Definition List
Objective: After completing the two weeks of training, participants will be able to define and
state examples as intraverbal behavior as well as tact examples within their own behavior and the
behavior of others for all of the basic concepts and terms listed below.
Basic Concepts and Terms:
1. Determinism
2. Empiricism
3. Experiment
4. Independent Variable (IV)
5. Dependent Variable (DV)
6. Functional Relationship (FR)
7. Confounding Variable
8. Validity (of Measurement)
9. Internal Validity
10. External Validity
11. Reliability (of Measurement)
12. Replication
13. Parsimony
14. Philosophical Doubt
15. Mentalism
16. Explanatory Fiction
17. Science
18. Behaviorism
19. Behavior Analysis
20. Experimental Analysis of Behavior
(EAB)
21. Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA)
22. Applied
23. Behavioral
24. Analytic
25. Technological
26. Conceptually Systematic
27. Effective
28. Generality
29. Social Validity
30. Methodological Behaviorism
31. Radical Behaviorism
32. Learning
33. Behavior
34. Response
35. Repertoire
36. Topography
37. Topographical Response Class
38. Function
39. Functional Response Class
40. Overt Behavior
41. Covert (Private) Behavior
42. Environment
43. Stimulus
44. Antecedent
45. Consequence
46. Contingency
47. Single Subject (Within Subject)
Design
48. Cumulative Record
49. Visual Analysis
50. Acquisition
51. Acceleration
52. Deceleration
53. Target Behavior
54. Frequency
55. Rate
56. Percentage
57. Duration
58. Latency
59. Interresponse Time (IRT)
60. Intertrial Interval (ITI)
61. Continuous Measurement
62. Discontinuous Measurement
63. Data
64. Reflex
65. Respondent Behavior
66. Respondent (Pavlovian/Classical)
Conditioning
67. Elicit
68. Unconditioned Stimulus (US)
69. Neutral Stimulus (NS)
70. Conditioned Stimulus (CS)
71. Unconditioned Response (UR)
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72. Conditioned Response (CR)
73. Respondent Extinction
74. Operant Behavior
75. Operant Conditioning
76. Three-term Contingency
77. Emit
78. Reinforcement
79. Reinforcer
80. Unconditioned (Unlearned/Primary)
Reinforcer
81. Conditioned (Learned/Secondary)
Reinforcer
82. Generalized Conditioned Reinforcer
83. Backup Reinforcer
84. Positive Reinforcement
85. Positive Reinforcer
86. Negative Reinforcement
87. Negative Reinforcer
88. Aversive Stimulus
89. Escape Behavior
90. Avoidance Behavior
91. Socially Mediated Reinforcement
92. Automatic Reinforcement
93. Schedule of Reinforcement
94. Contingent Reinforcement
95. Non-contingent Reinforcement
(NCR)
96. Continuous Reinforcement
97. Intermittent Reinforcement
98. Fixed Ratio (FR) Schedule
99. Variable Ratio (VR) Schedule
100. Fixed Interval (FI) Schedule
101. Variable Interval (VI) Schedule
102. Differential Reinforcement
103. Differential Reinforcement of
Alternative Behavior (DRA)
104. Extinction (Operant)
105. Escape Extinction
106. Extinction Burst
107. Spontaneous Recovery
108. Resistance to Extinction
109. Punishment
110. Punisher
111. Unconditioned (Unlearned/Primary)
Punisher
112. Conditioned (Learned/Secondary)
Punisher
113. Positive (Type I) Punishment
114. Negative (Type II) Punishment
115. Time Out (from Positive
Reinforcement)
116. Response Cost
117. Functional Behavior Assessment
(FBA)
118. Functional Analysis (FA)
119. Stimulus Control
120. Stimulus Discrimination
121. Discriminative Stimulus (SD)
122. S-delta (S∆)
123. Stimulus Discrimination Training
124. Transfer of Stimulus Control
125. Stimulus Generalization
126. Response Generalization
127. Stimulus Class
128. Prompting
129. Prompt
130. Fading (Prompt Fading)
131. Response Prompt
132. Verbal Prompt
133. Modeling Prompt
134. Gestural Prompt
135. Physical Prompt
136. Stimulus Prompt
137. Within Stimulus Prompt
138. Extra-stimulus Prompt
139. Prompt Delay
140. Stimulus Fading
141. Motivation
142. Motivating Operation (MO)
143. Value Altering Effect
144. Establishing Operation (EO)
145. Abolishing Operation (AO)
146. Behavior Altering Effect
147. Evocative Effect
148. Abative Effect
149. Unconditioned MO (UMO)
150. Conditioned MO (CMO)
151. Transitive MO (CMO-T)
152. Reflexive MO (CMO-R)
153. Surrogate MO (CMO-S)
154. Verbal Behavior (VB)
155. Speaker
156. Listener
157. Audience
158. Verbal Operant
159. Formal Similarity
160. Point-to-point Correspondence
161. Duplic
162. Codic
163. Mand
164. Tact
165. Echoic
166. Mimetic
167. Copying Text
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168.
