Overview
Behavior-Change Procedures is Section G of the BCBA outline, with 19 task statements and the highest question count. It covers reinforcement procedures, differential reinforcement, time-based schedules, conditioned reinforcers and token economies, antecedent strategies, discrimination training, prompting and prompt fading, modeling, instructions, shaping, chaining, trial-based and free-operant teaching, group contingencies, generalization and maintenance, punishment, side effects of procedures, and procedures for emergent relations.
Items describe a learner and a goal, then ask which procedure fits or why a procedure is not working. Section G is the applied counterpart to Section B: where B asks you to name the principle, G asks you to use it well. Expect to compare similar procedures, such as DRA and DRO, shaping and chaining, or most-to-least and least-to-most prompting, and to judge the conditions in which each works best.
How it's tested
Section G questions usually describe a learner, a skill or behavior, and a setting, then ask which procedure to use or how to fix one that is failing. Answers differ by small details, such as whether a skill is in the repertoire or whether a reinforcer matches the function. Read the learner's characteristics carefully.
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Which procedure fits
A goal and learner profile are given and you choose among similar procedures, such as DRA, DRO or NCR, or shaping versus chaining.
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Why it failed
A procedure is not working and you find the cause, such as a mismatched function, unfaded prompts or a non-reinforcing time-in.
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Plan for after
A skill has been acquired and you choose steps to promote generalization or maintenance.
A learner's screaming is maintained by escape from tasks. Staff place him in time-out after each scream, and screaming increases. Options include extending time-out, adding response cost, switching to DRA with breaks for requests, and using NCR with attention. Time-out removes tasks and reinforces escape. Teaching a request for a break while keeping tasks in place matches the function, so DRA with escape extinction is best.
Task statements 19
Official task statements from the Behavior Analyst Certification Board outline, in outline order.
G.1 Design and evaluate positive and negative reinforcement procedures.Using reinforcement to build and strengthen behavior.
- What it means
- Reinforcement procedures deliver or remove stimuli contingent on behavior to increase it. Effective use depends on immediacy, contingency, magnitude, quality and motivating operations.
- What to understand
- Negative reinforcement procedures, such as brief breaks contingent on task completion, can be as useful as positive ones, especially for escape-maintained behavior. Evaluate procedures with data, adjusting reinforcer type and schedule as needed.
- How it shows up
- Items describe a weak program and ask which change would most improve reinforcement effectiveness.
- Common confusion
- Assuming reinforcement fails when the real problem is delay or lack of contingency.
G.2 Design and evaluate differential reinforcement (e.g., DRA, DRO, DRL, DRH) procedures with and without extinction.Reinforcing some responses and not others.
- What it means
- DRA reinforces an alternative behavior; DRO reinforces the absence of target behavior for an interval; DRL reinforces lower rates of a behavior; DRH reinforces higher rates. Variants include DRI, a DRA in which the alternative is physically incompatible with the target.
- What to understand
- DRA is most effective when the alternative produces the same reinforcer as the problem behavior and the problem behavior is placed on extinction. DRO intervals should start short, based on baseline IRTs. DRL suits behavior that is acceptable at lower rates.
- How it shows up
- A vignette describes a behavior and a goal and asks which differential reinforcement procedure fits.
- Common confusion
- Using DRL to eliminate dangerous behavior that should not occur at all.
G.3 Design and evaluate time-based reinforcement (e.g., fixed-time) schedules.Delivering reinforcers independent of responding.
- What it means
- Time-based schedules, often called noncontingent reinforcement (NCR), deliver a reinforcer on a fixed-time or variable-time schedule regardless of behavior. Using the maintaining reinforcer reduces motivation for problem behavior.
- What to understand
- Start with dense schedules based on baseline, then thin them. Watch for adventitious reinforcement, where a delivery happens to follow problem behavior. NCR is simple for caregivers to implement but does not teach a replacement behavior on its own.
- How it shows up
- Items ask how NCR reduces behavior or how to set initial schedule values.
- Common confusion
- Confusing fixed-time schedules with fixed-interval schedules, which require a response.
G.4 Identify procedures to establish and use conditioned reinforcers (e.g., token economies).Building and using learned reinforcers.
- What it means
- Conditioned reinforcers are established by pairing neutral stimuli with existing reinforcers. Token economies use tokens exchanged for backup reinforcers and define target behaviors, token values, exchange rates and exchange times.
- What to understand
- Tokens gain value through a history of exchange. Programs should include a plan for fading tokens toward natural reinforcers. Response cost can be added but requires care to avoid negative side effects.
