ABA Exam Coach

B.1: Identify and distinguish among behavior, response, and response class.

Free practice questions for this part of the BCBA, with an explanation for every option.

During math instruction, Mia sometimes tears her worksheet, sometimes pushes materials off the desk, and sometimes says "I'm done!" A functional analysis shows that each of these behaviors reliably ends the math task. How should the BCBA best classify these three behaviors?
  1. A. Three instances of a single response
    Incorrect. A response is one specific instance of behavior; these are three different topographies, not one instance.
  2. B. A functional response class
    Correct. Responses that differ in form but produce the same effect on the environment (escaping math) make up a functional response class.
  3. C. A behavioral cusp
    Incorrect. A behavioral cusp is a behavior change that gives the learner access to new environments and contingencies. Nothing here suggests that.
  4. D. A stimulus class
    Incorrect. A stimulus class is a group of antecedent or consequent stimuli, not a group of the learner's behaviors.
While collecting data at a supported-employment site, an RBT writes: "10:42 a.m. Marcus pressed the elevator call button once with his right index finger." In behavior-analytic terms, this single recorded instance is best called a:
  1. A. Response class
    A response class is a group of responses that share a function or a form. One button press at one moment is a single instance, not a group.
  2. B. Behavioral repertoire
    A repertoire is all the behaviors a person can perform, or all of their skills in one area. It is much broader than one recorded instance.
  3. C. Behavior chain
    A behavior chain is a sequence of responses in which each response produces the cue for the next one. Only one response was recorded.
  4. D. Response
    Correct. A response is one specific, measurable instance of behavior. Here it is a single button press at a specific time and in a specific form.
Two 2nd graders raise their hands in exactly the same way. A functional assessment shows that Nora's hand raising reliably produces help from the teacher. Eli raises his hand mostly after sitting for a long time, and it eases stiffness in his shoulder whether or not the teacher responds. Which statement is most accurate?
  1. A. The responses share a topography but belong to different functional response classes.
    Correct. A functional response class is defined by a shared effect on the environment. Nora's hand raising produces teacher help, while Eli's produces automatic relief from stiffness, so the two belong to different functional classes even though they look alike.
  2. B. Both responses are the same behavior, so a single intervention will change both.
    The responses look the same, but they are maintained by different consequences. An intervention aimed at teacher attention would not be expected to change Eli's hand raising.
  3. C. Eli's hand raising is not behavior because no other person reinforces it.
    Behavior is any part of an organism's interaction with its environment that involves detectable movement, whether the consequences are socially mediated or automatic. Eli's hand raising is still behavior.
  4. D. Both responses belong to one response class because their topography is identical.
    Identical form would put the responses in the same topographical class. It does not make them functionally equivalent, and function is what matters for intervention.

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