169.
170.
171.
172.
173.
Intraverbal
Textual
Transcription
Autoclitic
Listener Responding
Listener Responding by Feature,
Function, and Class (LRFFC)
174. ABLLS
175. VB-MAPP
176.
177.
178.
179.
180.
181.
182.
183.
184.
Shaping
Successive Approximations
Terminal Behavior
Behavior Chain
Task Analysis
Stimulus-Response Chain
Backward Chaining
Forward Chaining
Total-Task Presentation
1. Determinism – an assumption of science that the universe is a lawful and orderly place in
which phenomena (e.g., behavior) occur in relation to other events, not in some accidental
fashion.
2. Empiricism – an assumption of science that involves the objective observation of the
phenomena of interest.
3. Experiment – a carefully controlled comparison of some measure of the phenomenon of
interest (the dependent variable) under two or more different conditions in which only one
factor at a time (the independent variable) differs.
4. Independent Variable (IV) – the variable that is systematically manipulated by the
researcher in an experiment; typically referred to as intervention or treatment.
5. Dependent Variable (DV) – the variable in an experiment that is measured to see if it
changes as a result of manipulations in the independent variable; typically referred to as the
target behavior.
6. Functional Relationship (FR) – a statement summarizing the results of an experiment that
describes how a specific change in the variable of interest (the dependent variable) can be
produced by manipulating another event (the independent variable).
7. Confounding Variable – an uncontrolled factor, which is not part of the independent
variable, that is known or suspected to exert influence upon the dependent variable; this
weakens internal validity and the ability to establish a functional relationship between the
independent and dependent variables.
8. Validity (of Measurement) – the extent to which the data obtained through measurement
are directly related to the target behavior of interest.
9. Internal Validity – how convincingly an experiment demonstrates that changes in the
dependent variable are a function of the independent variable and not attributable to
unknown or uncontrolled variables.
10. External Validity –the degree to which the findings of a study have generality across other
subjects, settings, and/or behaviors.
11. Reliability (of Measurement) – the degree to which repeated measurement of the same
event results in the same values; the consistency of measurement or data collection.
12. Replication – repeating conditions within an experiment, or repeating entire experiments.
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13. Parsimony – an assumption of science that involves ruling out all simple, logical
explanations first before considering more complex, abstract explanations.
14. Philosophical Doubt – an assumption of science in which conclusions of science are
tentative and can be revised as new data comes to light; an attitude that the truthfulness of
all scientific theory should be continually questioned.
15. Mentalism – an approach to explaining behavior that assumes there is an inner dimension
that causes or mediates behavior.
16. Explanatory Fiction – a fictitious or hypothetical variable that is given as a reason for the
phenomenon it claims to explain, but often just puts another name to the phenomenon
without identifying a distinct cause or reason for it; also called circular reasoning.
17. Science – a systematic approach to the understanding of natural phenomena; incorporates
determinism, empiricism, experimentation, replication, parsimony, and philosophical
doubt.
18. Behaviorism – a philosophy of a science of behavior.
19. Behavior Analysis – the science of behavior.
20. Experimental Analysis of Behavior (EAB) – the basic research into the principles of
behavior; typically conducted in controlled laboratory settings where the science of
behavior is the subject matter of interest.
21. Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) – the application of the experimental analysis of
behavior to human affairs with the goal of improving socially significant behaviors.
22. Applied – a dimension of applied behavior analysis that involves addressing socially
significant behaviors in ways that produce meaningful improvements in people’s lives.