- How it shows up
- A scenario describes a token economy that has lost effectiveness, and you identify the likely problem.
- Common confusion
- Assuming tokens are reinforcers before pairing or exchange has occurred.
G.5 Incorporate motivating operations and discriminative stimuli into behavior-change procedures.Antecedent strategies that set the occasion for behavior.
- What it means
- Behavior-change procedures can manipulate MOs, for example by limiting access to a reinforcer before teaching, and can establish or present SDs to evoke desired behavior.
- What to understand
- Antecedent interventions such as enriched environments, choice-making and demand fading reduce MOs for problem behavior. Mand training contrives MOs to evoke requests. Planning both value and availability makes procedures more effective.
- How it shows up
- Items ask which antecedent change would make a reinforcer more effective or reduce motivation for problem behavior.
- Common confusion
- Treating restricting access as an SD manipulation rather than an MO.
G.6 Design and evaluate procedures to produce simple and conditional discriminations.Teaching learners to respond to the right stimuli.
- What it means
- Simple discriminations involve responding to one stimulus and not another. Conditional discriminations involve responding to a stimulus depending on another stimulus, as in matching-to-sample, where the sample determines the correct comparison.
- What to understand
- Arrangement matters: rotating positions prevents position bias, and avoiding unintended cues prevents faulty stimulus control. Conditional discrimination training is the basis for equivalence-based instruction.
- How it shows up
- Items describe a learner who responds correctly only to one position and ask what went wrong.
- Common confusion
- Ignoring position bias or experimenter cues during discrimination training.
G.7 Select and evaluate stimulus and response prompting procedures (e.g., errorless, most-to-least, least-to-most).Choosing prompts and prompt hierarchies.
- What it means
- Response prompts include verbal, gestural, modeling and physical prompts. Stimulus prompts change the materials, such as position or highlighting. Most-to-least prompting starts with high assistance; least-to-most starts with little and adds as needed.
- What to understand
- Most-to-least and other errorless approaches suit new skills and learners who struggle with errors. Least-to-most suits learners who can partly perform the skill. Prompts should be the least intrusive that work and should be planned for fading.
- How it shows up
- Items describe a learner and skill and ask which prompting system fits.
- Common confusion
- Using least-to-most for a new skill with a learner who makes many errors.
G.8 Design and implement procedures to fade stimulus and response prompts (e.g., prompt delay, stimulus fading).Transferring control from prompts to natural stimuli.
- What it means
- Prompt fading transfers stimulus control from the prompt to the natural SD. Methods include most-to-least, least-to-most, graduated guidance, and constant or progressive time delay for response prompts, and stimulus fading or shaping for stimulus prompts.
- What to understand
- Prompt dependence results when prompts are not faded systematically. Time delay inserts a wait between the SD and the prompt, allowing independent responses to occur. Fading should be based on data.
- How it shows up
- A learner relies on prompts, and you choose a procedure to transfer control.
- Common confusion
- Removing prompts abruptly instead of fading them systematically.
G.9 Design and evaluate modeling procedures.Teaching by demonstration.
- What it means
- Modeling presents a demonstration of the behavior for the learner to imitate. Models can be live or recorded, including video modeling and self-modeling.
- What to understand
- Effective models are similar to the learner, competent and reinforced for the behavior. The learner needs imitation skills. Video modeling allows consistent presentation and practice of complex sequences.
- How it shows up
- Items ask what increases the effectiveness of a modeling procedure.
- Common confusion
- Using modeling with a learner who has not yet learned to imitate.
G.10 Design and evaluate instructions and rules.Using verbal descriptions to change behavior.
- What it means
- Instructions and rules specify behavior and, often, its consequences. They can produce rapid behavior change when the listener has a history of following them.
- What to understand
- Rules work best when they are clear, specific and paired with consequences. Rules can make behavior insensitive to changes in the contingencies, so data should verify their effect. This links to rule-governed behavior in B.18.
- How it shows up
- Items ask how to make instructions more effective for a learner.
- Common confusion
- Assuming instructions alone change behavior without supporting consequences.
G.11 Shape dimensions of behavior.Differential reinforcement of successive approximations.
- What it means
- Shaping reinforces successive approximations toward a terminal behavior while extinguishing earlier approximations. It can change topography or dimensions such as duration, latency, rate or magnitude.
- What to understand
- Shaping is used when the target is not yet in the repertoire. Steps should be small enough to maintain success. Shaping across topographies differs from shaping within a topography, such as increasing duration of sitting.
