EFFECTS OF FIXED VERSUS RANDOM CONDITION SEQUENCING DURING MULTIELEMENT FUNCTIONAL ANALYSES1. Issue 1 (20th February 2013)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Hammond, Jennifer L.; Iwata, Brian A.; Rooker, Griffin W.; Fritz, Jennifer N.; Bloom, Sarah E.
• Is Part Of: Journal of applied behavior analysis. Volume 46:Issue 1(2013:Spring)
• Page Start: 22
• Page End: 30
• Publication Date: 2013-02-20
• Subjects: Psychology, Applied -- Periodicals; Social Behavior -- Periodicals; 150
• DOI: 10.1002/jaba.7
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0021-8855

Abstract

<abstract abstract-type="main" xml:lang="en"> <title>Abstract</title> <sec id="jaba7-sec-0001" sec-type="section"> <p>It has been suggested that a fixed condition sequence might facilitate differential responding during multielement functional analyses (FAs) by capitalizing on or limiting sequence effects (Iwata, Pace, et al., 1994); however, the effects of condition sequence have not been examined empirically. We conducted fixed‐ and random‐sequence FAs for 7 individuals with developmental disabilities to determine the relative effects that sequence may have on assessment outcomes. Experimental conditions during the fixed sequence were conducted in the following order: ignore, attention, play, and demand; condition order during the random sequence was determined randomly. Results showed that sequence had no influence on the FA outcomes for 3 subjects, whereas differential responding emerged either faster (1 subject) or only (3 subjects) under the fixed sequence for the remaining subjects. These results suggest that the fixed sequence, a simple modification, should be used when conducting multielement FAs to accommodate the influence of establishing operations across assessment conditions.</p> </sec> </abstract>