social significance of a behavior, it is important to discuss the following factors:

the intensity, the frequency and duration, and who is affected by the behavior

Conceptual Analysis of Behavior

the philosophy of the science of behaviorism

Experimental Manipulation

to determine the function of the behavior, relevant environmental variables are systematically manipulated within an experimental design, and the effect on behavior is closely observed.

Functional relation

when a well-controlled experiment systematically demonstrates that when a change in the independent variable occurs, a change in the dependent variable reliably occurs

From the situations provided, select which would be an example of a socially significant behavior that should warrant immediate focus for behavior change.

An individual's jumping behavior that occurs in the middle of a sixth grade science class, despite ridicule from peers.

From the situations provided, select which would be an example of a socially significant behavior that should warrant immediate focus for behavior change:

Behavior that has cause peers to sit at a different table.

Target behavior

a behavior selected for change

ABC Chart

a chart for recording the antecedent, behavior, and consequence of each occurrence of the target behavior. It usually contains 3 columns for the ABC part and 1 additional column for notes or comments. This chart is analyzed carefully for the purposes of determining the function of behavior

Task Demand

a directive presented to a learner (in visual, verbal, or textual form) signaling that the availability of reinforcement will follow the completion of an activity or that reinforcement is no longer available for a certain period of time.

Scatterplot

a matrix used to plot direct assessment data to assist in determining the function of the behavior. Specifically indicates the timing of the behavior and allows for it to be analyzed for patterns over time

Social Validity

a measure of the acceptability and appropriateness of the target behavior, behavioral goal, intervention procedures, and ultimate effect of behavior change

BIP

a plan comprised of specific behavior change procedures based on the findings of the FBA, developed by the treatment teama nd implemented by various members of the team.

Zero-tolerance policy

a policy indicating that no instances of the behavior are acceptable and the behavior must reach a rate of zero.

Functional analysis

a procedure wherein the assumed function of the behavior is tested by systematically manipulating the learner's conditions to determine which environmental condition is most likely to evoke and maintain the behavior

Structural analysis

a procedure wherein the learner will be systematically exposed to or placed in the presence of different stimuli to evoke the occurrence of the problem behavior

Indirect assessment

a process whereby information is gathered about the target behavior through indirect means (interviews, questionnaires, and anecdotal reports) by those who have observed the behavior or the individual themselves

Temporal sequence

a sequence of events in time

FBA

a set of procedures implemented in a specific manner to determine the reason a particular behavior occurs. There are three categories of methods used within the FBA, including indirect assessment, direct assessment, and experimental methods

True or False:

prior to selecting a target behavior, a behavior analyst should come and evaluate the social significance of the behavior.

Experimental analysis of Behavior

provides the scientific foundation for applied behavior analysis and is the basic science of behavior analysis

In vivo observation

real-time direct observation of the target behavior

Perseveration

repetitive utterances or actions that occur following an initial stimulus that has since passed.

Social significance

the degree of relative importance the behavior change will have on the learner

topography

the form of a behavior (what it looks like and sounds like)