BAS Assessment and Diagnosis 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A supervisor is reviewing a functional behavior assessment (FBA) conducted by a supervisee. The FBA relies solely on indirect methods such as interviews and rating scales. What is the most significant limitation of this approach?
- Indirect methods cannot be completed quickly enough for clinical use
- Indirect methods alone may not accurately identify the true function of behavior (Correct answer)
- Rating scales are not considered evidence-based practices in ABA
- Interviews are prohibited from use in formal FBA procedures
Correct answer: Indirect methods alone may not accurately identify the true function of behavior
Indirect methods rely on informant recall and perception, which may not accurately reflect the actual function maintaining the behavior.
Question 2: When conducting a Functional Analysis (FA), the 'alone' condition is used to test for which function?
- Social positive reinforcement
- Social negative reinforcement
- Automatic reinforcement (Correct answer)
- Tangible reinforcement
Correct answer: Automatic reinforcement
The alone condition removes all social consequences, so elevated behavior suggests it is maintained by automatic (non-social) reinforcement.
Question 3: A supervisee administers the Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales to assess a client's daily living skills. This tool is best categorized as which type of assessment?
- Functional analysis
- Curriculum-based assessment
- Standardized norm-referenced assessment (Correct answer)
- Direct observational recording
Correct answer: Standardized norm-referenced assessment
The Vineland is a standardized norm-referenced tool that compares an individual's adaptive behavior to a normative sample.
Question 4: During an assessment, a clinician presents preferred items and records which items the client approaches or selects most frequently. This procedure describes a:
- Paired stimulus (forced choice) preference assessment
- Multiple stimulus without replacement (MSWO) assessment
- Free operant preference observation (Correct answer)
- Stimulus fading procedure
Correct answer: Free operant preference observation
Free operant preference observation involves providing access to multiple items simultaneously and recording approach and time spent with each item without structured trials.
Question 5: A BAS supervisor needs to assess a client's skill repertoire across domains before writing treatment goals. Which assessment approach is MOST appropriate for identifying specific skill deficits and strengths?
- Functional analysis
- Curriculum-based assessment (Correct answer)
- Scatter plot analysis
- Structured ABC recording
Correct answer: Curriculum-based assessment
Curriculum-based assessments systematically evaluate skills across developmental domains, making them ideal for identifying targets for intervention.
Question 6: A scatter plot is used in behavioral assessment primarily to:
- Determine the function of a target behavior
- Identify temporal patterns or time periods when behavior is most likely to occur (Correct answer)
- Measure the intensity of a behavior across settings
- Assess the client's preference for reinforcers
Correct answer: Identify temporal patterns or time periods when behavior is most likely to occur
Scatter plots reveal temporal patterns by recording whether behavior occurred during specific time intervals across days, helping identify antecedent conditions by time of day.
Question 7: Which component is ESSENTIAL in a comprehensive written report following a functional behavior assessment?
- A diagnosis from the DSM-5 for the problem behavior
- Operationally defined target behaviors with hypothesized function(s) (Correct answer)
- A list of all medications the client is taking
- Recommendations for cognitive-behavioral therapy
Correct answer: Operationally defined target behaviors with hypothesized function(s)
An FBA report must include operational definitions of target behaviors and clearly stated hypotheses about their function to guide intervention planning.
BAS Assessment and Diagnosis 2
A supervisor is reviewing a functional behavior assessment (FBA) conducted by a supervisee.
The FBA relies solely on indirect methods such as interviews and rating scales.
What is the most significant limitation of this approach?