23. Behavioral – a dimension of applied behavior analysis that involves studying behaviors
that are in need of improvement and that can be objectively defined and empirically
observed.
24. Analytic – a dimension of applied behavior analysis that involves demonstrating a
functional relationship between the events that were manipulated (the independent
variable) and a reliable change in some measurable dimension of a behavior (the dependent
variable).
25. Technological – a dimension of applied behavior analysis that involves describing all
procedures with enough detail and clarity that they could be replicated with the same
results.
26. Conceptually Systematic – a dimension of applied behavior analysis in which all of the
procedures used for behavior change are derived from and described in terms relevant to
the basic principles of the science.
27. Effective – a dimension of applied behavior analysis that involves improving the behavior
of interest to a practical degree (as measured by clinical or social significance).
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28. Generality – a dimension of applied behavior analysis that is evidenced when behavior
change lasts over time, across different environments, or spreads to other behaviors not
directly targeted.
29. Social Validity – as determined by the individual and his/her community, the extent to
which target behaviors are appropriate, intervention procedures are acceptable, and
outcomes are significant, thereby improving the individual’s quality of life.
30. Methodological Behaviorism – a philosophical stance that views events that are not
publicly observable as outside of the realm of the science of behavior.
31. Radical Behaviorism – a philosophical stance that attempts to understand all human
behavior, including private events.
32. Learning – a behavioral process that can be observed and directly measured.
33. Behavior – activity of living organisms; everything that a person does; typically used to
refer to an operant, or a class of responses.
34. Response – a single instance or occurrence of a type of behavior.
35. Repertoire – all of the behaviors a person can do relevant to a set of skills or knowledge.
36. Topography – physical shape or form of the behavior; how the behavior looks.
37. Topographical Response Class – a set of responses that all share the same form or
appearance.
38. Function – the effect a behavior has on the environment; defined by the antecedents and
consequences relevant to behavior.
39. Functional Response Class – a group of responses that produce the same effect on the
environment, regardless of their form.
40. Overt Behavior – behavior that is publicly observable.
41. Covert (Private) Behavior – behavior that cannot be directly observed by others.
42. Environment – the circumstances in which the organism exists; includes both the world
outside of the skin and the world inside the skin.
43. Stimulus – change to the environment that can be detected through sensory receptor cells.
44. Antecedent – environmental condition or stimulus change that existss or occur just prior to
the behavior of interest.
45. Consequence – a stimulus change that occurs following the behavior of interest.
46. Contingency – a dependent relationship between a behavior and its controlling variables
(i.e., antecedent and consequence stimuli).
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47. Single Subject (Within Subject) Design – a type of research design where an individual
subject serves as its own control; single subject designs are the standard within the field of
behavior analysis.
48. Cumulative Record – a type of graph developed by B. F. Skinner that shows the
cumulative number of responses emitted over time.
49. Visual Analysis – visually inspecting graphed data to look for changes in level, trend, and
variability so as to interpret the results of an experiment or treatment program.
50. Acquisition – the development of a new behavior through reinforcement.
51. Acceleration – an increasing rate of acquisition or performance.
52. Deceleration – a decreasing rate of acquisition or performance.
53. Target Behavior – the behavior to be changed; the response class selected for intervention.
54. Frequency – count per unit of time (e.g., number of responses per minute); used
synonymously with rate.
55. Rate – a ratio of count per period of observation time (e.g., number of responses per
minute); used synonymously with frequency.
56. Percentage – a ratio of the number of responses of a certain type per total number of
responses; expressed as number of parts per 100.
57. Duration – a measure of the total amount of time for which a behavior occurs.
58. Latency – a measure of the amount of time from the onset of a stimulus to the initiation of
a response.
59. Interresponse Time (IRT) – a measure of the amount of time between the end of one
response and the initiation of the next response.
60. Intertrial Interval (ITI) – a measure of the amount of time between the delivery of a
consequence for one response and the presentation of the SD for the next response.
61. Continuous Measurement – recording data in such a way that all occurrences of the
response class are accounted for during the observation period.
62. Discontinuous Measurement – recording data in such a way that some, but not all,
occurrences of the response class are accounted for during the observation period.
63. Data – the results of measuring some quantifiable dimension of behavior.
64. Reflex – a stimulus-response relation that is made up of an antecedent stimulus and the
respondent behavior it elicits.
