Design and present a single-subject research study based on a case study. Students will define the dependent variable (based on the target problem behaviors) in measurable and observable terms, utilize an appropriate measurement system, and evaluate the effects of a treatment through graphing the data in an appropriate single-subject research design. Students will then assess the generalization of the treatment effects and evaluate the effectiveness of a strategy for promoting treatment generalization.
Please read the Case Study and use it to answer the questions below.
For your convenience, a PDF version of this assignment is provided.
(Case Study and PDF version of this assignment attached)
Part I: Treatment Effectiveness
Identify the dependent variable being addressed in the case study. To do this, you should specify at least three specific target behaviors that are considered part of the overall response class (i.e., the set of responses that achieve the same function).
Define each of the target behaviors in specific, observable, and measurable terms.
Identify what measurement dimension of the overall dependent variable will be assessed (i.e., frequency, duration, latency, etc.) with what type of recording system (e.g., permanent product recording, event recording, interval recording, etc.). (Please refer to Table 7.2 on page 152 in your textbook by Mayer et al. (2022) for a chart of possible methods and reasons to use them.)
Identify what single-subject design is being used to evaluate the effects of the intervention.
Create a graph of the data during the four phases (see the table). (Table Attached) (You can refer to Exercise 2 to learn how to graph this type of single-subject design using Excel.)
Examine your graph and state whether the intervention was effective.
Explain your conclusion based on principles of visual analysis. Refer to the magnitude/level of performance, the trend in performance, and the variability in performance for the data in each phase.
Part II: Treatment Generalization
After the behavior analyst evaluated the effectiveness of the treatment, she wanted to fade the number of times John asked for breaks so that he would not miss as much classwork. She continued to collect data on the dependent variable while fading the number of allowed requests from 5 to 1.
She was also interested in knowing if the effects would generalize to the other two classrooms where John displayed disruptive behavior. She had asked the teachers of those classrooms to collect data on John’s disruptive behavior throughout the baseline and intervention implemented in Classroom 1.
The figures shows additional data on the disruptive behavior across all three Classrooms at the end of the second intervention phase of classroom 1, and during the phase when the number of break requests were faded down to only one. (Figures attached)
When the behavior analyst had teachers collect data in all three classrooms throughout the study such that the data could be plotted on three graphs aligned vertically, what type of single-subject design was the behavior analyst using?
The behavior analyst was interested in analyzing the presence or absence of change in the dependent variable in Classrooms 2 and 3 in order to evaluate what type of generalization?
Based on the data in Classrooms 2 and 3 when the initial intervention and fading procedures were implemented in Classroom 1, did the treatment effects generalize to the other classrooms? How do you know?
The behavior analyst remembered that there are several suggested methods for planning ahead for generalization. One method relies on the use of “mediated stimuli” (stimuli that can be used for the response in both the training and generalization settings). (See the section entitled “Contrive a Mediating Stimulus,” pp. 743-744 in Cooper et al. (2020).)
The behavior analyst decided to create a mediating stimulus in the form of a “Break Card” that John would use to request his break during the intervention (instead of simply raising his hand). During the “Break Card” phase, he was given a card with the word “Break” to put on his desk. He was also provided with instructions to raise it up when he needed a 5-minute break to visit the calm corner, and he was allowed to do that one time during the class. A similar “Break Card” was placed on his desk in Classrooms 2 and 3 as a mediating stimulus, but John was not provided with any instructions on how he could use the card to ask for a break.
- What (if any) effect did the break card and instructions in Classroom 1 (plus the presence of a break card in Classrooms 2 and 3 without instructions) have on the dependent variable in Classroom 2 and 3? How did behavior change or not change in each Classroom? Was generalization shown in Classrooms 2 and/or 3?
Next the behavior analyst decided to implement the Break Card treatment in Classroom 2. This meant that she provided specific instructions to John that he could use the break card on his desk in that classroom to ask for a break one time during the class.
- What (if any) effect did the introduction of the break card phase (break card + instructions) in Classroom 2 have on the dependent variable in classroom 2 and classroom 3? Was generalization shown in Classroom 3?
- Why do you think the behavior analyst did not implement the break card intervention (break card + instructions) in Classroom 3?
- Write a summary statement to explain under what conditions generalization did and did not occur in this study.
- Make a suggestion for future treatment based on what was learned about generalization in this study.