functional behavioral assessment

Question 1

what is functional behavioral assessment (FBA)?

Answer 1

• a way of identifying relations among antecedents, behaviors, and consequences and using this information to develop effective interventions
• basically looks at the purposes of a behavior to assess it for interventions
• very personalized
• does not need to be done for every person

Question 2

what does FBA only look at?

Answer 2

current causes of behavior.

Question 3

what is maintaining contingency?

Answer 3

focuses on the factors that lead to maintenance of the behavior.

Question 4

what are social consequences?

Answer 4

• attention, statements of concern, reprimands, a sympathetic look, or any other attentive response that is provided after the problem or disruptive behavior
• explored to see if they are positive reinforcers

Question 5

what is escape or avoidance?

Answer 5

• engaging in a problem or disruptive behavior terminates (or escapes from) an aversive event or situation
• the aversive event often is something as seemingly innocuous as asking the individual to work on or engage in some task
• when the task demand is made (e.g., do that, help me with this, talk to me) the person engages in the problem behavior and that task demand is terminated. - termination of an event that increases the likelihood of the behavior is negative reinforcement

Question 6

what is automatic reinforcement?

Answer 6

• consequences that appear to be inherent in performance of the behavior
• consequences associated with engaging in the behaviors that are not controlled by the environment
• can be positive (e.g., as in the aggressive behavior stimulating one’s reward centers in the brain) but also can be negative

Question 7

what is tangible reinforcement?

Answer 7

• specific nonsocial reinforcers such as access to items or preferred activities
• engaging in the problem behavior leads to obtaining some positive reinforcer in the environment

Question 8

what does FBA always start with?

Answer 8

collecting information designed to describe and identify patterns among antecedents, behaviors, and consequences.

Question 9

what are the steps in the FBA process?

Answer 9

• collecting information
• making hypotheses
• testing hypotheses
• looking for support from the data that was collected

Question 10

what is functional analysis?

Answer 10

• testing directly and through experimental manipulation precisely what consequences control behavior
• controlling variables so precisely so that you can say with confidence that a certain consequence is reinforcing behavior

Question 11

what are FBA indirect methods?

Answer 11

measures that ask individuals in contact with the client to report on the relations of antecedents and consequences to the behavior of a client.

Question 12

what are FBA direct methods?

Answer 12

those measures based on observation of the antecedents, behaviors, and consequences by systematically looking at what the client actually does.

Question 13

what are the strengths of FBA?

Answer 13

verbal reports are easy.

Question 14

what are the limitations of FBA?

Answer 14

• concern with interviews and questionnaires is that it is a report of what behavior happens, not a direct observation. human memory is not always correct so we are not fully sure if what is being reported is accurate
• indirect reports are not a substitute for direct observation although direct observation is not always an option

Question 15

what are naturalistic observations?

Answer 15

observing the individual’s behavior in the settings in which the individual usually functions (classroom, home).

Question 16

what are laboratory analogs?

Answer 16

contrived non-naturalistic situations that are set up to observe the behavior and its possible functions.

Question 17

what is a functional assessment observation form?

Answer 17

• allows one to enter the behavior(s) of interest as well as any special setting events, functions, and consequences that might be relevant
• the client is observed during various time periods and then whatever happens in a given interval is checked off on the form

Question 18

what is the preferred way of starting an intervention?

Answer 18

using FBA.

Question 19

what is FBA based on?

Answer 19

data.

Question 20

what are the limitations of FBA?

Answer 20

• can be difficult to identify the antecedents and consequences that support and maintain the behavior
• behavior be occurring at a low rate or maybe there is many functions that lead to a behavior
• behavior may look different in an analog setting than a naturalistic one
• intrinsic reinforcement: overtime, behaviors seem to be performed for less easily identified antecedents and consequences
• just because we can identify causes of behavior does not mean we can change them
• conducting FBA is not always feasible in applied settings
• behavior may be dangerous and FBA may not always identify the functions that are operating

Question 21

what are the three types of baseline trends?

Answer 21

ascending trend, descending trend, and level.

Question 22

what baseline is most preferred?

Answer 22

level baselines.

Question 23

what happens if behavior is decreasing in baseline when that is the goal of the treatment?

Answer 23

introduce the variable when the behavior is increasing.

Question 24

what is a jump up trend?

Answer 24

when data increases sharply.

Question 25

what is a jump down trend?

Answer 25

when data decreases sharply.

Question 26

when should you only introduce a treatment if baseline data is already going towards a desired direction?

Answer 26

if you are against a hard deadline or you need to introduce the treatment fast because the behavior is dangerous.

