| Term | Definition |
| Adaptation | The phrase in a behavioral program during which the student is allowed to adjust to novel stimuli in the new learning environment |
| Attenuation | The process of gradually making a schedule of reinforcement more and more intermitted |
| Auditory reinforcement | Any sound (e.g., music) for which the student will respond. |
| Aversive stimulus | A stimulus that has the effect of decreasing a behavior when it is presented as a consequence of (contingent upon) that behavior. Its is any stimulus that the individual will actively work to avoid |
| Avoidance learning | The learning that occurs when a response is made in order to avoid or escape something that is unpleasant |
| Behavior chain | A sequence of stimuli and responses that ends with a terminal reinforcer. It is also called stimulus response chain. |
| Behavior frequency | The number of times a behavior occurs during a specific period of time (see also Frequency counting) |
| Behavioral objective | A written statement that describes three things about an individuals performance of a desired behavior:
Behavior Verb, criterion, conditions |
| Behavioral physical restraint | A procedure in which the student is prevented from moving his limbs and or/body for a pre-specified period of time following the performance of misbehavior. (See also physical restraint) |
| Behavioral repertoire | The behaviors that a particular student, at a particular time is capable of performing |
| Behavioral verb | A description of the measurable behavior the student will be expected to perform. (See also |
| Bootleg reinforcement | The reinforcement that an individual receives (usually attention from peers) during a period in which no reinforcement is to be received (e.g., timeout or extinction) |
| Bridging stimulus | A stimulus used to connect the time interval between the performance of the behavior and the consequence programmed to follow that behavior |
| Conditioned aversive stimulus | A neutral stimulus that has acquired its aversive or punishing properties from being repeatedly paired with a punishing event |
| Conditioned reinforcer | A previously neutral stimulus that has acquired its reinforcing properties from being repeatedly paired with a reinforcer |
| Conditions | The circumstances in which behavior is to be performed. (See also behavioral objective) |
| Consequence | The event that happens to the student after the response occurs. (See also instructional cycle) |
| Contingency | The relation between the response (the target behavior) and the consequence |
| Contingent observation | A type of non-exclusionary timeout in which the student sits on the perimeter of the room and observes others being reinforced for appropriate behavior during the time out interval. (See also non-exclusionary timeout) |
| Contingent reinforcement | Reinforcement that depends upon a specific response |
| Continuous recording | The recording of each behavior every time it occurs throughout the recording period |
| Criterion | A description of how much or how well a behavior is to be performed. It is also called a criterion level. Criteria are used to evaluate the success of a behavioral program. (See also behavioral objective) |
| Custodial physical restraint | A procedure in which the student is non-contingently prevented from moving his limbs and/or body for an unspecified period. It is commonly used in custodial facilities |
| Deprivation | The state that occurs when a reinforcer has been withheld until it is once again effective in increasing or maintaining a behavior. It is the opposite of satiation |
| Differential reinforcement of appropriate behavior (DRA) | A procedure in which a reinforcer is given following the performance of a pre-specified appropriate behavior |
| Differential reinforcement of incompatible behavior (DRI) | A procedure in which a reinforcer is given following the performance of a pre-specified appropriate behavior that is physically and functionally incompatible with the targeted inappropriate behavior |
| Differential reinforcement other behavior (DRO) | A procedure in which a reinforcer is given at the end of a specified interval provided that a pre-specified misbehavior has not occurred during the interval |
| Edible reinforcer | The foods preferred by the student |
| Elicited aggression | The aggressive behavior directed toward anyone or anything except the source of punishment |
| Entry behavior | Those behaviors that the student possesses before instruction begins |
| Exclusionary timeout | A type 2 punishment procedure in which the misbehaving student is removed from the reinforcing environment for a specific period of time |
| Extinction | The withholding of the reinforcer that has been sustaining or increasing a behavior |
| Fading | The gradual removal of a prompt |
| Fixed interval schedule | A schedule of reinforcement in which the reinforcement follows a predetermined |
| Frequency counting | A recording method in which the number of times a behavior occurs during a specific period of time is tallied |
| Full graduated guidance | The segment of a graduated guidance procedure in which the trainer physically guides the performance of the desired behavior |
| Generalization | The occurrence of a particular behavior, or behavior similar to it, in a situation in which training has not taken place |
| Gestural prompts | A motor behavior (e.g., pointing) that is presented to cue the performance of a particular response. |
| Graduated guidance | A technique combining physical guidance and fading in which the physical guidance is systematically and gradually reduced and then faded completely. It has three parts; full graduated guidance, partial graduated guidance, and shadowing |
| imitation | The response of matching the behavior of a model |
| Imitative prompt | A discriminative stimulus provided by a model in which the models behavior is to be imitated |
| Incompatible behavior | A behavior that cannot be emitted simultaneously with another behavior because they are functionally or physically incompatible. It is also a behavior that interferes with performance of another behavior (see also DRI) |
| Initial behavior | A behavior that the student performs before instruction begins and that resembles the target behavior in some way. It is the first behavior reinforced in a shaping procedure |
| Instructional cycle | The stimulus, response, and consequence series. It is also called (three-term contingency) ABCS |
| Intermitted reinforcement | The reinforcement of some, but not all, occurrences of a response |
| Interval schedule of reinforcement | A reinforcement schedule based on the interval of time between reinforced responses. There are two kinds of interval schedules: fixed interval and variable interval |
| Intervention | The action that is taken to change a target behavior |
| Least restrictive treatment of model | A list of behavioral based treatment procedures for decreasing the inappropriate behavior of retarded persons in which the procedure are ranked according to their aversiveness, severity, and intrusiveness |
