ABA Functional Behavior Assessment 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: In an experimental functional analysis using Iwata et al.'s (1982/1994) methodology, which condition serves as the control?
- Attention condition
- Demand condition
- Alone condition
- Play/no-demand condition (Correct answer)
Correct answer: Play/no-demand condition
The play or no-demand condition serves as the control because it provides rich reinforcement (attention and preferred items) with no demands, resulting in low rates of problem behavior for comparison.
Question 2: Which FBA method involves observing and recording antecedents, behaviors, and consequences as they naturally occur without any planned manipulation?
- Analog functional analysis
- Descriptive assessment (direct observation) (Correct answer)
- Brief functional analysis
- Indirect assessment
Correct answer: Descriptive assessment (direct observation)
Descriptive assessment involves direct, systematic observation of behavior as it naturally occurs in the environment, recording ABCs without experimental manipulation of variables.
Question 3: When a functional analysis shows the highest rate of problem behavior in the 'alone' condition, what function is most likely indicated?
- Socially mediated positive reinforcement (attention)
- Socially mediated negative reinforcement (escape)
- Access to tangibles
- Automatic reinforcement (sensory stimulation) (Correct answer)
Correct answer: Automatic reinforcement (sensory stimulation)
Elevated behavior in the alone condition (with no social consequences available) indicates the behavior is maintained by automatic reinforcement, as the individual produces the reinforcer independently of others.
Question 4: A 'functional analysis' is distinct from a 'descriptive assessment' because functional analysis:
- Uses interviews to gather information from caregivers
- Involves only naturalistic observation without any planned changes
- Experimentally manipulates antecedents and consequences to test hypothesized functions (Correct answer)
- Relies entirely on rating scales to quantify behavior severity
Correct answer: Experimentally manipulates antecedents and consequences to test hypothesized functions
Unlike descriptive assessments that only observe naturally occurring behavior, functional analyses involve experimental manipulation of environmental variables to establish a functional relationship and confirm behavior function.
Question 5: What is the purpose of a 'competing behavior pathway' model within the FBA process?
- To identify which specific ABA therapist should implement the intervention
- To map how the problem behavior, its maintaining consequences, and a desired alternative behavior interrelate (Correct answer)
- To document the topographical features of the behavior for legal records
- To calculate the rate and duration of the behavior for billing purposes
Correct answer: To map how the problem behavior, its maintaining consequences, and a desired alternative behavior interrelate
The competing behavior pathway (or competing pathways model) illustrates the relationships among setting events, antecedents, the problem behavior, its maintaining consequences, and appropriate alternative behaviors to guide intervention design.
Question 6: Which of the following best describes a 'brief functional analysis'?
- An FBA conducted only through caregiver interviews without any direct observation
- A streamlined version of the experimental functional analysis using fewer trials per condition (Correct answer)
- A scatter plot analysis limited to a single school day
- A functional analysis conducted only in the analog (clinic) setting
Correct answer: A streamlined version of the experimental functional analysis using fewer trials per condition
A brief functional analysis uses an abbreviated number of trials per test condition to quickly identify the function of behavior, making it more feasible in applied settings while still including experimental manipulation.
Question 7: Setting events in an FBA differ from immediate antecedents because setting events:
- Always occur immediately before the problem behavior
- Are consequences that strengthen future behavior
- Occur earlier in time and alter the effectiveness of later antecedents and reinforcers (Correct answer)
- Are environmental stimuli that are physically present during the behavior
Correct answer: Occur earlier in time and alter the effectiveness of later antecedents and reinforcers
Setting events (also called establishing operations or distal antecedents) occur prior to the immediate antecedent and context, altering how the individual responds to subsequent stimuli and reinforcers.
