Chapter I Definition and
Characteristics of Applied
Behavior Analysis
ABA 417 August 27, 2008
Applied Behavior Analysis
 Is a science
 Goal of understanding and improving
human behavior
 Defined as: the science in which tactics
derived from the principles of behavior are
applied systematically to improve socially
significant behavior and experimentation is
used to identify the variables responsible
for behavior change. Cooper, et al. (2007)
Applied Behavior Analysis:
Methods, Focus, Goals
 Objectively defined behaviors
 Address behaviors of social
significance
Applied Behavior Analysis:
Methods, Focus, Goals
 ABA: scientific approach
 Discover environmental variables that
influence socially significant behavior
 Technology of behavior change
Science
 “Systematic approach for seeking and
organizing knowledge about the
natural world.” Cooper et. al. (2007)
Goal of the Science of Applied
Behavior Analysis
 Understanding of socially important
behaviors.
Scientific Investigations Yield 3
Levels of Understanding
 Description
 Prediction
 Control
Description
 Collection of facts about observed
events
 Can be quantified
 Classified
 Evaluated related to other known
facts
 Suggests hypotheses/questions for
additional research
Prediction
 Repeated observations reveal that the presence of
one event will likely predict the presence of another
event.
 Systematic covariation is termed a correlation
 Correlation predicts the relative probability of an
event based on the presence of another event
 No variables are manipulated in correlational studies
so you can not determine if observed relationships are
responsible for changes in other variables.
 Results suggest possible causal relationships.
 These results can be explored in later studies.
Control
 Functional relations: provide scientific
information that is most useful to changing
behavior.
 Functional relation: Well controlled
experiment reveals that a change in the
dependent variable can be produced by
manipulations of the independent variable.
 The change in the dependent variable is
unlikely to be the result of a confounding
variable.
Attitudes of Science
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Determinism
Empiricism
Experimentation
Replication
Parsimony
Philosophic Doubt
Determinism
 Science presumes determinism
 The presumption that events studied
are lawful and occur as the result of
other events.
Empiricism
 Empiricism: objective observation
independent of individual prejudices/private
opinions, subjective beliefs
 In ABA Empiricism guides the Behavior
Analyst to operationally define the behavior
of interest, to systematically observe
occurrence and to reliably measure
occurrence or non occurrence of the
behavior of interest.
Experimentation
 Determines if events observed to
covary in a close sequence are
functionally related.
 An experiment compares the
dependent variable under two or
more different conditions
(independent variable), varying only
one variable at a time.
Replication
 Replication: The repeating of
experiments or repeating of
independent variable conditions
within an experiment.
 A primary method for determining
reliability and usefulness of findings.
Parsimony
 Simple, logical explanations are ruled
out before more complex or abstract
explanations are considered.
 Choose the simplest explanation/the
one that requires the fewest
assumptions.
Philosophic Doubt
 Scientists continue to question what
is regarded as fact.
 Maintain skepticism
 Practitioners should be skeptical
 Extraordinary claims are cause for
philosophic doubt
Behaviorism
 The philosophy of the science of
behavior.
Stimulus-Response Behaviorism:
Watson
 John B. Watson: subject matter for
psychology should be observable
behavior.
 Study of behavior as a natural
science should be of environmental
stimuli and the responses they evoke.
 S-R psychology
 Watson made a case for the study of
behavior to be a natural science.
Experimental Analysis of Behavior
 Began in 1938 with publication of The
Behavior of Organisms by B. F.
Skinner.
 Respondent behavior: reflexive
behavior/elicited by stimuli that
immediately precede the behavior
 Found that the S-R paradigm couldn’t
explain much of behavior
Experimental Analysis of Behavior
 Rather than reflexive, much behavior
appeared voluntary
 Described operant behavior
 Described the three term contingency
 S-R-S
 Manipulated stimuli that preceded
and followed behavior systematically
and generated many of the principles
of behavior.
Mentalism
 Many theories of psychology study behavior
that is assumed to be mental or an inner
dimension, different from the behavioral
dimension.
 Mentalism uses hypothetical constructs to
refer to possibly existing but unobserved
processes.
 Mentalism is key to much of psychological
theory and western thought.
Structuralism and Methodological
Behaviorism
 Reject events not defined by
objective assessment
 Structuralists describe behavior only
 Methodological behaviorists do not
consider inner variables
 Methodological behaviors
acknowledge mental events but only
are concerned with public events
Radical Behaviorism: Skinner
 Seeks to understand all human behavior,
not just that which is observed, but that
which is under the skin.
 Skinner described these events as private
events.
 Skinner said private events are behavior, it
is distinguished from other behavior only
that it takes place within the skin so is
inaccessible, private behavior is a function
of the same kinds of variables as public
behavior.
