What discontinuous measurements are used in ABA?
Discontinuous measurement procedures in Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) involve observing a behavior for a predetermined period of time, with the aim of determining the presence or absence of the behavior during that period. Here are some of the most common discontinuous measurement procedures used in ABA, along with examples:
Whole Interval Recording: The behavior is recorded as having occurred if it is present throughout the entire interval. For example, an observer may record whether a child is on-task during a 10-minute academic task. If the child remains on-task for the entire 10 minutes, it is recorded as a positive interval.
Partial Interval Recording: The behavior is recorded as having occurred if it is present at any point during the interval. For example, an observer may record whether a child engages in self-injurious behavior during a 30-second interval. If the child engages in the behavior at any point during the interval, it is recorded as a positive interval.
Momentary Time Sampling: The behavior is recorded as having occurred if it is present at the end of a predetermined interval. For example, an observer may record whether a child is on-task at the end of a 5-minute interval. If the child is on-task at the end of the interval, it is recorded as a positive interval.
Interval Recording: The behavior is recorded as having occurred if it is present at any point during a predetermined interval. For example, an observer may record whether a child engages in verbal aggression during a 5-minute interval. If the child engages in the behavior at any point during the interval, it is recorded as a positive interval.
Time Sampling: The behavior is recorded as having occurred if it is present at a specific point in time. For example, an observer may record whether a child is engaging in hand-flapping behavior at the end of every 15-second interval during a 5-minute observation period. If the behavior is observed at any of the sampling intervals, it is recorded as a positive interval.
Other examples of discontinuous measurement procedures in ABA may include trial-by-trial data collection, group data collection, and scatterplot data collection. The choice of measurement procedure will depend on the behavior being measured and the goals of the intervention.