Unit Two

Question 1

Discriminative Stimulus

Answer 1

An antecedent stimulus that is likely to occasion a particular response because it signals the probability that reinforcement will follow the response.

Question 2

A-B-C Analysis

Answer 2

Antecedent - Behavior - Consequence

Question 3

Problem-Behavior Pathway

Answer 3

A description of events and stimuli that typically occur before and following an instance of problem behavior, including setting events, antecedent stimuli, the behavior itself, and consequences.

Question 4

Stimulus Control

Answer 4

The relationship between behavior and its antecedent in which the antecedent occasions the behavior; repeated occurrences of the behavior are dependent upon its being reinforced; an antecedent that occasions a response and therefore results in reinforcement is known as a discriminative stimulus (SD); an antecedent that does not occasion a response and therefore does not result in reinforcement is known as S-delta.

Question 5

Shaping

Answer 5

Behavior change process in which a new or unfamiliar behavior is taught through reinforcing successive approximations of the behavior progressing step-by-step toward a terminal objective.

Question 6

Positive Reinforcement

Answer 6

The presentation of a stimulus contingent on the occurrence of a behavior that results in an increase in the rate or future probability of that behavior over time.

Question 7

Negative Reinforcement

Answer 7

The increase in rate or future probability of a behavior that occurs when the behavior successfully avoids or terminates contact with an aversive stimulus.

Question 8

Extinction

Answer 8

Systematic withholding of reinforcement for a previously reinforced behavior to reduce or eliminate the occurrence of the behavior.

Question 9

Punishment

Answer 9

Presentation of an aversive stimulus, or the removal of a positive reinforcer (response cost) as a consequence for behavior which reduces the future rate of the behavior.

Question 10

Self-Regulation

Answer 10

A range of procedures (e.g., self-monitoring, self-evaluation, and self-reinforcement) in which the student acts as his or her own behavior change agent; self-regulation is relatively nonintrusive, nonrestrictive, and allows classroom activities to proceed with a minimum of interruptions.

Question 11

Social Reinforcement

Answer 11

Teacher or peer attention (feedback, attention, and approval) given contingent on behavior which maintains or increases the behavior.

Question 12

Modeling

Answer 12

An instructional behavior by which demonstrations of a desired behavior are presented in order to prompt an imitative response.

Question 13

Activity Reinforcement

Answer 13

Providing opportunities to engage in preferred or high-probability behaviors contingent upon completion of less preferred or low-probability behaviors.

Question 14

Token Reinforcement

Answer 14

A system of behavior management in which tangible or token reinforcers such as points, plastic chips, metal washers, poker chips, or play money are given as rewards and later exchanged for back-up reinforcers that have value in themselves (e.g., food, trinkets, playtime, books); a miniature economic system used to foster desirable behavior.

Question 15

Tangible Reinforcement

Answer 15

A non-edible item given contingent upon an occurrence of desired behavior to promote the reoccurrence of that behavior.

Question 16

Edible Reinforcement

Answer 16

An edible item that is reinforcing for the student, given contingent upon the performance of desired behavior.

Question 17

Tactile and Sensory Reinforcement

Answer 17

The application of tactile or sensory consequences to reinforce behavior; used primarily with students with severe and profound disabilities.

Question 18

Differential Reinforcement

Answer 18

Four strategies that involve reinforcement applied differentially to reduce undesired behaviors while increasing desired behaviors. The four strategies are: Differential Reinforcement of Alternative Behaviors (DRA), Differential Reinforcement of Incompatible Behaviors (DRI), Differential Reinforcement of Low Rates of Behavior (DRL), and Differential Reinforcement of Other/The Omission of Behavior (DRO).

Question 19

Precorrection

Answer 19

Adjustment in academic or social instruction based on the teacher’s anticipation of student error and intended to prevent errors by providing supportive prompts. It involves teaching students classroom rules and routines so they will know what is expected of them.

