Glossary

217 terms. Every entry has a technical definition, a plain-language version, an example, a non-example, and the sources it was written from.

All 217 terms

Assessment (17)

• ABC Recording Recording what came before and after each behavior
• Descriptive Assessment Observing behavior in its natural setting without changing anything
• Ecological Assessment Assessing the person's full environment across settings
• Free-Operant Preference Assessment Free access to items; engagement time recorded
• Function of Behavior The consequence that keeps a behavior going
• Functional Analysis An experiment that identifies why a behavior occurs
• Functional Behavior Assessment Finding out what keeps a behavior going
• Indirect Assessment Information about behavior gathered from informants
• Multiple-Stimulus With Replacement An array where the chosen item stays and the rest are swapped
• Multiple-Stimulus Without Replacement An array of items; each choice removed, then repeated
• Paired-Stimulus Preference Assessment Items presented in pairs; choices ranked
• Preference Assessment Finding out what a learner will work for right now
• Reinforcer Assessment Testing whether a preferred item actually reinforces
• Scatterplot A grid showing when in the day behavior occurs
• Single-Stimulus Preference Assessment Items presented one at a time; reaction recorded
• Skills Assessment Assessing what a person can currently do
• Social Validity Whether the people affected find the goals, methods and results worthwhile

Behavior reduction (17)

• Antecedent Intervention Changing conditions so the behavior is less likely
• Differential Reinforcement of Alternative Behavior Reinforce a better way to get the same result
• Differential Reinforcement of High Rates Reinforce only when the behavior occurs at a high enough rate
• Differential Reinforcement of Incompatible Behavior Reinforce a behavior that cannot happen alongside the problem behavior
• Differential Reinforcement of Low Rates Reinforce the behavior only when it occurs at a lower rate
• Differential Reinforcement of Other Behavior Reinforcing time passing without the behavior
• Escape Extinction The behavior no longer ends the demand
• Functional Communication Training Teach a request that replaces the problem behavior
• Least Restrictive Alternative Choose the gentlest intervention likely to work
• Noncontingent Reinforcement The maintaining reinforcer delivered on a timer, not for behavior
• Overcorrection Effortful repair or practice required after a behavior
• Planned Ignoring Withholding attention from attention-maintained behavior
• Replacement Behavior An acceptable behavior that serves the same purpose
• Response Blocking Physically interrupting a response; plan-and-training only
• Response Cost A reinforcer already earned is taken away after a behavior
• Sensory Extinction The behavior no longer produces its sensory result
• Time-Out From Positive Reinforcement Removing access to reinforcement for a period

Documentation (6)

• Behavior Intervention Plan The analyst's written plan for changing a behavior
• Data Sheet The form behavior is recorded on during a session
• Incident Report The same-day record of a serious or unusual event
• Objective Language Describing what was observed, not what it meant
• Operational Definition Describing behavior by what can be seen and counted
• Session Note The record written after a session

Ethics (18)

• Assent The learner showing they are willing to take part
• Collaboration Working with families and other professionals on shared goals
• Confidentiality Protecting information about the people you serve
• Conflict of Interest A personal interest that could compromise professional judgment
• Continuity of Care Services continue safely when a provider or program changes
• Cultural Humility An ongoing, humble stance toward other people's cultures
• Cultural Responsiveness Adapting services to fit the client's culture and context
• Dignity Respecting the worth, privacy and choices of the person
• Dual Relationship A second role alongside the professional one
• Ethics Code The certifying board's binding professional-conduct standards
• Evidence-Based Practice Research evidence, clinical expertise and client values together
• HIPAA US federal law protecting identifiable health information
• Informed Consent Permission for services, given with full understanding
• Mandated Reporter Legally required to report suspected abuse or neglect
• Public Statement What a practitioner says publicly about services or clients
• Scope of Competence What you individually are trained to do well
• Scope of Practice What your role and training allow you to do
• Self-Reporting The duty to tell the board about certain events in your own conduct

Graphing (8)

• Bar Graph Bars showing summary values for comparison
• Cumulative Record A running total; the slope shows rate
• Level How high or low the data sit in a phase
• Line Graph The standard graph of behavior over time
• Phase Change Line A vertical line marking a change in conditions
• Trend The direction the data are moving within a phase
• Variability How much the data points differ within a phase
• Visual Analysis Judging behavior change by inspecting the graph

Measurement (20)

