Preference Assessment
Also called: MSWO, paired stimulus, free operant preference assessment
Definition
A structured procedure for identifying which items or activities a learner is likely to work for, by presenting options and recording what they approach or select. Preference varies over time and across conditions, so assessments are repeated rather than treated as a fixed list.
In plain language
A set way of finding out what someone likes right now. You offer choices and record what they pick. What they like changes, so you check again.
Examples
Several items are laid out, the learner chooses one, the chosen item is removed, and the remaining ones are offered again.
Repeating without replacement produces a ranked order of preference.
A learner is left with free access to a set of toys while staff record what they go to and for how long.
Not preference assessment
Asking a parent what a learner liked last year and using that list without checking. Report is a starting point, not an assessment.
Assuming that because an item is popular with other learners, this learner will work for it too.
See also
Written from
- deleon-iwata-1996 — Multiple-stimulus formats
Written from DeLeon and Iwata (1996) on multiple-stimulus formats and the wider preference-assessment literature. No textbook glossary consulted.
This entry has not yet been through clinical review. Treat it as a draft.