Behavioral Assessment Chapter 3

Study Notes

Behavioral Assessment

Involves a variety of inquiry methods such as observations, interviews, testing, and manipulation of variables.
Aims to identify controlling antecedents and consequences related to target behaviors.
Designed to uncover resources, significant relationships, competing contingencies, and factors for maintenance and generalization.

Target Behavior

Refers to the specific response class selected for intervention.
Can be defined functionally (based on its effect) or topographically (based on its form).

Behavior Checklists

Provide structured descriptions of specific skills, typically organized hierarchically.
Used to assess either a specific behavior or multiple skill areas under set conditions.

ABC Recording (Anecdotal Observation)

A method of continuous observation recording behaviors in a sequence of antecedents, behaviors, and consequences.
Focuses on capturing events as they happen in the individual’s natural context.

Ecological Assessment

Recognizes the intricate relationships between behavior and environmental factors.
Gathers data across diverse settings and social contexts.

Reactivity

Refers to the influence of assessment procedures on the behavior of the subjects being evaluated.

Habilitation

The extent to which an individual’s skills enhance their ability to gain short- and long-term reinforcers while minimizing punishers.

Relevance of Behavior Rule

Suggests that only behaviors with a high likelihood of producing reinforcement in the natural environment should undergo modification.

Behavioral Cusp

Describes behaviors that lead to significant and broad-reaching changes by introducing new environments or reinforcers.
Evaluated based on five criteria: access to new reinforcers, social validity, generativeness, competition with inappropriate responses, and the number of people impacted.

Pivotal Behavior

Refers to key behaviors that, once learned, catalyze changes in other untrained behaviors.

Normalization

Advocates for the integration of individuals with disabilities into mainstream society to the greatest extent possible, regardless of their disabilities.
Aiming to use typical settings and procedures for establishing culturally normal behaviors.

Function-Based Definition

Categorizes behaviors based on their shared impact on the environment.

Topography-Based Definition

Identifies target behaviors by their observable shape or form, particularly when functional outcomes are inaccessible or unreliable.

Measures the appropriateness of target behaviors, acceptability of intervention methods, and the significance of changes in related collateral behaviors.

Description

Explore the key concepts of behavioral assessment in Chapter 3. This quiz covers various inquiry methods such as observations, interviews, and testing to identify controlling variables. Test your understanding of the principles that guide behavioral assessments.