CHP 3 EXPERIMENTAL DESIGNS IN BEHAVIOR ANALYSIS

Question 1

Independent variable

Answer 1

a publicly observable change, controlled by the experimenter, which is anticipated to influence behavior in a specific way

Question 2

Group experimental designs

Answer 2

used by clinical behavior analysts

manipulate an ind var and objectively measure if it influences behavior of a group (31+ participants) in a systematic way

Question 3

4 weaknesses of group experimental designs

Answer 3

1) when the ind var is a therapeutic intervention no one wants to be in the control group (so they give those ppl the treatment after being in control group)
2) focuses on behavior of the group rather than indivdual. Behavior is the activity of an individual.
3) behavior of treatment and control groups will differ because the people assigned to the groups are different so confounding variables are introduced (overcome by randomly assigning a big group of subjects to the experimental and control groups)
4) reliance on inferential statistics to evaluate if the IV changed behavior (inferential stats aren’t very objective)

Question 4

Single-subject experimental designs

Answer 4

expose individs to baseline (IV OFF) and experimental (IV ON) phases to determine if the IV systematically and reliably changes behavior

Question 5

Internal validity

Answer 5

given when an experiment gives clear evidence that a functional relation exists between the IV and the behavior change

Question 6

Confounds

Answer 6

unintended variables that influence behavior within an experiment, but are not controlled by the researcher

Question 7

Comparison (A-B) design

Answer 7

arranges a baseline (A) phase (IV OFF, natural behavior is observed) and an experimental (B) phase (IV ON, intervention is implemented)
behavior is STABLE when over repeated observations, there is a little “bounce” and no systematic trend

Question 8

Comparison (A-B) design weaknesses

Answer 8

time coincidences are possible confounds, confounds can’t be turned on/off like IV

Question 9

Reversal (A-B-A) design

Answer 9

the individ’s behavior is evaluated in repeatedly alternating baseline (A) and experimental (B) phases
rule out confounds better than A-B design

replication of the effect (within the individ AND within another individ) is important

ALL individs get the treatment 🥳

Question 10

Alternating-Treatments design

Answer 10

The IV is turned ON and OFF rapidly to evaluate if this systematically and repeatedly changes behavior

Most commonly used when trying to figure out why inappropriate behavior occurs

Question 11

Multiple-baseline designs

Answer 11

changes in behavior are observed over alternating IV ON/OFF across behaviors, situations or individuals

Question 12

Strengths and weaknesses of multiple-baseline design

Answer 12

strength: can be used in cases where the IV can’t be turned off bc it produces an irreversible effect, or it would be unethical to turn the IV off
weakness: confounding variables are common

Question 13

Multiple-baseline-across-behaviors design

Answer 13

time-staggered A-B replications are conducted across ONE behavior (if the intervention is successful, the behavior shouldn’t change in any other behaviors)

Question 14

Multiple-baseline-across-situations design

Answer 14

time-staggered A-B replications are demonstrated across ONE situation (if intervention is successful, the behavior shouldn’t change in the other situations)

Question 15

Multiple-baseline-across-participants design

Answer 15

time-staggered A-B replications are demonstrated across participants

Question 16

Within-individual replication

Answer 16

the behavior of an INDIVID is repeatedly observed

Question 17

Across-individual replication

Answer 17

evaluate whether or not the effects of an IV can systematically + reliably influence the behavior of MORE THAN ONE INDIVID

Question 18

Replication across labs or clinics

Answer 18

results need to be replicated in many experiments

Question 19

Visual analysis

Answer 19

looking at a graph of time-series single-subject behavior to evaluate if a convincing change occurred when the IV was ON/OFF (requires scientists to make BIG behavior changes occur, and subjectivity is difficult to hide)

Question 20

Importance of stability in baseline

Answer 20

we need stability in baseline in order to have starting values to compare to values during the experimental (IV ON) phase

Question 21

Trend

Answer 21

a systematic change in behavior over time

Question 22

Level

Answer 22

the prevalence of the behavior during the stable portion of a phase/condition (changes must be large RELATIVE to the bounce)