Chapter 1 Flashcards
applied behavior analysis (ABA)
Applied behavior analysis is the science in which tactics derived from the principles of behavior are applied systematically to improve socially significant behavior and experimentation is used to identify the variables responsible for behavior change
behaviorism
Behaviorism is the philosophy of the science of behavior
determinism
All scientists presume that the universe is a lawful and orderly place
in which all phenomena occur as the result of other events.
empiricism
empiricism is the practice of objective observation and measurement of the phenomena of interest.
experiment
An experiment is a controlled comparison of some measure of the phenomenon of interest (the dependent variable) under two or more different conditions in which only
one factor at a time (the independent variable) differs from one condition to another.
experimental analysis of behavior (EAB)
the rate at which a single subject emitted a given behavior in a controlled and
standardized experimental chamber
explanatory fiction
a fictitious variable that often is simply another name for the observed
behavior that contributes nothing to an understanding of the variables responsible for developing or maintaining the behavior
functional analysis
functional analysis denotes demonstrations of functional relations between environmental variables and behavior
functional relation
A functional relation exists when a well-controlled experiment demonstrates
that a specific change in one event (the dependent variable) is reliably produced by specific manipulations of another event
(the independent variable), and that the change in the dependent variable was unlikely to be the result of other extraneous factors (confounding variables).
hypothetical construct
presumed but unobserved entities that could not be manipulated
in an experiment
mentalism
an approach to the study of behavior which assumes that a mental or “inner” dimension exists that differs from a behavioral dimension
methodological behaviorism
parsimony
all simple, logical explanations for the phenomenon under
investigation be ruled out, experimentally or conceptually,
before more complex or abstract explanations are considered
philosophic doubt
Philosophic doubt requires the scientist to continually question the truthfulness of what is regarded as fact.
Scientific knowledge must always be viewed as tentative.
pragmatism
Pragmatism, the philosophical position that “the truth value of a statement is a function of how well the statement promotes effective action”
radical behaviorism
includes and seeks to understand all human behavior.
repIication
Replication is the
primary method with which scientists determine the reliability and usefulness of their findings and discover their
mistakes
science
science is a systematic
approach to understanding natural phenomena
3 levels of scientific understanding
description, prediction, and control
6 attitudes of science
determinism, empiricism, expermentation, replication, parsimony and philisophic doubt
description
prediction
control
Characteristics of ABA
Applied, Behavioral, Analytical, Technological, Conceptually Systematic, Effective, and Generality