65. Respondent Behavior – the response in a reflex; behavior that is elicited by an antecedent
stimulus.
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66. Respondent (Pavlovian/Classical) Conditioning – a stimulus-stimulus pairing procedure
where a neutral stimulus (NS) is paired with an unconditioned stimulus (US), which elicits
an unconditioned response (UR), until the neutral stimulus becomes a conditioned stimulus
(CS) whereby it elicits the same response, now called a conditioned response (CR).
67. Elicit – the term used to describe the antecedent stimulus’ control over behavior in
respondent conditioning.
68. Unconditioned Stimulus (US) – in respondent conditioning, a stimulus that elicits a
respondent behavior in an unconditioned reflex without any prior learning history.
69. Neutral Stimulus (NS) – in respondent conditioning, a stimulus that initially does not
elicit any respondent behavior; the stimulus targeted to be paired with the US.
70. Conditioned Stimulus (CS) – in respondent conditioning, a stimulus that elicits a
respondent behavior after a history of having been paired with a US.
71. Unconditioned Response (UR) – in respondent conditioning, the response in an
unconditioned reflex that is elicited by the US.
72. Conditioned Response (CR) – in respondent conditioning, the response that is elicited by
the CS after it has been paired with a US.
73. Respondent Extinction – repeatedly presenting the CS without pairing it with the US so
that the CS gradually loses its ability to elicit the CR.
74. Operant Behavior – behavior that is selected, maintained, and brought under stimulus
control as a function of its consequences; behavior that is a product of one’s history with
the environment; learned behavior.
75. Operant Conditioning – the process and selective effects of consequences on behavior.
76. Three-term Contingency – the basic unit of analysis in operant behavior; encompasses the
relationships among an antecedent stimulus, behavior, and a consequence.
77. Emit – the term used in operant conditioning to describe the occurrence of behavior in
relation to its consequences as the main controlling variables.
78. Reinforcement – a principle of behavior demonstrated when a stimulus change
immediately follows a response and increases the future frequency of that type of behavior
under similar conditions.
79. Reinforcer – the stimulus that increases the future frequency of the behavior that
immediately precedes it.
80. Unconditioned (Unlearned/Primary) Reinforcer – stimulus that functions as a reinforcer
regardless of any prior learning history; the same across all members of a species.
81. Conditioned (Learned/Secondary) Reinforcer – stimulus that functions as a reinforcer as
a result of some prior learning history (i.e., pairing with other reinforcers); specific to the
individual.
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82. Generalized Conditioned Reinforcer – reinforcer, such as a token or money, that has
been paired with many other reinforcers.
83. Backup Reinforcer – tangible object, activity, or privilege that serves as a reinforcer and
can be purchased by exchanging tokens for it (as in a token economy).
84. Positive Reinforcement – process that occurs when a behavior is followed immediately by
the presentation of a stimulus that increases the future frequency of the behavior under
similar conditions.
85. Positive Reinforcer – a stimulus whose presentation functions as reinforcement by
increasing the future frequency of the behavior that immediately preceded it.
86. Negative Reinforcement – process that occurs when a behavior is followed immediately
by the removal of a stimulus that increases the future frequency of the behavior under
similar conditions.
87. Negative Reinforcer – a stimulus whose removal functions as reinforcement by increasing
the future frequency of the behavior that immediately preceded it.
88. Aversive Stimulus – a generally unpleasant stimulus; a stimulus that typically functions as
a negative reinforcer when it is removed or as a positive punisher when it is presented; also
a stimulus whose presentation evokes behaviors that have terminated it in the past.
89. Escape Behavior – behavior which terminates an ongoing stimulus.
90. Avoidance Behavior – behavior which prevents or postpones the presentation of a
stimulus.
91. Socially Mediated Reinforcement – reinforcement that is mediated through another
person (e.g., verbal praise).
92. Automatic Reinforcement – reinforcement that occurs through an individual’s direct
interaction with the environment and independent of social mediation (e.g., scratching an
itch).
93. Schedule of Reinforcement – a description of the contingency of reinforcement, including
environmental arrangements and response requirements.
94. Contingent Reinforcement – reinforcement that is delivered only after the target behavior
has occurred.
95. Non-contingent Reinforcement – reinforcement that is delivered without relation to the
occurrence of the target behavior.