- How it shows up
- A scenario describes a terminal goal not yet in the repertoire and asks which procedure to use.
- Common confusion
- Confusing shaping with chaining; shaping changes one behavior gradually.
G.12 Select and implement chaining procedures.Teaching behavior chains.
- What it means
- A behavior chain links responses, each producing a stimulus that reinforces the previous step and serves as an SD for the next. Teaching methods include forward chaining, backward chaining (including backward chaining with leaps ahead) and total-task presentation.
- What to understand
- A task analysis breaks the chain into steps. Backward chaining gives the learner the terminal reinforcer on every trial. Total-task presentation suits learners who can perform many steps.
- How it shows up
- Items describe a learner and a multi-step skill and ask which chaining method fits.
- Common confusion
- Calling shaping 'chaining' because both involve steps.
G.13 Design and evaluate trial-based and free-operant procedures.Structured teaching versus naturalistic or ongoing opportunities.
- What it means
- Trial-based procedures, such as discrete-trial teaching, present distinct learning opportunities with a defined start and end. Free-operant procedures allow responses at any time, as in naturalistic teaching and incidental teaching.
- What to understand
- Discrete trials provide many structured opportunities and clear data. Naturalistic approaches use the learner's motivation and promote generalization. Many programs combine them.
- How it shows up
- Items ask which approach best fits a goal, such as rapid acquisition or generalization.
- Common confusion
- Assuming discrete trials are always the best method for all skills.
G.14 Design and evaluate group contingencies.Contingencies applied to groups.
- What it means
- Independent group contingencies apply the same criterion to each member individually. Dependent contingencies make group access depend on the performance of one or a few members. Interdependent contingencies require the group as a whole to meet a criterion.
- What to understand
- Interdependent contingencies can promote cooperation but risk peer pressure on individuals. Dependent contingencies can lead to blame of the target member. Choose based on goals and risks.
- How it shows up
- Items describe a classroom arrangement and ask you to classify the group contingency.
- Common confusion
- Confusing dependent with interdependent contingencies.
G.15 Design and evaluate procedures to promote stimulus and response generalization.Planning for generalization rather than hoping for it.
- What it means
- Strategies include teaching enough examples, programming common stimuli, training loosely, using indiscriminable contingencies, mediating generalization and teaching in natural settings.
- What to understand
- Generalization should be planned from the start. Multiple exemplar training is especially effective. The goal is for behavior to occur in all relevant settings and with all relevant people.
- How it shows up
- Items describe a skill that only appears in the clinic and ask which strategy will extend it.
- Common confusion
- Waiting until mastery to address generalization.
G.16 Design and evaluate procedures to maintain desired behavior change following intervention (e.g., schedule thinning, transferring to naturally occurring reinforcers).Making change last.
- What it means
- Maintenance procedures include thinning reinforcement schedules, shifting to naturally occurring reinforcers, teaching self-management and arranging natural communities of reinforcement.
- What to understand
- Thin schedules gradually and use intermittent reinforcement to increase persistence. Teach behaviors that the natural environment will reinforce. Check maintenance with follow-up probes.
- How it shows up
- Items ask how to keep a skill going after formal teaching ends.
- Common confusion
- Stopping reinforcement abruptly once a skill is mastered.
G.17 Design and evaluate positive and negative punishment (e.g., time-out, response cost, overcorrection).Punishment procedures and their conditions for use.
- What it means
- Punishment procedures include time-out from positive reinforcement, response cost, overcorrection, contingent exercise and reprimands. They reduce behavior when applied immediately and consistently.
- What to understand
- Punishment should be considered only after reinforcement-based procedures, with informed consent, monitoring of side effects and a plan to reinforce alternatives. Time-out only works if the time-in environment is reinforcing.
- How it shows up
- Items ask when a punishment procedure is appropriate or why time-out failed.
- Common confusion
- Using time-out for escape-maintained behavior, which can reinforce it.
G.18 Evaluate emotional and elicited effects of behavior-change procedures.Side effects of procedures on the person.
- What it means
- Extinction, punishment and some demands can produce emotional responding, aggression, escape attempts and elicited respondent behavior. These effects matter for client welfare and treatment acceptability.
- What to understand
- Monitor for side effects and plan to reduce them by combining reinforcement-based approaches, using the least restrictive procedure and adjusting demands. Signs of distress should prompt review of the plan.
- How it shows up
- Items ask which side effect is likely with a procedure or what to monitor.
- Common confusion
- Ignoring emotional responses because the target behavior is decreasing.
