ABA Exam Coach

B.18: Identify and distinguish between rule-governed and contingency-shaped behavior.

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

A new RBT has never had billable hours reduced. Her supervisor tells her, "Submit session notes within 24 hours, or your hours for that session won't be billed at the end of the month." From that point on, she submits notes on time. Her note submission is best described as:
  1. A. Contingency-shaped behavior
    Incorrect. She has never contacted the consequence, so her behavior was not shaped by direct exposure to it.
  2. B. Rule-governed behavior
    Correct. Her behavior is controlled by a verbal description of a contingency whose consequence is delayed.
  3. C. A tact
    Incorrect. A tact is a verbal operant evoked by a nonverbal stimulus. This item concerns behavior controlled by someone else's verbal rule.
  4. D. Respondent behavior
    Incorrect. Submitting notes is operant behavior, not a reflex elicited by a stimulus.
In a lab task, Group 1 is told, "Press slowly to earn points." Group 2 gets no instructions. Midway through, the contingency changes so that fast pressing earns more points. Group 2 adjusts quickly, but Group 1 keeps pressing slowly. The best interpretation is that:
  1. A. Group 2 experienced an abolishing operation for points
    Incorrect. Nothing suggests points lost value for Group 2. Its responding increased when fast pressing paid more.
  2. B. Group 1's pressing was contingency-shaped and Group 2's was rule-governed
    Incorrect. This reverses the groups. Group 1 followed a rule, and Group 2 contacted the contingencies directly.
  3. C. Group 1's pressing was placed on extinction
    Incorrect. Group 1 could still earn points, and the change made fast pressing pay more. No extinction is described.
  4. D. Rule-governed behavior can be relatively insensitive to changes in the actual contingencies
    Correct. Instructed behavior often persists even when the contingencies change, whereas contingency-shaped behavior tracks them.
A 10-year-old learns to ride a skateboard at a local park. No one gives him instructions. Over many attempts, his weight shifts that keep him upright let him keep riding, and poor shifts lead to falls. His balance steadily improves. His balancing is best described as:
  1. A. Contingency-shaped, because direct consequences of each attempt selected it
    Correct. His balance was shaped by the immediate, direct consequences of his own movements (staying up or falling), with no verbal description of the contingencies. That is contingency-shaped behavior.
  2. B. Rule-governed, because he could probably describe how to balance afterward
    Being able to describe a skill after learning it does not mean a rule controlled it. No rule or instruction was involved in acquiring the skill.
  3. C. Rule-governed, because the consequences of falling were delayed for him
    The consequences of shifting his weight were immediate, not delayed. Delayed consequences are more often linked with behavior that depends on rules.
  4. D. Respondent, because falling elicits fear and an automatic startle reaction
    Falls may elicit respondent reactions, but the balancing movements themselves are operant behavior selected by their outcomes.

Take the free diagnostic