Radical Behaviorism
 Observe: Defined by Skinner as come
into contact/which can be done with
private events.
 Does not describe hypothetical
constructs but describes behavior
that can be observed.
 Responses to private stimuli are
responsive to the laws of behavior.
Applied Behavior Analysis
 Study in 1949 with young man with
profound multiple disabilities was one of
the first published studies of human
application of operant behavior
 1950-1960’s EAB principles replicated with
human subjects
 Early researchers established that the
principles of behavior are applicable to
humans
Applied Behavior Analysis
 Roots in paper by Ayllon and Michael “The
Psychiatric Nurse as a Behavioral Engineer”
 Pioneering applications of ABA in education
in the 1960’s and 1970’s included
contingent teacher praise and attention,
token reinforcement systems, curriculum
design, programmed instruction
 University programs in ABA began in
1970’s
 1968 JABA and Some Current Dimensions
of Applied Behavior Analysis
Defining Characteristics of ABA
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Applied
Behavioral
Analytic
Technological
Conceptually Systematic
Effective
Generality
Applied
 Select behaviors to change that are
socially significant/enhance and
improve the persons life
 Examples: social skills, language,
academic skills, daily living, self care,
recreation and leisure behaviors
Behavioral
 Behavior: in need of improvement
 Behavior: must be measurable,
precise and reliable measurement is
critical in applied research
 When behavior is observed to
change, must ask whose behavior has
changed/must assess the reliability of
the measures.
Analytic
 Demonstrate a functional relation
between the manipulated variables
and the target behavior.
 The experimenter can control the
occurrence or non-occurrence of the
behavior.
 ABA demonstrates control to the
greatest extent possible.
Technological
 Operant procedures are described so
they can be replicated.
 Procedures are not valuable unless
they can be replicated.
 Check for technological soundness
Conceptually Systematic
 Procedures for changing behavior
need to be related to the basic
principles.
 Conceptual systems are needed so
that there is an integrated discipline.
Effective
 The behavior under study must be
improved to clinical or social
significance.
Generality
 Lasts over time
 Appears in environments where it
was not taught
 Spreads to other behaviors not
directly addressed
 Continues after treatment is
withdrawn
Additional Characteristics
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Accountable
Public
Doable
Empowering
Optimistic
Accountable
 Commitment to being effective
 Detect successes and failures through
direct and continuous measurement
and make changes based on data.
Public
 Explicit and straight forward
 No hidden treatments and no magic
Doable
 Parents, teachers, coaches,
supervisors and participants can
implement procedures themselves.
Empowering
 Provides real tools for changing
behavior
 Data raises confidence
Optimistic
 Environmental view
 Direct and continuous measures show
small changes
 More often there are positive
outcomes, the more optimistic the
practitioner
Some still current dimensions of
Applied Behavior Analysis
 Changes in numbers of practitioners
from more EAB to ABA
 Changes in data from continuous
measures of discrete behaviors to
interval measures
Applied
 What social problems are now of
concern
 Stimulus control in problem displays
 Counter control
Behavioral
 Invitations of non-behavioral
approaches to behavior analysts
 Standard of measurement: direct
observation and recording
 Codes/training of observers
 Problems of Self-reports and
Participant observer
Behavioral Assessment
 Use of IQ tests and achievement tests
 Address precursors to behaviors:
accidents and delinquency
 These have led to behavioral
assessments
 Need for direct observation studies to
evaluate behavioral assessments
Analytic and Conceptual
 Behavior change now should be both analytic and
conceptual
 It is not ok to change behavior and clearly
demonstrate the change without how to make the
change in a way that makes sense conceptually
 Behavior Analysts are not just studying and managing
behavior but also managed by behavior
 Manage and program around contextual controls
 Extending designs to evaluate behavior control in
different contexts: multielement design
 Design questions to fit known designs vs design to
answer the question
Technological
 Generally journals and text described procedures
adequately
 Criticism of incidental teaching and praise descriptions
in literature and need to empirically validate
procedures used
 Applications of procedures and their recording are
recorded like subject behaviors/how the field
addresses or discusses the presentation or lack of
presentation of such information
 Should program procedures disseminated be followed
exactly or should they be revised
Capable of Appropriate Generalized
Outcomes
 The field has demonstrated the ability
to produce generalized outcomes
 Need for development of a technology
for generalization
 System for matching generalization
programming to the target
Effectiveness
 Reference to the applied discussion and counter
control
 Study of behavior change: a) measure of changed
target behavior b) measure of problems displays and
explanations that have decreased
 Absence of the second measure may reflect a
weakness in ABA
 The field needs to measure effectiveness of
interventions beyond the intervention
 Measures of social validity
 Measure consumer goals before program development
so that programs are socially valid