G.19 Design and evaluate procedures to promote emergent relations and generative performance.Teaching so that untaught skills appear.
- What it means
- Procedures include equivalence-based instruction, matrix training, multiple-exemplar instruction and teaching relational frames, all designed to produce untrained responses.
- What to understand
- Training a few relations can produce many derived ones, which makes teaching efficient. Matrix training teaches some combinations so others emerge through recombination.
- How it shows up
- Items describe a teaching plan and ask how many untrained relations might emerge or which procedure fits.
- Common confusion
- Teaching every relation directly when many could emerge.
High-yield concepts
The terms, rules and formulas this domain turns into questions most often.
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DRA
Reinforce an alternative behavior.
- Remember
- Best with the same reinforcer as the problem behavior and extinction.
- Tested as
- Replacement behavior items.
- Trap
- Choosing a different reinforcer than the function.
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DRO
Reinforce absence of behavior for an interval.
- Remember
- Start interval below mean IRT.
- Tested as
- Reduction items.
- Trap
- Setting intervals too long.
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DRL
Reinforce lower rates of behavior.
- Remember
- For behavior acceptable at low rates.
- Tested as
- Rate goal items.
- Trap
- Using it for dangerous behavior.
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NCR
Time-based delivery of the maintaining reinforcer.
- Remember
- Reduces MO; start dense and thin.
- Tested as
- Antecedent intervention items.
- Trap
- Confusing FT with FI.
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Token economy
Tokens exchanged for backup reinforcers.
- Remember
- Plan exchange rates and fading.
- Tested as
- Design and troubleshooting items.
- Trap
- Assuming tokens are reinforcing without pairing.
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Most-to-least prompting
Start with most assistance and fade.
- Remember
- Errorless; good for new skills.
- Tested as
- Prompt selection items.
- Trap
- Using least-to-most for new skills.
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Time delay
Delay between SD and prompt.
- Remember
- Constant or progressive.
- Tested as
- Prompt fading items.
- Trap
- Removing prompts abruptly.
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Shaping
Reinforce successive approximations.
- Remember
- For behavior not yet in repertoire.
- Tested as
- Procedure selection items.
- Trap
- Confusing with chaining.
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Backward chaining
Teach last step first.
- Remember
- Learner contacts terminal reinforcer each trial.
- Tested as
- Chaining selection items.
- Trap
- Starting with the first step.
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Total-task presentation
Teach all steps each trial.
- Remember
- Suits learners with many steps mastered.
- Tested as
- Chaining selection items.
- Trap
- Choosing it for learners with few steps.
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Interdependent group contingency
Whole group must meet criterion.
- Remember
- Can promote cooperation; watch for peer pressure.
- Tested as
- Classroom items.
- Trap
- Confusing with dependent.
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Multiple exemplar training
Teach many examples of stimuli and responses.
- Remember
- Strong generalization strategy.
- Tested as
- Generalization items.
- Trap
- Teaching one example only.
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Time-out
Removal of access to reinforcement.
- Remember
- Requires a reinforcing time-in.
- Tested as
- Punishment items.
- Trap
- Using it for escape-maintained behavior.
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Emotional side effects
Aggression, crying or escape with extinction or punishment.
- Remember
- Monitor and plan to reduce.
- Tested as
- Side-effect items.
- Trap
- Ignoring distress because the target decreases.
Side by side
Concepts candidates mix up, compared on the point that decides the answer.
Differential reinforcement and NCR
| Concept | Meaning | Key difference | Common trap |
|---|---|---|---|
| DRA | Reinforce a specific alternative. | Teaches replacement. | Mismatching function. |
| DRO | Reinforce absence of target. | No specific replacement taught. | Reinforcing other problem behavior. |
| DRL | Reinforce lower rates. | Behavior still allowed. | Using for zero-tolerance behavior. |
| NCR | Reinforcer on time-based schedule. | Not contingent on any response. | Adventitious reinforcement. |
Shaping vs chaining
| Concept | Meaning | Key difference | Common trap |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shaping | Successive approximations of one behavior. | Changes one behavior gradually. | Calling it chaining. |
| Chaining | Linking several behaviors in sequence. | Teaches a sequence of steps. | Calling it shaping. |
Prompting systems
| Concept | Meaning | Key difference | Common trap |
|---|---|---|---|
| Most-to-least | Start high, fade assistance. | Fewer errors. | Slow fading leads to dependence. |
| Least-to-most | Start low, increase as needed. | More independence opportunities. | More errors for new skills. |
| Time delay | Insert wait before prompt. | Transfers control to SD. | Delay too long early on. |
Group contingencies
| Concept | Meaning | Key difference | Common trap |
|---|---|---|---|
| Independent | Same criterion, individual outcomes. | Each earns individually. | Calling it interdependent. |
| Dependent | Group outcome depends on one member. | One member's behavior counts. | Ignoring blame risk. |
| Interdependent | Group must meet criterion together. | All or none. | Ignoring peer pressure. |
Exam traps
Each trap is an answer that looks right. Learn the clue that should change your mind.
