Reversal Design
Also called: withdrawal design, A-B-A-B design, ABAB design
Definition
A single-case design in which treatment is introduced after baseline, withdrawn to see whether behavior returns toward baseline levels, and then reintroduced. Control is demonstrated when behavior tracks the presence and absence of treatment. It is unsuitable when the behavior cannot be reversed, such as a learned skill, or when withdrawing treatment would be unsafe or unethical.
In plain language
Start treatment, stop it, start it again, and watch whether the behavior follows. Not used when stopping would be unsafe or the skill cannot be unlearned.
Example
A noncontingent-attention procedure is run for a week, paused for a week, then resumed. Disruption falls, rises, and falls again.
Not reversal design
Treatment is introduced across three classrooms one at a time. That staggering is a multiple-baseline, not a reversal.
Commonly confused with
See also
Written from
- kazdin-2011
- baer-wolf-risley-1968
Written from Kazdin (2011) and Baer, Wolf and Risley (1968). No textbook glossary consulted.
This entry has not yet been through clinical review. Treat it as a draft.