Question 20

Verbal Aversives

Answer 20

Unpleasant verbal behavior (e.g., delivering a reprimand, scolding) that serves as an aversive stimulus (reduces the likelihood of behavior it follows, or increases the likelihood of behavior that successfully escapes or terminates it).

Question 21

Response Cost

Answer 21

A procedure for the reduction of inappropriate behavior through withdrawal of specific amounts of reinforcers contingent upon the behavior’s occurrence; fine or penalty.

Question 22

Six Principles of Applied Behavior Analysis

Answer 22

Principle I: Behavior is controlled by its consequences.
Principle II: Behavior is strengthened or maintained by reinforcement.
Principle III: Behavior is weakened by withholding the consequence (usually social) that have maintained it.
Principle IV: Behavior is also weakened by punishment.
Principle V: To effectively influence behavior, consequences must consistently and immediately follow the behaviors they are meant to control.
Principle VI: Behavior is also strengthened, weakened, or maintained by modeling.

Question 23

Principle I: Behavior is controlled by its consequences.

Answer 23

The consequence is the response that immediately happens after an undesirable behavior occurs. Most people think of the antecedent (what is being asked of the student) when they think of behavior, rather than the consequence that follows it. When I think of this first principle in terms of real life, I think of literally making sure I behaved because I did not want to face the consequences that would come if I didn’t. For example, it was about my freshman year in high school when most of my friends started drinking and partying. I knew if I were to do these things it would take less than a day for my parents to find out because my town was so small. If my parents found out I would be in a lot of trouble (grounded, extra chores, no phone/computer/TV, and so on). Because of these consequences I knew would happen if I started partying in high school, I never did.

Question 24

Principle II: Behavior is strengthened or maintained by reinforcement.

Answer 24

Positive reinforcement occurs when the presence of a consequence maintains or strengthens a behavior over time. When I was growing up my parents never gave my brother or I an allowance. We never got paid for doing chores around the house like other kids. We did however, get paid for good grades. My school ran on a quarter system, unlike down here where they divide the year into chunks of six weeks. When each quarter was over our report cards came out. For every “A” we got we were paid, for every “B” we were paid a little less, for every “C” we weren’t paid anything, for every “D” we had to pay my parents what we would’ve gotten paid for getting a “B”, and for every “F” we had to pay what we would’ve gotten paid for an “A”. This system worked really well for my brother and I and we both had A’s and B’s throughout middle and high school.

Question 25

Principle III: Behavior is weakened by withholding the consequence (usually social) that have maintained it.

Answer 25

This principle is the classic example of when students do things to get attention, and they want the attention whether it is good or bad. Earlier this school year I worked with an eighth grade that suffers from epilepsy. He has epileptic seizures and suedo seizures. The most common seizures are seudo, which no one really knows what they are, but he has them and they’re not as intense as an epileptic one. I did not stay with this kid for very long because of other reasons, but it was discovered after I left that some of these seudo seizures he was having were behavioral issues. When I left he was having at least five seizures a day, all in different classes. After I stopped working with him medical workers had to be called on three separate occasions because his seizures were becoming so intense. Each time the medical crews would arrive and say no, this isn’t a seizure it’s a behavioral issue. So it was decided that whenever he had a seizure class would go on, the teacher would ignore it, and his para would just call the nurse and let her know he was having one. This significantly reduced his seizures and in the past month he’s only had two. He had been faking the seizures to get attention. Once he was not given attention anymore he stopped faking his seizures.

Question 26

Principle IV: Behavior is also weakened by punishment.

Answer 26

There are two classes of punishment; (1) presenting an aversive consequence immediately after a response has occurred, and (2) removing a positive reinforcer following a response. A good example of the first class of punishment is when my Dad used to yell at me for various things but never having a punishment follow the yelling. An example of the second class of punishment would be when I used to get grounded for various things. In high school I when I got grounded I got my phone taken away, lost TV and computer privileges, and didn’t get to go out with my friends. My parents removed my positive reinforcer.