| Manual restraint | The use of physical contact, with the trainer’s hand and/or body, in a behavioral physical restraint procedure. The restraint is contingent on the performance of a particular misbehavior |
| Modeling | The presentation of a behavior to be imitated. See also imitation |
| Natural consequence | A consequence that is not programmed but rather is provided by the environment |
| Negative modeling | An undesirable side effect of punishment of interventions whereby the punished person may imitate the punishing behavior of the person providing the punishment |
| Negative practice | A procedure in which the misbehaving person is required to repeatedly practice the inappropriate behavior |
| Non-contingent reinforcement | Reinforcement that is not related to any specific response |
| Non-exclusionary timeout | A type 2 procedure in which the misbehaving student is allowed to remain in the reinforcing environment, but is not allowed to engage in reinforcing activities for a specific period of time. |
| Operant aggression | The aggressive behavior directed towards the source of punishment |
| Operant behavior | A behavior that is controlled by its consequences |
| Operant level | A description of the frequency of a behavior before instruction begins |
| Overcorrection | A type 1 punishment procedure in which the misbehaving student is required to overcorrect the environmental effects of the misbehavior and/or practice appropriate forms of behavior in those situations in which the misbehavior commonly occurs |
| Partial graduated guidance | The segment of a graduated guidance procedure in which the trainer fades the amount of physical guidance so that the student gradually performs the desired behavior with less assistance |
| Physical guidance | The guidance of the performance of a behavior using constant and continuous physical contact (see also manual guidance) |
| Physical prompt | Any form of physical contact between the trainer and the student that is presented to cue the performance of a particular response |
| Physical restraint | A procedure in which the student is prevented from moving his limbs and/or body (there are two types: behavioral and custodial) |
| Positive reinforcement | The delivery of a positive reinforcer contingent upon a response of behavior |
| Positive reinforcer | A stimulus that, when presented as a consequence of a behavior, results in an increase or maintenance of that behavior |
| Premack principle | A procedure in which behavior the student performs frequently is used to reinforce a behavior the student seldom performs |
| Prompt | An auxiliary discriminative stimulus that is presented to cue the student to perform a specified behavior. Prompts are usually faded before the terminal behavior has been achieved. There are three types of prompts: verbal, gestural, and physical |
| Punisher | Any event that decreases the future probability of the response it follows. It is also called a punishing consequence |
| Punishment | A procedure that decreases the future probability of a behavior |
| Ratio schedule of reinforcement | A reinforcement schedule based on the number of responses that are performed. There are two kinds of ratio schedules: fixed ration and variable ration |
| Reinforcement | A procedure that maintains or increases the future probability of a behavior |
| Reinforcer | Any event that maintains or increases the future probability of the response it follows. It is also called a reinforcing consequence |
| Rumination | A maladaptive behavior in which the person regurgitates (vomits) and then either chews and re-swallows the vomitus or expels it from their mouth. It can be life threatening when the food is expelled. |
| Satiation | The state that occurs when a reinforcer has been presented to the point that it is no longer effective in increasing or maintaining a behavior. It is the opposite of deprivation |
| Schedule of reinforcement | A description of when a reinforcer is to be delivered. It is also called reinforcement schedule |
| Sensory reinforcer | Any sensations that the student likes or enjoys. Sensory reinforcers include: tactile, vibratory, olfactory, visual, and auditory reinforcers |
| Shadowing | The segment of a graduated guidance procedure in which the amount of physical guidance has been faded to the point that the trainer has no physical contact with the student. |
| Shaping | The reinforcement of successive approximations of a target behavior to procedure a behavior that is currently not in the students behavioral repertoire |
| Social reinforcer | A smile praise, attention, or friendly remarks that the student likes or enjoys |
| Spontaneous recovery | the reappearance of a behavior that had been eliminated by means of an extinction process |
| Stimulus | Any physical object or occurrence in the environment that may set the occasion for a response to occur |
| Successive approximations | A series of responses that more and more closely resemble the specific target behavior |
| Tactile reinforcer | Any type of skin to skin contact between trainer and student for which the student will respond (e.g., hug, pat, handshake) |
| Target behavior | A desired behavior that does not occur or that occurs infrequently that we wish to establish or increase. It is also called a terminal behavior. In a behavioral education program, it is the inappropriate behavior that is to be decreased or eliminated |
| Task analysis | A detailed description of each behavior needed to accomplish a behavioral objective given the students current ability level |
| Time sampling | A recording method in which the student is observed or fixed intervals (e.g., every 5 minutes) for a specified period of time (e.g., 30 seconds) and the occurrence or absence of a behavior during each interval is recorded |
| Timeout | A type 2 punishment procedure in which positive reinforcement is withdrawn for a pre-specified period of time following the performance of misbehavior. There are two types of timeout: exclusionary and non exclusionary |
| Timeout interval | The period of time that the timeout program is in effect following a pre-specified undesirable behavior |
| Type 1 punishment | The application an aversive event following misbehavior. (See also punishment) |
| Type 2 punishment | The withdrawal of a positive reinforcer following misbehavior (see also punishment) |
| Variable interval schedule | A schedule of reinforcement in which the reinforcer follows the first pre-specified response after different intervals of time have elapsed such that over time a specific average intervals is maintained |
| Variable ratio schedule | A schedule of reinforcement in which the reinforcer follows a different number of responses each time such that over time a specific average number of responses is reinforced |
| Verbal prompt | A verbalization, usually an instruction (e.g., “look at me”), that is presented to cue the performance of a particular response |