96. Continuous Reinforcement – a schedule of reinforcement in which reinforcement is
delivered for every occurrence of the target behavior.
97. Intermittent Reinforcement – a schedule of reinforcement in which some, but not all,
instances of the target behavior produce reinforcement.
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98. Fixed Ratio (FR) Schedule – a schedule of reinforcement that requires a set number of
responses to be emitted before reinforcement is delivered (e.g., FR5 means reinforcement
will be delivered following every 5th response).
99. Variable Ratio (VR) Schedule – a schedule of reinforcement that requires an average
number of responses to be emitted before reinforcement is delivered (e.g., VR5 means
reinforcement will be delivered following an average of 5 responses).
100. Fixed Interval (FI) Schedule – a schedule of reinforcement in which reinforcement will
be delivered for the first response emitted following a specified period of time (e.g., FI2’
means that reinforcement will be delivered for the first response emitted after the passage
of 2 minutes since the last delivery of reinforcement).
101. Variable Interval (VI) Schedule – a schedule of reinforcement in which reinforcement
will be delivered for the first response emitted following an average period of time (e.g.,
VI2’ means that reinforcement will be delivered for the first response emitted after the
passage of an average of 2 minutes since the last delivery of reinforcement).
102. Differential Reinforcement – within a response class, reinforcing only those responses
that meet a specific criterion and placing all other responses on extinction.
103. Differential Reinforcement of Alternative Behavior (DRA) – procedure for reducing
problem behavior that involves delivering reinforcement for a behavior that serves as a
desirable replacement for the behavior targeted for reduction and treating the targeted
behavior with extinction.
104. Extinction (Operant) – a principle of behavior demonstrated when, for a behavior
previously maintained by reinforcement, reinforcement is discontinued or withheld, thereby
producing a decrease in the future frequency of the behavior.
105. Escape Extinction – placing behaviors previously maintained by escape (negative
reinforcement) on extinction by no longer following those behaviors with the termination
of the aversive stimulus.
106. Extinction Burst – an increase in some dimension of responding (i.e., rate, magnitude,
etc.) seen when an extinction procedure is first implemented.
107. Spontaneous Recovery – a behavioral phenomenon associated with extinction where the
behavior suddenly begins to occur again after its frequency has been decreased or stopped.
108. Resistance to Extinction – frequency with which a behavior is emitted when treated with
extinction; behaviors maintained on intermittent schedules are more resistant to extinction
and therefore will persist longer than those maintained on continuous schedule.
109. Punishment – a principle of behavior demonstrated when a stimulus change immediately
follows a response and decreases the future frequency of that type of behavior under
similar conditions.
110. Punisher – the stimulus that decreases the future frequency of the behavior that
immediately precedes it.
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111. Unconditioned (Unlearned/Primary) Punisher – stimulus that functions as a punisher
regardless of any prior learning history; the same across all members of a species.
112. Conditioned (Learned/Secondary) Punisher – stimulus that functions as a punisher as a
result of some prior learning history (i.e., pairing with other punishers); specific to the
individual.
113. Positive (Type I) Punishment – process that occurs when a behavior is followed
immediately by the presentation of a stimulus that decreases the future frequency of the
behavior under similar conditions.
114. Negative (Type II) Punishment – process that occurs when a behavior is followed
immediately by the removal of a stimulus that decreases the future frequency of the
behavior under similar conditions.
115. Time Out (from Positive Reinforcement) – contingent withdrawal of the opportunity to
earn positive reinforcement or loss of access to positive reinforcers for a specified period of
time that decreases the future frequency of behavior; form of negative reinforcement.
116. Response Cost – contingent loss of a prespecified amount of a reinforcer (i.e., a fine)
resulting in a decrease in the future frequency of behavior; form of negative reinforcement.
117. Functional Behavior Assessment (FBA) – systematic method of assessment for obtaining
information about the purposes (functions) of problem behavior for an individual; can
include indirect, direct, and experimental assessment methods.
118. Functional Analysis (FA) – experimentally assessing the relationships between problem
behavior and the antecedents and consequences suspected to maintain the problem behavior
so as to determine the function of the problem behavior.
