1 Foundations of Behavioral Assessment Free Online FlashCards

What is the purpose of behavioral assessment?

Behavioral assessment gathers information about a person’s preferences, current skills, and conditions related to behavior to guide useful, individualized decisions.

What is informed consent in assessment?

An ongoing process of explaining the assessment’s purpose, procedures, likely use of results, relevant risks, and the person’s choices in an understandable way.

What is assent, and how should refusal affect assessment?

Assent is an indication that the person is willing to participate. Distress, withdrawal, or refusal should prompt the team to pause, reassess, and consult the supervisor.

Who makes clinical decisions about assessment findings?

A technician may carry out assigned approved procedures and collect data. The supervising qualified professional selects or designs procedures, interprets findings, and makes clinical decisions.

What question does a preference assessment answer?

It identifies which available items or activities a person chooses or engages with more under the conditions assessed.

Does a highly selected item automatically reinforce behavior?

No. A highly selected item is a candidate reinforcer; only its effect on behavior can show whether it reinforces a particular behavior.

What does a skills assessment identify?

It identifies what a person can do independently and which skills or steps may need teaching or support.

What should a skills assessment not be used to judge?

A skills assessment describes strengths and support needs; it is not a judgment of the person’s worth or potential.

What does a functional assessment investigate?

It investigates relationships between behavior and environmental events, including what may be related to behavior and what outcome may maintain it.

What distinguishes indirect functional assessment methods?

Indirect methods gather reports through interviews or questionnaires from people familiar with the behavior.

What defines descriptive functional assessment methods?

Descriptive methods directly observe and record events before and after behavior without deliberately changing those events.

How does a functional analysis test behavior–environment relations?

A functional analysis systematically varies relevant conditions to evaluate their effects on behavior. It requires appropriate design, consent, expertise, and safeguards.