Single Subject Designs

Question 1

What are single-subject designs?

Answer 1

A design where the effects of the IV are examined for each subject individually rather than in a group.

Question 2

Which type of research are group designs?

Answer 2

Experimental and Epidemiology Research

Question 3

What is the problem with group designs?

Answer 3

1. They do not tell us how a treatment affects individuals
2. The “average” subject may not resemble any of the study subjects.

Question 4

When are group designs, not the best design to use?

Answer 4

1. Uncommon diseases
2. Disorders
3. Rare disabilities
4. In situations where it would be unethical to have a no-treatment control

Question 5

True or False?
Single Subject Designs are the same as case studies.

Answer 5

False. Case studies are only one subject. Single-subject designs have multiple people.

Question 6

What are the controls in single-subject designs?

Answer 6

The subject themself serve as their control because they will receive the treatment at some point.

Question 7

True or False?
The dependent variable is only measured once.

Answer 7

False. The dependent variable is measured repeatedly.

Question 8

What is visual analysis?

Answer 8

A method of data analysis by visually inspecting the graphical (series of graphs) representation of the results.

Question 9

Describe the AB design.

Answer 9

1. A is your baseline
2. B is your treatment
3. Subjects choose one behavior to focus on
4. Also choose 3 non-targeted variable to see if they are affected

Question 10

Describe ABAB design.

Answer 10

1. A is Baseline
2. B is treatment
3. Repeated treatment
4. Must establish a stable baseline before adding treatment
5. Must be concerned with the reliability (consistency) of your measures

Question 11

Is ABAB design best for Internal or external validity?

Answer 11

Internal Validity (Checking if your IV truly
affects your DV)

Question 12

What are the pros of ABAB

Answer 12

1. Can isolate one behavior to study
2. Strong design because of the reversal
3. Ends on a positive note if treatment works

Question 13

What are the cons of ABAB?

Answer 13

1. Removing the treatment may be hard or unethical
2. Reversing the behavior may be impossible…

Question 14

Describe multiple baseline design.

Answer 14

1. Baseline is found for each subject
2. The length of the baseline is different for each subject
3. The treatment is given at different times

Question 15

What are the pros of multiple baseline design?

Answer 15

1. You do not have to remove an effective treatment
2. Can test if the length of the baseline is a factor

Question 16

What are the cons of multiple baseline designs?

Answer 16

They are not as strong as the ABAB design because there is no treatment removal.

Question 17

What are the misconceptions about single-subject designs?

Answer 17

1. They are case studies with low internal validity
2. They lack external validity (they can generalize to smaller populations like people with rare diseases)
3. They are not scholarly
4. They cannot be used to study small effects (the same can be said about group designs)

Question 18

What are the advantages of single-subject designs?

Answer 18

1. Can focus on repeated measures
2. Need fewer subjects
3. Everyone typically gets the treatment (no resistance to being in control group)
4. Invloves social validation (asking subjects how they feel about the methods)