Self-management Programs

Effective self-management programs utilize the individuals ability to set criteria for reinforcement.  This is in Chapter 27 of Cooper.  Going public with one's desire to change (to recruit support) and the ability to evaluate and redesign…

6 Advantages to Graphic Displays of Data

Cooper, Heron and Heward (2007) outline 6 advantages to graphic displays of behavior data: Provide an immediate visual record of data allow the ability to explore behavioral variations of data in realtime serve as judgement aides that…

Behavioral Definition

3 characteristics of a good behavioral definition are: Objective - referring only to observable characteristics Clear - unambiguous Complete - setting boundaries, what is to be included and what is to be excluded
data is scientific

3 Dimensions of a Single-case Study Design

Prediction, verification and replication. Prediction involves anticipating what you think will happen in the future.  Verification is showing that dependent variables (DVs) would not change without intervention (independent variables: IVs). …

Task Analysis and Chaining

A task analysis is an intervention which links a series of behaviors to create a more complex behavior chain.  Constructing the intervention chain must be done BEFORE the intervention begins.  One should also use the client's repertoire for…

Interobserver Agreement (IOA)

Interobserver Agreement (IOA) refers to the degree to which two or more independent observers report the same observed values after measuring the same events. 4 Benefits of IOA Determine the competence of new observers (when IOA is low) …

Prompting

A stimulus prompt is a cue that makes the Sd for the target behavior more prominent.  For example, in order to encourage someone to push a button, you could make it big and a bright color.  Stimulus shaping is a changing of the physical dimensions…

Matching Law

According to matching law, organisms distribute their behavior between two or more concurrent schedules of reinforcement.  That is, if a behavior is reinforced 60 percent of the time in one situation and 40 percent of the time in the other…
alternating treatment design

Alternating Treatment Design

Alternating treatment design has the following advantages: Efficiently compares intervention effectiveness It does not require withdraw It can be used to assess generalization effects It does not include a return to baseline …

Differential Reinforcement

Differential reinforcement in general is a scheduled procedure where the target behavior is being put on extinction by reinforcing something else than the original target behavior.  It is not a punishment of the target procedure but does act…

Analysis of Data

Parametric analysis is used to evaluate a range of values for an intervention (independent variable).  For example, if you were determining the range of values for "time out" that are most effective.  You would conduct a parametric analysis…

3 Conditioned Motivating Operations – CMOs

What are conditioned motivating operations (CMOs)?  First we need to discuss motivating operations (MOs).  MOs  or sometimes called establishing operation (EOs) refers to a state that changes the value of consequences and elevates their…