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Time-out for escape
- What candidates pick
- Time-out
- Why it looks right
- It is a common procedure.
- Why it's wrong
- Time-out removes demands and reinforces escape-maintained behavior.
Clue to watch for The function is escape from tasks.
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DRL for dangerous behavior
- What candidates pick
- DRL
- Why it looks right
- It reduces rate.
- Why it's wrong
- Dangerous behavior should not be allowed at low rates; DRA or DRO is more suitable.
Clue to watch for The behavior risks injury.
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Least-to-most for a new skill
- What candidates pick
- Least-to-most
- Why it looks right
- It encourages independence.
- Why it's wrong
- For new skills, more errors occur and may slow learning; most-to-least reduces errors.
Clue to watch for The skill is new to the learner.
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Shaping a sequence
- What candidates pick
- Shaping
- Why it looks right
- Both involve steps.
- Why it's wrong
- A sequence of different responses calls for chaining, not shaping.
Clue to watch for The task involves several different steps.
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Tokens without pairing
- What candidates pick
- Introduce tokens directly
- Why it looks right
- Tokens are common.
- Why it's wrong
- Tokens become reinforcers only through pairing and exchange.
Clue to watch for The learner has no exchange history.
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Abrupt end of reinforcement
- What candidates pick
- Stop reinforcing after mastery
- Why it looks right
- The skill is mastered.
- Why it's wrong
- Abrupt removal risks loss of the skill; thinning and natural reinforcers support maintenance.
Clue to watch for The question asks about long-term performance.
Answer framework
Use this sequence when selecting or troubleshooting a behavior-change procedure.
- Identify the goal of the procedure: build a new skill, increase an existing behavior, or reduce a behavior that harms the client or limits access to reinforcement.
- For reduction, match the procedure to the function, using the same reinforcer for a replacement behavior wherever that is possible.
- For skills, check whether the behavior is already in the repertoire, then choose shaping, chaining, prompting or modeling as the situation requires.
- Plan prompt fading, generalization and maintenance from the start, using multiple exemplars, varied settings and naturally occurring reinforcers.
- Monitor data and side effects closely, and revise the procedure when behavior or the client's wellbeing does not improve as expected.
Practice question
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Study strategy
Plan 35 to 45 hours for Section G. Begin with a procedure table: for each of the 19 task statements, list the procedure, when to use it, key design decisions and common errors. Group procedures that are easy to confuse, such as DRA, DRO, DRL and NCR, or shaping and chaining, and write one scenario for each that shows when it is the best choice.
Next, connect procedures to function. For each common function (attention, escape, tangible, automatic), write which procedures match and which would backfire. This prevents the classic error of using time-out for escape-maintained behavior.
Practise with scenario items, paying attention to learner details such as current skills, setting and safety. Review prompting and fading in depth, since prompt dependence is common in practice. In the final weeks, revisit punishment safeguards and side effects, which connect to ethics, and generalization and maintenance strategies, which connect to Section H.
FAQ
How many Behavior-Change Procedures questions are on the BCBA exam?
Behavior-Change Procedures is Section G, with 25 of the 175 scored questions, about 14%. It is the largest section of the 6th edition outline.
What is the difference between DRA and DRI?
DRI is a form of DRA in which the alternative behavior is physically incompatible with the target, such as keeping hands in pockets instead of hitting.
Is NCR the same as free reinforcement?
NCR delivers the reinforcer on a time-based schedule regardless of behavior. It reduces motivation for problem behavior but does not teach a replacement.
When is punishment appropriate?
Only after reinforcement-based procedures have been considered or tried, with informed consent, safeguards, side-effect monitoring and reinforcement of alternatives.
How do I prevent prompt dependence?
Plan fading from the start using time delay, most-to-least or other systematic methods, and fade based on data.
What generalization strategies are most tested?
Multiple exemplar training, programming common stimuli, training loosely and teaching in natural settings appear often.
Test your Domain 7 knowledge
Practise choosing and troubleshooting procedures with items that compare DRA and DRO, shaping and chaining, and prompting systems.