Introduction to Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) Online Tutorial
	Module 3: Observable Behavior Observable Behavior "All that exists, exists in some amount and can be measured." - E.L. Thorndike As described in the previous module, behavior analysis focuses on observable behavior. Observable behavior is anything that a person does that we can directly observe, rather than what a person is thinking or feeling. In addition to being observable, any behavior or skill that we want to teach must be specifically defined and described. For example, if we want to teach a child to use words to ask for foods during dinner, we have to agree on what words he will use. We don't want mom prompting him to say, "chips" and grandma prompting him to say "Fritos" for the same food. This might be confusing for a child who is first learning language. Specifically defining the behavior as "asking for chips" and having everyone use this definition, will help all family members or teachers know exactly what behavior we are working on. As another example, it is not sufficient to say that a student is “disruptive” or “hyper” because these could mean a wide variety of things: running around the classroom, throwing toys, screaming and yelling, etc. To define or describe a student’s “disruptive behavior,” we might say, “While seated at his desk, Sam turns around and pokes the student seated behind him in the arm with a pencil.” We must list exactly what the student says or does, so that data on the behavior can be collected and graphed. This is done in order to track progress and ensure that what we are doing is working to make the desired change in behavior. This will be described further in the next section. If we want to reduce tantrums, we need a specific definition of what a tantrum looks like for a particular child. Is it screaming, yelling, and stomping feet? Dropping to the floor and crying? Kicking and screaming? Are there NON-EXAMPLES of the behavior, such as punching a pillow NOT being considered a tantrum? If there are multiple people tracking data on the behavior (such as mom and dad or teacher and paraprofessional), they all need to make sure they are tracking the behavior in the same way. In specifying exactly what the behavior does (and doesn't) look like, we can be more consistent in our data collection. When we track data and display it on a graph (such as showing the number of tantrums per day), we will be able to see if our current plan is reducing the number of tantrums. If not, we can make a change in how we address tantrum behavior. So, taking accurate data using a consistent behavioral definition is important. Practice Exercise: write a specific, precise behavioral definition (description) of a behavior. It should be written such that a person not familiar with the child or student would be able to recognize the occurrence or non-occurrence of a behavior. See the following link for more information on and examples of behavioral definitions. You can use the examples when writing your own definition. Operational Definition of Behavior Next --> Module 4: Data Collection