• Continuous Measurement Every instance of the behavior is recorded
• Count The number of times a behavior occurred
• Discontinuous Measurement The behavior is sampled at intervals, not counted fully
• Duration How long the behavior lasts
• Frequency and Rate How many times it happened, and how often per minute
• Interobserver Agreement Two observers recording the same session and comparing
• Interresponse Time Time between two responses of the same kind
• Latency The wait between the instruction and starting
• Magnitude How intense or forceful a response is
• Momentary Time Sampling Check only at the end of each interval
• Observer Drift An observer's scoring standards slowly change
• Partial-Interval Recording Mark the interval if the behavior happened at all
• Percentage Part of a whole, out of 100
• Permanent Product Behavior measured by the result it leaves behind
• Reactivity Being observed changes the behavior being measured
• Topography The physical form of a behavior
• Treatment Drift The procedure slowly changes from what was written
• Treatment Integrity How closely the plan was followed as written
• Trials to Criterion Number of attempts needed to reach mastery
• Whole-Interval Recording Mark the interval only if the behavior lasted throughout

Philosophy (14)

• Applied Behavior Analysis The applied branch of the science of behavior
• Determinism Behavior has causes that can be discovered
• Empiricism Knowledge comes from observation and measurement
• Experimental Analysis of Behavior The basic-research branch of behavior analysis
• Explanatory Fiction A circular explanation that renames the behavior
• Hypothetical Construct An unobserved inner process assumed to explain behavior
• Mentalism Explaining behavior by an inner cause that cannot be tested
• Methodological Behaviorism Only public behavior counts; private events are excluded
• Parsimony Prefer the simplest explanation that fits the data
• Philosophic Doubt Treat every conclusion as open to revision
• Private Event Behavior only the person doing it can observe
• Radical Behaviorism Skinner's philosophy; private events count as behavior
• Replication Repeating a result to show it is real
• Seven Dimensions of ABA The seven criteria that define applied behavior analysis

Principles (53)

• Abolishing Operation Makes a reinforcer less valuable right now
• Automatic Reinforcement The behavior produces its own reinforcement
• Behavior What a person does; fails if a dead person could do it
• Behavioral Contrast Behavior shifts in one setting when reinforcement changes in another
• Behavioral Momentum Well-reinforced behavior resists disruption
• Compound Schedule Two or more simple schedules combined
• Concurrent Schedule Two or more schedules available at once
• Conditioned Punisher A punisher whose effect was learned through pairing
• Conditioned Reinforcer A reinforcer whose power was learned through pairing
• Contingency-Shaped Behavior Behavior shaped directly by its consequences
• Continuous Reinforcement Every response is reinforced
• Deprivation Going without a reinforcer raises its value
• Discriminative Stimulus A cue that says a behavior will work right now
• Establishing Operation Makes a reinforcer more valuable right now
• Extinction The behavior stops working, so it fades over time
• Extinction Burst Behavior briefly increases when reinforcement stops
• Fixed-Interval Schedule First response after a fixed time is reinforced
• Fixed-Ratio Schedule Reinforcement after a fixed number of responses
• Generalized Conditioned Reinforcer A learned reinforcer backed by many other reinforcers
• Imitation Copying a model's behavior immediately after seeing it
• Intermittent Reinforcement Only some responses are reinforced
• Maintenance Behavior change lasts after the intervention ends
• Matching Law Behavior is allocated in proportion to reinforcement
• Motivating Operation Changes how much a consequence is wanted right now
• Negative Punishment Behavior decreases because a stimulus was removed
• Negative Reinforcement Taking something away makes a behavior happen more
• Observational Learning Learning from watching others and their consequences
• Operant Conditioning Behavior is changed by its consequences
• Positive Punishment Behavior decreases because a stimulus was added
• Positive Reinforcement Adding something makes a behavior happen more
• Premack Principle A high-probability activity reinforces a low-probability one
• Punishment A consequence that makes a behavior happen less
• Reinforcer A consequence that makes behavior more likely
• Respondent Conditioning A neutral stimulus comes to elicit a reflex through pairing
• Response Class Different responses that share one function
• Response Generalization Untrained responses with the same function appear
• Resurgence Old behavior returns when the new behavior stops working
• Rule-Governed Behavior Behavior controlled by a stated rule
• S-Delta A stimulus that signals reinforcement is unavailable
• Satiation Recent access to a reinforcer lowers its value
• Setting Event An earlier condition that changes how a person responds now
• Socially Mediated Reinforcement Another person delivers the consequence
• Spontaneous Recovery An extinguished behavior briefly returns
• Stimulus An environmental event that can affect behavior
• Stimulus Class Stimuli grouped by shared features or shared function
• Stimulus Control A stimulus reliably changes the likelihood of a behavior
• Stimulus Discrimination Responding differently to different stimuli
• Stimulus Equivalence Untrained relations emerge from trained ones
• Stimulus Generalization A trained response spreads to similar stimuli
• Three-Term Contingency Antecedent, behavior, consequence
• Unconditioned Reinforcer A reinforcer that needs no learning history
• Variable-Interval Schedule First response after a varying time is reinforced
• Variable-Ratio Schedule Reinforcement after a varying number of responses