119. Stimulus Control – a principle of behavior demonstrated when the rate, latency, duration,
or amplitude of a response is altered in the presence of an antecedent stimulus; when a
behavior is more likely to occur in the presence of a particular stimulus, the SD, because
there is a history of that behavior having been reinforced only when that stimulus was
present and less likely to occur in the presence of another stimulus, the S∆, because there is
a history of that behavior not having been reinforced when that stimulus was present; the
outcome of stimulus discrimination training.
120. Stimulus Discrimination – when different antecedent stimuli do not evoke the same
response or evoke different responses.
121. Discriminative Stimulus (SD) – stimulus in the presence of which the current frequency of
a behavior is momentarily increased due to a history of that behavior having occurred and
been reinforced in the presence of this stimulus and having occurred and not been
reinforced in the absence of this stimulus.
122. S-delta (S∆) – a stimulus in the presence of which a behavior has occurred and not been
reinforced.
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123. Stimulus Discrimination Training – procedure that leads to the development of stimulus
control through the occurrence of two antecedent stimulus conditions – one in which a
behavior is reinforced (SD) and one in which behavior is not reinforced (S∆).
124. Transfer of Stimulus Control – a process that involves transferring stimulus control from
one antecedent stimulus to another; typically used to refer to the process of removing
prompts once the target behavior is occurring in the presence of the SD.
125. Stimulus Generalization – when untrained antecedent stimuli sharing similar properties
with the trained SD evoke the same response.
126. Response Generalization – emitting novel responses that are functionally equivalent to a
previously trained response in the presence of the same antecedent stimulus.
127. Stimulus Class – a group of stimuli that share specified common elements along formal
(e.g., size, color), temporal (e.g., antecedent or consequence), and/or functional (e.g.,
discriminative stimulus) dimensions.
128. Prompting – the procedure that involves the use of prompts (i.e., response or stimulus) to
increase the likelihood that a person will engage in the correct behavior at the correct time.
129. Prompt – something that is done to increase the likelihood that a person will emit the
correct behavior at the correct time; can be response or stimulus.
130. Fading (Prompt Fading) – the gradual removal of prompts as the behavior continues to
occur in the presence of the SD with the goal of transferring stimulus control to the
naturally occurring SD.
131. Response Prompt – a behavior that the trainer engages in just prior to or during the
performance of a target behavior to induce the client to engage in the correct response;
major forms include verbal instructions, modeling, and physical guidance.
132. Verbal Prompt – a type of response prompt that includes using vocal verbal instruction,
written words, manual signs, or pictures to describe the target behavior.
133. Modeling Prompt – a type of response prompt that involves demonstrating the target
behavior.
134. Gestural Prompt – a type of response prompt that involves modeling a portion of the
target behavior or using some other physical movement (e.g., point to the correct card to be
selected) to evoke the target behavior.
135. Physical Prompt – a type of response prompt that involves partially or fully physically
guiding the learner through the movements of a target behavior.
136. Stimulus Prompt – a change in an antecedent stimulus, or the addition or removal of an
antecedent stimulus, with the goal of making a correct response more likely.
137. Within Stimulus Prompt – a type of stimulus prompt in which some aspect of the SD or
S∆ is changed to help a person make a correct discrimination.
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138. Extra-stimulus Prompt – a type of stimulus prompt in which a stimulus is added to help a
person make a correct discrimination.
139. Prompt Delay – an antecedent response prompt that involves varying the time intervals
between the presentation of the natural SD and the presentation of the response prompt; can
be a constant time delay or progressive time delay.
140. Stimulus Fading – a procedure for transferring stimulus control in which the features of an
antecedent stimulus (e.g., shape, size, position, color) controlling a behavior are gradually
changed to a new stimulus while maintaining the current behavior; features can be faded in
(enhanced) or faded out (reduced).
141. Motivation – a principle of behavior demonstrated when conditions of deprivation,
satiation, or aversion momentarily alter the value of consequences (reinforcers or
punishers) and therefore momentarily alter some dimension of behaviors that have
previously produced those consequences (reinforcers or punishers).
142. Motivating Operation (MO) – a stimulus, event, or set of environmental conditions that a)
momentarily alters the value of another stimulus and b) alters the current frequency of all
behaviors that have previously produced that consequence.
143. Value Altering Effect – the effect an MO has on the value of another stimulus as a
reinforcer or punisher; can be an increase in effectiveness (Establishing Operation; EO) or
a decrease in effectiveness (Abolishing Operation; AO).