Question 27

when do you insert a treatment with a trend?

Answer 27

if the effect size you need to solve the problem is far greater than the trend in the data or if you suspect the effect size will produce far greater results than a trend in the data

Question 28

what is variability?

Answer 28

- the size and distribution of peaks and dips in data - stable data show little variation - unstable data shows wide fluctuations

Question 29

what is the stability level effect size detection rule?

Answer 29

the greater the stability of the data the smaller the effect size you can detect.

Question 30

what is the treatment effect size baseline stability rule?

Answer 30

based off of the stability level effect size detection rule and claims that the more powerful the independent variable the less stable the baseline needs to be.

Question 31

what does it mean if data occupies two levels?

Answer 31

there is a powerful variable in place sometimes and not in others.

Question 32

what does a gradual improvement show?

Answer 32

learning.

Question 33

what does a sudden change in level followed by gradual improvement mean?

Answer 33

shows the effect of motivating operation followed by learning.

Question 34

what are the causes of an outlier?

Answer 34

- could be a short-lasting variable, but if it is a negative change and happens again, it could be a problem - could be a potential treatment if it is a positive change - a major problem if it occurs before a treatment is introduced

Question 35

how do you evaluate it a treatment worked?

Answer 35

- see if the baseline does not have a trend or level change that predicts treatment levels - see if there is little to no overlap between baseline and treatment - ask if the treatment effect occurs when the treatment is introduced rather than much later

Question 36

what are signs that other effects outside of a treatment are going on?

Answer 36

- the baseline data is unstable - baseline data has data points high and low with nothing in between - frequent outlier - treatment increases in steps

Question 37

how do you get better treatment results?

Answer 37

- control powerful sources of variability and use them to better your treatment - intensify treatment when results are not as good as you need

Question 38

where is FBA most used?

Answer 38

in the contexts of eliminating self-injurious behaviors among individuals with developmental disabilities and autism.

Question 39

what is the FBA questions about behavioral functions?

Answer 39

- focuses on people with developmental disabilities - asks 25 questions on a 4-point scale - the questions examine different functions or consequences that are likely to follow the particular behavior that is the focus - looks at 5 functions: attention, escape from the task or situation, nonsocial, physical consequences, and tangible consequences (e.g., gets access to toys, food, or engages in the behavior when something is taken away) - scores in each function are used to make a hypothesis about the purpose of a behavior

Question 40

what is the FBA motivation assessment scale?

Answer 40

- has 16 items each rated on a 7 point scale - includes frequently studied functions

Question 41

what does most functional analysis focus on?

Answer 41

self injurious behavior.

Question 42

how is FBA used in educational settings?

Answer 42

- the individuals with disabilities education act I(DEA) specifies that FBA at schools where students are at risk for suspension and expulsion - FBA must be used in situations where students have a disability or misconduct issues - school based applications for reinforcement techniques have been used since the 1960s - FBA tends to be more effective than punishments like suspension

Question 43

what are the strengths of FBA?

Answer 43

- more likely to develop an effective intervention - allows for more personalized interventions - addresses the complexities of behavior - can suggest specific antecedent conditions that promote or give rise to the behavior - draws attention to consequences already in the situation that may be operating to maintain the behavior - can point out ineffective reinforcements - provides an empirical way of evaluating controlling influences and then using the information to develop an individualized intervention

Question 44

why is it best to treat a behavior when it is the weakest?

Answer 44

it may be easier to treat.

Question 45

what is a structural analysis of behavior?

Answer 45

examining when, where, and in the presence of whom, and situations associated with a behavior.

Question 46

what are the steps of functional analysis?

Answer 46

1. perform an ABC analysis to determine the antecedents and consequences associated with the behavior 2. interview people who are familiar with the problem 3. once you think you know what is causing the behavior, perform an experimental analysis of the problem behavior using behavioral analysis fast acting research design. probably best to test multiple hunches

Question 47

do behaviors have more than one function?

Answer 47

maybe, especially depending on different situations in the presence of different people.

Question 48

what are the most common experimental designs?

Answer 48

- the multi-element design - ABAB designs with rapid reversals

Question 49

what are the types of FBA approaches?

Answer 49

- vary suspected MO with high attention and low attention, difficult vs. easy work - reinforcement vs. extinction for each potential function - reinforcement of one behavior vs. reinforcement of the absence of a behavior (DRO or omission training) - reinforcement of one behavior or incompatible behavior

Question 50

what was the function of roy's behavior?

Answer 50

self-injury served the function of allowing Roy to escape from activities.

Question 51

what was the function of kathy's behavior?

Answer 51

fighting served as an occasion to have private time with the mother.