Tag: bcba exam study guide

Properties of a Behavior Which Can Be Measured (BCBA Exam Prep)

What is a behavior? A behavior refers to any interaction between an organism and its environment that changes the environment in some way. For example: Clapping your hands, walking, making dinner, ordering a pizza, sleeping, sneezing.  Anything that a dead person could not do is a behavior.  An inanimate object cannot engage in a behavior. For example, a paper blowing…

Learn More

Defining Characteristics of ABA? (BCBA Exam Prep)

Applied behavior analysis (ABA) is not the only science of behavior. Therefore, behavior analysts had to set specific criteria for what makes something ABA. Therefore, in order for something to be considered ABA, it must meet all seven of the following criteria. If any are missing, a treatment would not be considered ABA.  Applied Any behavior being changed in ABA…

Learn More

Features of Behavior and Behavior Assumptions in ABA

Applied behavior analysts seek to change socially relevant behavior by manipulating the environment to make a behavior occur more or less often.    To do so, applied behavior analysts require two features of a behavior and make two assumptions about a behavior. Features: Behavior is individual In applied behavior analysis (ABA) a feature of behavior is that ALL behavior is individual.…

Learn More

Experimental control/ Internal Validity/Confounding Variables (ABA Terms) (BCBA Exam Prep)

Experimental control is the degree to which the same intervention can be shown to have a predictable effect on behavior. The point of experimental control is to demonstrate a functional relationship between a behavior (dependent variable) and intervention (independent variable).  In applied behavior analysis, (ABA) behaviorists are constantly validating that interventions work by analysis and experimentation. If a behavior change…

Learn More

Parametric v. Nonparametric Analysis (ABA Terms) (BCBA Exam Prep)

Parametric analysis Parametric analysis refers to evaluation the intervention (treatment ) or independent variable in an applied behavior analysis (ABA) study or experimental design There are two ways to describe the independent variable: parametric and nonparametric. If an independent variable is nonparametric- it is either on or off. The easiest way to think of this is a light switch. The…

Learn More

Behavior Chain and Chaining (ABA terms) (BCBA Exam Prep)

In this brief article, we will define a behavior chain and explore chaining as a teaching procedure. Behavior Chain  A behavior chain is a series of discrete behaviors that are linked together to produce end results. All steps are a discriminative stimulus (sd) for the next behavior in the chain and a conditioned reinforcer for the previous behavior in the…

Learn More