144. Establishing Operation (EO) – an increase in the effectiveness of some other stimulus as
a reinforcer or punisher; e.g., food deprivation is an EO for food as a reinforcer.
145. Abolishing Operation (AO) – a decrease in the effectiveness of some other stimulus as a
reinforcer or punisher; e.g., food satiation is an AO for food as a reinforcer.
146. Behavior Altering Effect – the effect an MO has on the current frequency of a behavior;
can be an increase (evocative effect) or a decrease (abative effect).
147. Evocative Effect – an increase in the current frequency of all behaviors that have
previously led to the consequence for which the value has been altered by an MO; e.g.,
food deprivation has an evocative effect on all behaviors previously reinforced by food.
148. Abative Effect – a decrease in the current frequency of all behaviors that have previously
led to the consequence for which the value has been altered by an MO; e.g., food satiation
has an abative effect on all behaviors previously reinforced by food.
149. Unconditioned MO (UMO) – an antecedent stimulus that momentarily alters the value
(effectiveness) of other stimuli as reinforcers (or punishers) without any prior learning
history; an MO for which the value-altering effects are unlearned; these are the same across
all members of a species; e.g., food deprivation and painful stimulation.
150. Conditioned MO (CMO) – an antecedent stimulus that momentarily alters the value
(effectiveness) of other stimuli as reinforcers (or punishers), but only as a result of the
organism’s learning history; an MO for which the value-altering effects are learned;
individually specific.
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151. Transitive MO (CMO-T) – a set of stimulus conditions, where there is a motivating
operation for a stimulus but access to that stimulus is blocked, interrupted, or denied, that
momentarily establishes (or abolishes) the value of some other stimulus as a reinforcer (or
punisher) and evokes (or abates) all behaviors that have produced that have in the past
produced that reinforcer (or punisher).
152. Reflexive MO (CMO-R) – any stimulus that systematically precedes (i.e., is positively
correlated with) the onset of a worsening set of conditions and thereby the presentation of
that stimulus establishes its own removal/termination/offset as a reinforcer and evokes any
behavior that has been so reinforced.
153. Surrogate MO (CMO-S) – a stimulus that becomes capable of the same value-altering and
behavior-altering effects as a UMO due to a history of having been paired with that UMO.
154. Verbal Behavior – any behavior for which reinforcement is mediated by another person
(i.e., a listener); can be vocal or nonvocal.
155. Speaker – in a social exchange of verbal behavior, the person who gains access to
reinforcement and controls his/her own environment through the behavior of listeners.
156. Listener – in a social exchange of verbal behavior, the person who responds to or
reinforces the behavior of the speaker.
157. Audience – another person (or other people) the presence of whom is a necessary condition
for verbal behavior to take place; the presence of the listener.
158. Verbal Operant – the unit of analysis in verbal behavior; the functional relation between
behavior and the independent variables that control that behavior; includes motivating
variables and discriminative stimuli, behavior, and consequences.
159. Formal Similarity – when the antecedent stimulus and the response product are both of
the same sense modality (e.g., both are visual stimuli, both are auditory stimuli) and
resemble each other topographically (e.g., look alike, sound alike); all duplics (echoic,
mimetic, copying text) demonstrate formal similarity.
160. Point-to-point Correspondence – when the beginning, middle, and end of the antecedent
stimulus matches the beginning, middle, and end of the response product (e.g., seeing the
textual stimulus cat and saying “cat” or finger spelling “c-a-t”); all duplics (echoic,
mimetic as it relates to sign language, copying text) and all codices (transcription and
textual) demonstrate point-to-point correspondence.
161. Duplic – any verbal operant that is defined as a verbal antecedent stimulus, a verbal
response with both point-to-point correspondence and formal similarity with the SD, and
nonspecific reinforcement; consists of echoic, mimetic as it relates to sign language, and
copying text.
162. Codic – any verbal operant that is defined as a verbal antecedent stimulus, a verbal
response with point-to-point correspondence but without formal similarity with the SD, and
non-specific reinforcement; consists of textual and transcription.
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163. Mand – a primary verbal operant that is defined as an MO, a verbal response under the
functional control of the MO, and reinforcement specific to the MO; commonly referred to
as a request.
