Board Certified Behavior Analyst v1.0 (BCBA)

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Total 180 questions

When setting criteria for behavior change, behavior analysts attempt to implement the simplest mode of intervention necessary to elicit the desired outcome. As such, the identified outcome criteria should be

  • A. applied to ecological assessments to generalize skills.
  • B. developed prior to the identified intervention.
  • C. initially broad in focus with subsequent reduction to a target response.
  • D. measured independent of practice effects or reactivity.


Answer : B

Jamie and Morgan have similar behavior challenges and similar daily schedules. A behavior analyst has spent extensive time and effort on developing and implementing Morgan's plan, which is proving to be very successful. How should the behavior analyst proceed with developing a treatment plan for Jamie?

  • A. Because the behaviors are topographically similar, implementing the plan designed for Morgan would be appropriate as it is the least restrictive option.
  • B. Complete a separate functional assessment and plan for Jamie.
  • C. Use the same plan for both, just ensure the ecological variables correspond to the student.
  • D. Do a separate functional analysis, but the same behavior supports can be applied to both students.


Answer : B

The use of a withdrawal design is LEAST appropriate when:

  • A. evaluating an intervention for severe problem behavior.
  • B. evaluating the effects of an intervention for behavior that has multiple functions.
  • C. extraneous variables cannot be controlled.
  • D. multiple participants are being evaluated.


Answer : A

When using an alternating treatments design it is important to randomly:

  • A. assign participants to treatment conditions.
  • B. select participants from the population of interest.
  • C. order treatment conditions presented during each phase.
  • D. change each criterion level.


Answer : C

When using a changing criterion design, the BEST demonstration of experimental control would be produced if the:

  • A. criterion level is changed in equal increments.
  • B. criterion level is changed slightly on each manipulation.
  • C. criterion level is set well above that of the behavior.
  • D. behavior changes concurrently with the criterion level.


Answer : D

The PRIMARY advantage of using a multiple baseline design across subjects is that:

  • A. an intervention may be applied to more than one individual.
  • B. experimental control can be demonstrated without a reversal.
  • C. it is the most effective method for establishing functional relations.
  • D. more individuals benefit from the effects of an intervention.


Answer : B

Jamie frequently falls to the floor and screams at school. Preliminary behavioral assessment data indicate that his tantrums are maintained by attention and escape from demand situations. Jamie's behavior analyst wants to examine precisely how attention and escape conditions affect these behaviors. The behavior analyst does not want to conduct the analysis in Jamie's classroom because she would not be able to control for potentially important factors. Relating to this scenario, which statement is TRUE?

  • A. Analyses that involve experimental conditions are almost always conducted in the person's natural environment.
  • B. The behavior analyst could conduct the analysis in a vacant classroom, but the generality of the findings is an issue to be considered.
  • C. The behavior analyst should conduct detailed interviews with the teacher and school staff to determine functional relations.
  • D. Only if the analysis is conducted in Jamie's classroom can a reasonable hypothesis be generated.


Answer : B

Carlos participated in a toothbrushing skill acquisition program. When he started the program, he needed physical assistance to perform each step. After two weeks, he met all objectives and was able to complete each step independently. The program involved the use of graduated guidance, praise, and token reinforcement. In the future, the behavior analyst would like to examine which procedures made the program most effective (i.e., guidance, praise, or token reinforcement). To determine this, the behavior analyst could use a

  • A. component analysis.
  • B. discriminant analysis.
  • C. nonparametric analysis.
  • D. parametric analysis.


Answer : A

The behavior analyst has had good results with an intervention she designed that makes access to video games contingent upon playing with other children. She now wants to compare the effects of differing amounts of video game access time. She should conduct a

  • A. changing criterion study.
  • B. nonparametric study.
  • C. parametric study.
  • D. reversal study.


Answer : C

Which of the following measures would be the MOST appropriate for reporting head banging during each 5-minute interval of work?

  • A. duration of head banging
  • B. latency from a request to the first response
  • C. rate of head banging
  • D. inter-response time


Answer : C

A person "getting wet" in the rain is NOT considered an occurrence of behavior because "getting wet"

  • A. does not specify an interaction between an organism and its environment.
  • B. can occur under only one, very specific environmental condition.
  • C. is a hypothetical construct and cannot therefore meet the criteria for an occurrence of behavior.
  • D. does not have social or clinical significance in a science of human behavior.


Answer : A

The BEST definition for mouthing behavior would be any instance of Luke.

  • A. placing his mouth on any object for at least 5 seconds.
  • B. placing his open mouth on a non-nutritive object or placing a non-nutritive object in his mouth.
  • C. making contact with his mouth to any non-nutritive object.
  • D. mouthing a non-nutritive item for 3 or more consecutive instances within a 30 second interval.


Answer : B

Susan recorded data on a student's fidgeting behavior in the following way: She divided a 10-minute recording period into 10-second intervals and recorded in each interval a "+" if the target behavior occurred at least once. The percentage of intervals of target behavior occurrence was about 45%. The data resulting are most likely to be an

  • A. accurate measure of inter-response times.
  • B. inaccurate measure of inter-response times.
  • C. overestimate of the occurrence of the behavior.
  • D. underestimate of the occurrence of the behavior.


Answer : C

A major benefit of product recording is that:

  • A. it is the easiest recording method.
  • B. it is used when a behavior results in a certain tangible outcome.
  • C. the observer does not have to be present when the behavior occurs.
  • D. one can always determine who engaged in the behavior that led to the product that was recorded.


Answer : C

Observation sessions should be scheduled so that the representativeness of the data can be maximized. Considering behaviors occurring in a school setting, which of the following options is consistent with this recommendation?

  • A. Behaviors are given letter-codes that represent the complete topographical definition of the behaviors, e.g., "on-task academic behavior" is represented by "O" on the recording sheet.
  • B. Observations should be made only when the behavior is likely to occur most frequently during a day, for instance, during a particular academic class.
  • C. Recordings of behavior during the whole school day may be needed initially to assess the representativeness of samples within the day.
  • D. Representativeness can be assured by scheduling observations in sessions of 60 minutes or more in the morning and afternoon school schedule.


Answer : C

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Total 180 questions