Question 27

Principle V: To effectively influence behavior, consequences must consistently and immediately follow the behaviors they are meant to control.

Answer 27

Consistency is one of the most important things associated with desired behavior. Teachers must be consistent with both their punishments and rewards and praises. Teachers who have great classroom management skills are very consistent with their practices. There is a teacher at the school I work at who has a very well organized classroom management plan. Her students know what is expected of them at all times and they are all treated the same. They know if she comes around to check their work and it’s not done they’re going to have to go in the hall with her to call mom and dad. She gives her cell phone number to the parents of all her students and is in contact with them whenever a student’s grades are slipping. Her students are very well behaved and very respectful. The main reason for this is because she is consistent with all her students, everyday.

Question 28

Principle VI: Behavior is also strengthened, weakened, or maintained by modeling.

Answer 28

It is important for teachers to model good behavior because many students imitate the behavior they see. If a student is imitating a behavior of another that is undesirable, the teacher should punish the behavior and the imitator will most like suppress the mirroring behavior. Within this principle it is also safe to say the teacher should be modeling the behavior she expects from her students. I remember my junior year of high school I had a history teacher that was not very good at modeling his behavior. The students did not respect or take him seriously because he acted like he was one of us. He would tell us stories about his high school days and how he set the hill on the Butte on fire his junior year of high school. It was hard to have good behavior in his class because he wasn’t even modeling good behavior.

Question 29

What is the role of teachers’ perceptions in identifying behavioral problems?

Answer 29

Sometimes the problem behavior is only a problem for that teacher, and in reality is not actually a problem. The teacher might have a grudge against a student and and just not like him that much. One problem behavior for one teacher might not be a problem at all for other teachers.

Question 30

What are the outcomes of an FBA?

Answer 30

Outcome #1: An operational definition of the problem behavior(s).
Outcome #2: A description of the setting events and antecedents that predict the occurrence and nonoccurrence of the problem behavior.
Outcome #3: A description of the consequences that are responsible for the problem behavior.
Outcome #4: Verifying the predictors and consequences that are responsible for the problem behavior through direct observation.
Outcome #5: Summary hypothesis statements that are the basis for designing the BIP.

Question 31

What are the six steps of developing a BIP?

Answer 31

1. Assess the student’s behavior
2. Propose a hypothesis
3. Assess the validity of the hypothesis
4. Design an intervention
5. Collect data
6. Write objectives

Question 32

BIP: Assessing the Student’s Behavior:

Answer 32

What does the behavior look like and how can it be measured?

Question 33

BIP: Proposing a Hypothesis:

Answer 33

Based on the patterns gathered during assessing the student’s behavior, a hypothesis can be developed and the educator can guess what will work and what won’t.

Question 34

BIP: Assessing the Validity of the Hypothesis:

Answer 34

Important to use a variety of methods to assess behavior and conduct assessments across multiple settings and sources to form a reasonable hypothesis.

Question 35

BIP: Designing an Intervention:

Answer 35

Figure out the A-B-C analysis and what can be done to modify and alter the behavior.

Question 36

BIP: Collecting Data:

Answer 36

Collect the data and adjust the plan as needed.

Question 37

BIP: Writing Objectives:

Answer 37

Long-term and short-term objectives should be established.

Question 38

What are the 3 components of a behavioral objective?

Answer 38

The condition, behavior, and criteria.

Question 39

Condition in terms of a behavioral objective:

Answer 39

Where will the behavior occur?
When will the behavior occur?
With who will the behavior occur?

Question 40

Behavior in terms of a behavioral objective:

Answer 40

What will the desired behavior be?

Question 41

Criteria in terms of a behavioral objective:

Answer 41

What will make the behavior acceptable?

Question 42

Self-Regulation Example:

Answer 42

A lot of students tend to drum on their desks when they get bored. A lot of times they do it without even realizing their doing it. When a student is able to realize he’s drumming and realize it is probably annoying to the people around him and he stops, then he is self-regulating.