164. Tact – a primary verbal operant that is defined as a nonverbal discriminative stimulus, a
verbal response, and non-specific reinforcement; commonly referred to as a label.
165. Echoic – a primary verbal operant that is defined as a vocal, verbal discriminative stimulus,
a vocal, verbal response with point-to-point correspondence and formal similarity with the
SD, and non-specific reinforcement; commonly referred to as vocal imitation.
166. Mimetic – an operant that is defined as a discriminative stimulus in the form of
demonstrating a motor movement, a physical response that has point-to-point
correspondence and formal similarity with the SD (i.e., imitating the motor movement), and
non-specific reinforcement; can be a verbal operant if the motor movement is in the form of
sign language or a non-verbal operant if the motor movement is any other physical
movement.
167. Copying Text – a primary verbal operant that is defined as a textual (written) verbal
discriminative stimulus, a textual (written) verbal response that has point-to-point
correspondence and formal similarity with the SD, and non-specific reinforcement.
168. Intraverbal – a primary verbal operant that is defined as a verbal discriminative stimulus,
a verbal response that does not have point-to-point correspondence with the SD, and nonspecific reinforcement; commonly referred to as conversational exchanges.
169. Textual – a primary verbal operant that is defined as a textual (written) verbal
discriminative stimulus (visual or tactual), a verbal response that has point-to-point
correspondence but no formal similarity with the SD, and non-specific reinforcement;
commonly referred to as reading.
170. Transcription – a primary verbal operant that is defined as a verbal discriminative
stimulus (visual or auditory), a written verbal response that has point-to-point
correspondence but no formal similarity with the SD, and non-specific reinforcement;
commonly referred to as taking dictation.
171. Autoclitic – a secondary verbal operant defined as the speaker’s own verbal behavior
functioning as an SD or an MO, a response of additional verbal behavior by the speaker,
and differential reinforcement by the listener; commonly referred to as verbal behavior
about one’s own verbal behavior.
172. Listener Responding – a non-verbal operant that is defined as a verbal discriminative
stimulus, a non-verbal response in the form of compliance with the SD, and non-specific
reinforcement; commonly referred to as receptive language.
173. Listener Responding by Feature, Function, and Class (LRFFC) – a type of listener
behavior in which the SD specifies some feature, function, or class of another non-verbal
stimulus in the environment; commonly referred to as receptive by feature, function, or
class (RFFC).
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174. ABLLS – Assessment of Basic Language and Learning Skills; an assessment tool
developed by Partington and Sundberg that assesses 25 domains of language and learning
skills; language skills are described and assessed according to a behavioral analysis of
language.
175. VM-MAPP – Verbal Behavior Milestones Assessment and Placement Program; an
assessment tool developed by Mark Sundberg that is based upon Skinner’s analysis of
verbal behavior; it assesses language and learning milestones across 16 domains, assesses
24 barriers that interfere with learning, and can assist with determining appropriate
educational placements and instructional objectives.
176. Shaping – differentially reinforcing approximations that more closely resemble a terminal
behavior while treating all poorer approximations with extinction; produces a series of
gradually changing response classes that are successive approximations to the terminal
behavior.
177. Successive Approximations – the sequence of gradually changing response classes that
are produced during the shaping process as a result of differential reinforcement; each
successive response class targeted for differential reinforcement more closely resembles the
target behavior than the previous response class.
178. Terminal Behavior – the target behavior that is the end product of the shaping process.
179. Behavior Chain – a sequence of responses in which each response produces a change that
functions as conditioned reinforcement for that response and as an SD for the next response.
180. Task Analysis – process of breaking a complex skill into a series of smaller, teachable
units of behavior; also refers to the outcome of this process.
181. Stimulus-Response Chain – a chain that specifies relations between SDs, behaviors, and
consequences for all of the component responses within a behavior chain.
182. Backward Chaining – a teaching procedure in which the learner is initially required to
complete the last response in the chain independently, and is then taught to independently
complete the steps in the chain in reverse order until the learner is completing the entire
chain independently.
183. Forward Chaining – a teaching procedure in which the learner is initially required to
complete the first step in the chain independently, and is then taught to independently
complete all remaining steps in sequential order until the learner is completing the entire
chain independently.
184. Total-Task Presentation – a teaching procedure in which the learner receives training on
all steps in a behavior chain during every teaching session.
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