RBT Training Glossary

Glossary of terms for the RBT Certification Exam

ABC

(1) antecedent (2) behavior (3) consequence → know as the 3-term contingency

Abolishing Operation

can decrease reinforcer effectiveness → usually associated with satiation

Acquisition

a target that is in the process of being taught → this behavior is not yet a known skill

Antecedent Interventions

recognizing environmental factors that can attribute to problematic behavior and making changes necessary to promote appropriate behavior and reduce possible triggers for maladaptive

Antecedent

events that occur before a behavior

Backward Chaining

Teaching skill steps one at a time from the last step to the first and prompting all steps before the step being taught → Reinforcement after teaching step and at the end of the task

Behavior Intervention Plan

Once the function of behavior has been determined, BIPs are used for antecedent strategies, responding to maladaptive behavior, teaching replacement behavior and what interventions to use, both verbal and physical

Behavior Skills Training

Procedure consisting of instruction, modeling, behavioral rehearsal, and feedback that is used to teach new behaviors or skills → instructions, model, rehearsal, feedback

Behavior

anything a person does that can be observed and measured

What are the four functions of behavior?

Automatic/sensory, escape, attention, access

Automatic/sensory (behavior function)

providing self-stimulation and is automatically reinforced

Escape (behavior function)

avoiding or escaping a demand or undesirable task

Attention (behavior function)

can be socially mediated and seeks attention in any way from others

Access (behavior function)

tangible, wanting a preferred item

Chaining

Used to teach multi-step skills in which the steps involved are defined through task analysis. Each separate step is taught to link together the total “chain”. Can be done either by backward, forward, or total task analyses

Consequence

something that follows a behavior

Continuous measurement

records every single occurrence of a behavior → examples include frequency, duration, rate, and per opportunity

Continuous reinforcement

the target behavior occurs and is reinforced after every occurrence

Deprivation

not having something often enough and in return increases the effectiveness of it when used as a reinforcer

How many types of differential reinforcement?

DRI, DRA, DRO

What does DRI stand for?

Differential Reinforcement of Incompatible

What does DRA stand for?

Differential Reinforcement of Alternative behavior

What does DRO stand for?

Differential Reinforcement of other behaviors

What is DRI?

To reinforce behavior incompatible with an undesirable behavior → example: reinforce Johnny for writing his name appropriately rather than tapping his pencil

What is DRA?

Reinforce behavior that is an appropriate alternative (replacement) for the undesirable behavior → example: reinforce Annie when she asks for a break instead of yelling to get out of work

What is DRO

Reinforce any other behavior other than the undesirable behavior other than the undesirable behavior → example: reinforce Luke with a gummy every 5 minutes he does not engage in crying

Discontinuous Measurement

used to measure some instances of behavior but not all → typically associated with partial and whole interval recording and momentary time sampling

Discrete Trial

learning opportunity initiated and controlled by the teacher in which the correct response will be reinforced (breaking a skill into smaller parts and teaching it while using reinforcement) → allows for presentation of many learning opportunities in a short amount of time (follows the 3-term contingency)

Discrimination Training

the procedure in which a behavior is reinforced in the presence of one stimulus and extinguished in the presence of another stimulus which allows the client to learn the differences between stimuli → assists with learning how to respond in different environments or different conditions

Discriminative Stimulus (Sd)

a cue that signals reinforcement is available if the subject makes a particular response (demand or instruction)

Dual Relationship

situation where multiple roles exist between a therapist and a parent/client → aka referred to as multiple relationships

Duration

the amount of time someone engages in a behavior

Echoic

verbal imitation: repeating the speaker

What is the acronym for error correction?

ECTER

What is error correction?

When a client makes a mistake on a target that has been previously mastered, do NOT acknowledge the mistake. Re-present the trial and be ready to prompt to get a correct answer. Follow ECTER

What does ECTER stand for?

error: child touches car when prompted to touch bike / correction: represent the Sd with prompt / transfer: represent the Sd without a prompt / expand: place easy or mastered demands / return: return to Sd of incorrect response - “touch bike” reinforcement is provided for correct response

Errorless Teaching

prompt the correct response as soon as you give the Sd → essentially you are not giving the client a change to make an error

Establishing Operation

increases the current effectiveness of a stimulus → usually deprivation is associated with this operation

Ethics

Must follow the BACB’s code of ethics. Failure to follow the mandatory code of ethics can lead to loss of employment certification → code of ethics outline

Expressive Language

the ability to communicate, this is the ability to express ones thoughts, items, wants, and needs → identifying/labeling the objects in the environment , putting words together to form sentences, describing events and actions, answering questions and making requests are all examples of expressive language skills

Extinction

the withholding of reinforcement for a previously reinforced behavior, resulting in reduction of that behavior

Extinction burst

the increase in frequency and/or intensity of behavior in the early stages of extinction

Fixed Interval (FI)

this schedule of reinforcement is used for a set amount of time

Fixed Ratio (FR)

this schedule of reinforcement is used for a set amount of responses

Forward Chaining

teaching skill steps one time from the first to the last step and promoting all steps after the step being taught → reinforcement after teaching step and at the end of the task

Frequency

the amount of times, or count, a behavior or response happens

Functional Behavioral assessment

process by which behavioral interventions are created. FBA is intended to determine the function (or reasons for that behavior) and create an intervention based on that function. → involves observation, interview, and collecting ABC data

Functional Analysis (FA)

involves manipulating the environment to understand the behavior

When are the functions of behavior used?

when determining why an individual engages in certain behavior

Generalization

change occurs when that behavior occurs outside of the learning environment → can happen across settings, time, people, and exists when the behavior occurs in these various elements

What does HIPAA stand for?

Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act

What does HIPAA do?

provides federal protection for individual health information, including the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of protected information

Imitation

copying someone’s motor movements

Incidental teaching

a teaching technique used in naturally occurring enviroments and can create natural incidents of learning → social, communication, play and other forms of interaction

Instructional control

developing a history of reinforcing compliance → placing task demands and other instructions following pairing (the likelihood that the child will elicit a correct response)

Intermittent Reinforcement

Schedule of reinforcing some but not all desirable behavior

Inter-Response time

time between two responses given

Intraverbal (verbal behavior term)

basically they are building blocks to conversation skills as its the ability to discuss, describe, or answer a question about something that isn’t physically present → example if someone asked “What did you do on your vacation”

Latency

the time given between when the Sd is presented and the response is given