BACB Study Guide 2026

Wolf (1978) proposed that social validity should assess whether the goals, procedures, and outcomes of an intervention are acceptable and meaningful to consumers and society.

Free operant observations allow the client unrestricted access to an array of items and use duration of engagement as the index of preference.

Response cost is a form of negative punishment in which a specified amount of a reinforcer is removed contingent on a target behavior, decreasing that behavior.

Behavioral (OBM) performance management applies ABA principles to staff behavior, targeting observable work behaviors and using reinforcement to increase desired performance.

A conditioned reinforcer is a stimulus that has acquired its reinforcing properties through association with a primary (unconditioned) reinforcer or other conditioned reinforcers. Unlike primary reinforcers like food or water, which are inherently satisfying, praise is learned to be reinforcing through experience. For example, a child learns that praise often accompanies other desirable outcomes.

Prompting involves providing a cue or assistance to help an individual perform a desired behavior. Giving a child a verbal cue, such as saying 'time to pick up your toys,' is a direct instruction that guides them toward the correct action. This is an antecedent strategy designed to evoke the target behavior.