Chapter 7
Concepts & Assumptions Underlying the Analysis of Behavior
o D_______________________
o Empiricism
o Experimentation
o P_______________________
o Philosophic doubt
“The overall goal of science is to achieve an understanding of
the phenomena under study.”
o In applied behavior analysis, the phenomena of interest is ______________________
___________________________ behavior
o Science enables various degrees of understanding at three levels
 D__________________________________
 P__________________________________
 Control
Experimental Control: The Path to and Goal of Behavior Analysis
o Experimental control (defined)
 A ____________________________________change in behavior (dependent
variable) can be reliably produced by the _____________________________
_________________________________of some aspect of the person’s
environment (independent variable)
o Experimental analysis (defined)
 Experimentally determining the effects of
__________________________________ manipulation on
__________________________ and demonstrating that those effects can be
__________________________produced
 Can be achieved when
o A reliable ______________________ __________________ between
behavior and some specified aspect of the environment has been
demonstrated convincingly
o Internal validity
 The extent to which an experiment shows convincingly that changes in
_____________________________ are a _______________________of the
independent variable and not the result of ___________________________ or
unknown variables
 Studies without high a high degree of internal validity
o Yield no meaningful statements about ___________________relations
o Lack ___________________________

Confounding variables are those variables known or suspected to exert an
______________________________ ________________________on the
dependent variable
o The effects of confounding variables must be
___________________________ and ______________________
to demonstrate experimental control
“The goal of experimental design is to eliminate as many uncontrolled variables as
possible and to hold constant the influence of all other variables except the independent
variable, which is purposefully manipulated to determine its effects.”
Behavior: Defining Features and Assumptions That Guide Its Analysis
Defining features
o Behavior is an ______________________________ phenomenon
o Behavior is a _______________________________phenomenon
Assumptions
o Behavior is _______________________________
o Behavioral variability is _____________________to the organism
Behavior is an individual phenomenon
o Behavior: a person’s ______________________________________________
o Groups of people do not behave
o Experimental strategy of ABA is based on ___________________________
(______________________________________ ) methods of analysis
Behavior is a dynamic, continuous phenomenon
o Changes over time
o Requires __________________________________ measurement over time
 Complete _________________ of behavior as it occurs in context
 Systematic ________________ measurement is the “hallmark” of ABA
Behavior is determined
o The occurrence of any event is determined by the ________________________
____________________ it holds to other events
o Behavior is a ______________________________ phenomenon
Behavioral variability is extrinsic to the organism
o Variability is the result of _____________________________influence, such as
 The independent variable under investigation
 Some ______________________________ aspect of the experiment
 Uncontrolled or unknown factor __________________ of the experiment
Behavioral Variability
Most commonly held assumptions in psychology and other social/behavioral sciences
o The assumption of _______________________________ variability
o An intrinsic characteristic of the ______________________________
o Distributed _________________________among individuals in any given
population
o Methodological implications
o Attempting to ______________________ _______________________or
investigate variability is a waste of time
o By _________________________________ the performance of individual
subjects within large groups, the random nature of variability can be statistically
controlled or ____________________________ out
Behavioral Variability
Assumptions of Behavior Analysts
o Behavioral variability is the result of an _______________________________
influence
o Methodological implications
o Experimental ____________________________ of the factors suspected
of causing variability
o Search for _______________________ factors
o In practice
o Applied behavior analysts seek treatment variables
__________________enough to overcome variability
Components of Experiments in ABA
At least one
o Subject or participant
o _____________________________ (dependent variable)
o Setting
o Treatment or intervention condition ( _________________________variable)
o A system for _____________________the behavior and ongoing
________________________of the data
o Manipulations of the independent variable so that its effects on the dependent
variable, if any, can be detected
Experimental Design
Research question
o “a brief but specific statement of what the researcher wants to
____________________from conducting the experiment” (Johnston & Pennypacker,
1993b, p. 366)
o What are the effects of the_________________________________ variable on the
___________________________________variable and for what
___________________& in what setting?
Subject(s)
o In single-subject research the subject is employed as his or her own ______________
o Measures of the subject’s behavior during each phase of the study provide
the basis for comparing experimental variables as they are
_______________________or _________________________________in
subsequent conditions
Behavior(s)
o Dependent variable(s)
o Reasons for multiple dependent measures
o Provide data patterns that can serve as controls for
__________________________ & ___________________________ the
effects of an independent variable
o Assess the presence and the extent of the independent variable’s effects on
behaviors other than the response class to which it was directly applied
o Determine whether changes in the behavior of a person other than the
subject occur during the course of an experiment & if such changes can
explain _________________________________in the subject’s behavior
Setting
“Control the environment and you will see order in behavior.”
