B-1 Behavior, Response and Response Class Flashcards
Behavior
The portion of an organism’s interaction with it’s environment that involves movement of some part of the organism
Anything an organism does
If a Dead Man can do it, it’s Not a behavior
Response
A behavior being emitted by an organism
A response follows an antecedent/stimulus
Has a specific start and end
Response Class
A group of responses of varying topography, all of which produce the same effect on the environment
Try to hail a cab: Try to hail one by self
Wait at taxi stand
Ask a doorman to assist
All these behaviors are in the same response class
Dead Man’s Test
If a dead man can do it, it’s NOT a behavior
Behaver
The person whose behavior we are discussing or analyzing
Overt Behavior
Behavior that can be observed by another person without instrumentation
Ex: Coughing, Speaking, Spitting, Hitting, Combing hair
Covert Behavior
Called Private events
Maybe observable by the behaver
Maybe observable with instrumentation
Ex: Heartbeat, Thinking, Dreaming
Behavioral Repertoire
All the things an individual is capable of doing at any given moment (Chance, 2006)
Learning History
All the environmental events (antecedent and consequence) that have affected a person’s behavior up to the present
Medical Model
The view that behavior problems are merely symptoms of an underlying psychological disorder or due to intelligence, cognition etc
To behaviorist these are often called ‘Explanatory Fictions’ which are seemingly circular explanations/reasoning for behavior
Ex: John interrupts and gets out of seat in class due to his ADHD. We know he has ADHD because he interrupts class and gets out of his seat
Target Behavior
This is the behavior you want to change
The response class selected for intervention
Should be defined clearly ( Functionally or Topographically )
Operational Definition
Clearly defining a Target Behavior