Research design (14)

• A-B Design Baseline then treatment, with no replication
• Baseline Measurement before the treatment begins
• Changing Criterion Design Behavior tracked against a stepwise criterion
• Confounding Variable Another possible cause that was not controlled
• Dependent Variable The behavior being measured
• Experimental Control Showing the treatment reliably produces the change
• External Validity Whether a finding extends beyond the original case
• Functional Relation A shown cause-and-effect link between environment and behavior
• Independent Variable The treatment or condition being changed on purpose
• Internal Validity Confidence the treatment caused the change
• Multielement Design Conditions alternated rapidly and compared
• Multiple Baseline Design Treatment introduced in a staggered order across baselines
• Reversal Design Treatment introduced, withdrawn, and reintroduced
• Single-Case Experimental Design Experiments where each person is their own control

Skill acquisition (32)

• Backward Chaining Steps taught from the last one backward
• Behavioral Cusp A skill that opens the door to much more learning
• Chaining Joining taught steps into one connected routine
• Discrete Trial Training Short, repeated, adult-led teaching trials
• Discrimination Training Teaching a learner to respond only to the correct stimulus
• Error Correction The written procedure for responding to a wrong answer
• Errorless Teaching Teaching arranged to prevent errors
• Forward Chaining Steps taught in order from the beginning
• Generalization Using a skill beyond where it was taught
• Group Contingency A group consequence based on members' behavior
• High-Probability Request Sequence Easy requests in a row, then the hard one
• Incidental Teaching Teaching in the moment a learner shows interest
• Least-to-Most Prompting Start with no help and add more only as needed
• Matching-to-Sample Choose the comparison that goes with the sample
• Modeling Demonstrating a behavior for the learner to copy
• Most-to-Least Prompting Start with full help and fade downward
• Multiple Exemplar Training Teaching with many examples so the skill generalizes
• Naturalistic Teaching Teaching inside everyday activities the learner chose
• Pairing Giving a neutral thing value by pairing it with reinforcers
• Pivotal Behavior A behavior whose learning improves other behaviors untaught
• Prompt Temporary help that makes the correct response occur
• Prompt Fading Giving less help over time until none is needed
• Prompt Hierarchy Prompts ranked from least to most intrusive
• Schedule Thinning Gradually reinforcing less often
• Shaping Rewarding closer and closer tries at one response
• Stimulus Fading Gradually removing a built-in feature that made the answer obvious
• Task Analysis A skill broken into ordered, teachable steps
• Teaching Loosely Varying irrelevant details so they do not control the response
• Time Delay Fading prompts by waiting longer before giving them
• Token Economy Tokens earned for behavior and exchanged for rewards
• Total-Task Chaining Every step attempted each trial, with help where needed
• Transfer of Stimulus Control Control shifts from the prompt to the natural cue

Supervision (8)

• Behavioral Skills Training Instruction, modeling, rehearsal and feedback to criterion
• Competency Assessment In-person demonstration of required skills to an assessor
• Continuing Education Unit Credit for analysts' continuing education
• Performance Diagnostic Finding out why staff performance falls short before fixing it
• Performance Feedback Specific, timely information about performance to improve it
• Professional Development Unit Credit for technician professional development
• Supervision Required ongoing oversight of a practitioner's work
• Unrestricted Activity Fieldwork that is analyst-level work, not direct delivery

Verbal behavior (10)

• Autoclitic Speech that modifies the effect of the speaker's other speech
• Echoic Repeating what was just said
• Intraverbal Responding to words with different words
• Listener Responding Acting on someone else's words
• Mand A request, evoked by wanting and reinforced by getting it
• Multiple Control One response with several causes, or one cause with several responses
• Tact Labeling something present, for social reinforcement
• Textual Saying what a written text shows
• Transcription Writing what was heard
• Verbal Behavior Language analyzed as behavior by its causes and effects