(Skinner, 1967, p. 399)
o Control two sets of environmental variables to demonstrate __________________
___________________________
Independent variable
o Presenting, withdrawing, or varying its value
Extraneous variables
o Prevent ________________________environmental variation
Measurement System and Ongoing Visual Analysis
o Observation & recording procedures must be conducted in a
______________________________ manner
o Standardization involves every aspect of the ________________________system
o Definition of the target behavior to scheduling of observations
o Behavior analysts must develop skills in the detection of changes in the
__________________, ___________________, and degree of
___________________ in behavioral data
Intervention or Treatment: Independent Variable
Independent variable (defined)
o The particular aspect of the environment that the experimenter
________________________ to find out whether the it affects the subject’s behavior
o The researcher controls or manipulates this variable independent of the subject’s
behavior or any other event
Experimental Design
Experimental design (defined)
o The particular arrangement of conditions in a study so that
_______________________ ______________________________ of the effects of
the presence and absence of the independent variable can be made
Nonparametric study
o Independent variable is either presented or absent during a time period or phase of the
study
Parametric study
o The _________________ of the independent variable is manipulated
o Seeks to discover the differential effects of a range of values
Fundamental Rule
___________________________ ____________ one _________________ at a time
o Experimenter can attribute any measured changes to a ____________________
independent variable
o If investigating the effects of a “treatment package”
o Ensure that the _____________ ____________________________is
presented or withdrawn each time a manipulation occurs
Some Additional Rules
o Do not get locked into textbook “designs”
o Often require a priori assumptions about the nature of the functional
relations one seeks to investigate
o May be __________________________________to unanticipated changes in
behavior
o Select & combine _________________________ ____________________ that
best fit the research questions
Steady State Strategy & Baseline Logic
“A pattern of responding that exhibits relatively little variation in its measured
dimensional quantities over a period of time”
(Johnston & Pennypacker, 1993a, p. 199)
o Provides the basis for baseline logic
Steady state strategy
o ____________________________ exposure of a given subject to a given condition
while trying to eliminate or control ____________________________influences on
behavior & obtaining a __________________________pattern of responding
__________________ introducing the next condition
Baseline logic
o P________________________________
o V________________________________
o R________________________________
Nature & Function of Baseline Data
o Serves as a _________________________condition
o Does not imply the absence of intervention
o Absence of a ___________________________independent variable
o Why?
o To establish a baseline level of responding to use the subject’s
performance in the absence of the independent variable as an
_______________________________ _____________ for detecting
change
o Applied benefits of establishing a baseline level of responding
o To obtain _____________________________ of antecedent-behaviorconsequent correlations for the ______________________________of an
effective treatment
o Valuable guidance in setting initial ________________________ for
reinforcement
o Baseline data may reveal the behavior targeted for change does not
______________________________intervention
Types of Baseline Data Patterns
o Stable baseline
o See Figure 7-1(A), pg. 168 in text
o Ascending baseline
o See Figure 7-1(B & C), pg. 168 in text
o Variable baseline
o See Figure 7-1(D), pg. 168 in text
Prediction
“The anticipated outcome of a presently known or future measurement. It is the most
elegant use of quantification upon which validation of all scientific and technological
activity rests.” (Johnston & Pennypacker, 1980)
o Prediction
o See Figure 7-2, pg. 169 in text
Affirmation of the Consequent
o Affirmation of the consequent
o _____________________________ logic
o “if the independent variable were not applied, the behavior, as
indicated by the baseline data path, would not change”
o If-A-then-B statement
 See Figure 7-3, pg. 171 in text
Verification
o Verification of a previously ____________________________level of baseline
responding by termination or withdrawal of the treatment variable
o See Figure 7-4, pg. 172 in text
Replication
“Replication is the essence of believability.”
(Baer, Wolf, & Risley, 1968, p. 95)
o Replication of the experimental effect accomplished by
_________________________________ the treatment variable
o See Figure 7-5, pg. 173 in text