Question 43

Social Reinforcement Example:

Answer 43

If a student sees a piece of trash on the floor of the hall as he’s walking and picks it up to throw it a way, the teacher should recognize that and say, “Good job! Thank you for picking that up!”

Question 44

Example of Modeling:

Answer 44

When a teacher asks a student to do something and uses the word “please” with it, and then when the student has done what she asked she says “thank you”, that is modeling good behavior.

Question 45

Example of Activity Reinforcement:

Answer 45

When I am subbing I usually tell the students, that as long as they are quiet and doing their work, I will let them visit with each other at the end of class once everyone has completed the assignment.

Question 46

Example of Token Reinforcement:

Answer 46

A great example of this can be seen at Kaffie Middle School here in Corpus Christi. The school has “Dolphin Dollars” which are awarded by teachers to students when they see good behavior. They can use the dollars they earn to purchase items in the office.

Question 47

Example of Tangible Reinforcement:

Answer 47

Elementary teachers often have a star system for their students. When a student shows an appropriate behavior they get a star next to their name. All the names are listed in a location the whole class can see.

Question 48

Example of Edible Reinforcement:

Answer 48

When I sub, a lot of teachers request that I record for them which class was the best. They ask this because the best class will get candy as a reward. It actually works really well.

Question 49

Example of Tactile & Sensory Reinforcement:

Answer 49

If the student self-stimulates by rubbing his palm, then when the student performs a desired behavior the teacher should rub his palm.

Question 50

Example of Differential Reinforcement:

Answer 50

If the teacher wants a student to come in and be in his chair ready to go when the bell rings when he has been running around and misbehaving in the past, every time he does that she should give him positive reinforcement. Eventually the student will respond to the positive reinforcement and prefer this reaction from his teacher rather than the negative reinforcement.

Question 51

Example of Precorrection:

Answer 51

If a teacher expects her students to be in their seats, pens out, and notebooks open when the bell rings then she needs to teach them this at the beginning of the school year.

Question 52

Example of Extinction:

Answer 52

If a student is constantly yelling out the answers in class with out raising his hand or being called on, and telling him to stop doesn’t work, then the teacher should begin ignoring the behavior all together. By ignoring it, eventually the student will stop.

Question 53

Example of Verbal Aversives:

Answer 53

Verbal adversives are the most effective when they are reprimands; i.e. telling a student if he doesn’t stop a behavior he will be sent to the office. It’s important to follow through when saying things like this.

Question 54

Example of Response Cost:

Answer 54

If a student misbehaves, a lot of teachers choose to take away recess.

Question 55

Outcome #1 of an FBA: An operational definition of the problem behavior(s).

Answer 55

The problem behavior should be clearly identified so the correct intervention can be put into motion. The definition must be precise and understandable to all who are implementing an intervention.

Question 56

Outcome #2 of an FBA: A description of the setting events and antecedents that predict the occurrence and nonoccurrence of the problem behavior.

Answer 56

There must be a clear description of when, where, and with who the behavior is occurring. If the behavior is specifically occurring during a certain activity, then that needs to be clearly listed. If the behavior is specifically happening when the student works with certain people in the classroom, then that also needs to be noted.

Question 57

Outcome #3 of an FBA: A description of the consequences that are responsible for the problem behavior.

Answer 57

What is causing the behavior? Is it medical, social, etc. . .? What consequences are already being implemented as an intervention?

Question 58

Outcome #4 of an FBA: Verifying the predictors and consequences that are responsible for the problem behavior through direct observation.

Answer 58

These behaviors must be observed to verify they are happening as described. By observing the behaviors, it can be easier to determine why they are occurring and what type of interventions can be put in place to correct them.

Question 59

Outcome #5 of an FBA: Summary hypothesis statements that are the basis for designing the BIP.

Answer 59

A hypothesis should be developed of an intervention plan. It is a hypothesis because the initial intervention may not be successful. It may be necessary to try several different interventions and come to a final plan based on trial and error.