The competency assessment will be conducted by a Board Certified Behaviour Analyst (BCBA). The BCBA will be looking to see if you can effectively demonstrate and or communicate 20 competencies. There are 22 comptencies in the assessment. The assessment type for the competencies can be with a client, role play or for some competencies an interview. Three of the competencies need to be evaluated with a client.
The competencies are split into 4 sections:
Section 1: Measurement
Section 2: Assessment
Section 3: Skill acquisition and behaviour reduction
Section 4: Professionalism and requirements
Below we have gone into detail about some of the types of questions and scenarios you may be asked in a selection of the competency assessment:
Section 1: Measurement
Competency 1: Continuous Measurement
Frequency Your assessor may role play a behaviour such as clapping hands and ask you to record the frequency. In this situation you would need to count how many times the assessor clapped their hands. You may be shown a video of a particular behaviour and be asked to measure the frequency. When reporting frequency data you may want to describe this as behaviour per minute. To calculate: total number x 60; / no of seconds = behaviour per minute.
Example:
Total behaviour: 7
Duration of observation period: 1 minute 39 seconds (99 seconds)
7 x 60 = 420
420 / 99 = 4.24
4.24 per minute
Your assessor may also ask you to provide a definition for frequency. Frequency: A ratio of count per observation time; often expressed as count per standard unit of time (e.g. per minute, per hour, per day) and calculated by dividing the number of responses recorded by the number of standard units of time in which observations were conducted (used interchangeably with rate).
Duration Your assessor may role play a behaviour or show you a video. The assessor may ask you how long did the person scream for. They may provide you an operationally definition or get you to operationally define the behaviour. You would then need to have a clear understanding of onset behaviour and offset behaviour and using a stop watch time how long the behaviour occurs. The behaviour may happen multiple times so you will need to start and stop your timer and provide the total duration of the behaviour.
Example: Screaming: 5 seconds / 24 seconds / 9 seconds Total duration of screaming in a 1-minute observation period was 38seconds.
Your assessor may also ask you to provide a definition for duration. Duration: A measure of the total extent of time in which a behaviour occurs.
Latency Your assessor may either role play or show you a video. For example, your assessor will give you a question or a task to ask them such as pick up the cup. You would then need to start a timer after the onset of the stimulus of the task and stop the timer once the assessor starts the task. Your assessor may also ask you to provide a definition for latency. Latency: A measure of temporal locus; the elapsed time from the onset of a stimulus (e.g., task direction, cue to the initiation of the response).
Inter-response time Your assessor may either role play or show you a video. For example, the may ask you what the inter response time is between saying the alphabet. For this you would wait for the assessor to say “A” you would then time how long it takes before the assessor says “B” you would then time how long it takes before the assessor says “C” and so on. So, you would have multiple duration times. You would then look at the average inter response time. To do this you would add each duration together and divide by the number of behaviours in this case saying the alphabet. 26 letters in the alphabet so there will be 25 timings.
A-B = 3 SECONDS
B-C= 5 SECONDS
C-D = 4 SECONDS
….
Y-Z-6 SECONDS
Total Duration: 107 seconds / 26 = Average inter-response time = 4.1 seconds
Your assessor may also ask you to provide a definition for inter response time.
Inter-response time: Amount of time that elapses between two consecutive instances of a response class.
Competency 2: Discontinuous Measurement
Your assessor may ask you to provide definitions for the
3 discontinuous measurement procedures:
Whole interval recording – a time sampling method for measuring behaviour in which the 6observation period is divided into a series of brief time intervals (typically from 5 to 15 seconds). At the end of each interval, the observer records whether the target behaviour occurred throughout the entire interval; tends to underestimate the proportion of the observation period that many behaviours actually occurred.
Partial interval recording – A time sampling method for measuring behaviour in which the observation period is divided into a series of brief time intervals (typically between 5 to 10 seconds). The observe records whether the target behaviour occurred at any time during the interval. Partial interval recording is not concerned with how many times the behaviour occurred during the interval or how long the behaviour was present, just that it occurred at some point during the interval; tends to overestimate the proportion of the observation period that the behaviour actually occurred.
Momentary time sampling – a measurement method in which the presence or absence of behaviour are recorded at precisely specified time intervals.
Your assessor may provide you with a data collection sheet and either using role play, watching a video or with a client ask you to use whole recording to record a behaviour such as hitting staff.
Here is an example of a completed data sheet for whole recording:
Competency 3: Data and Graphs
Graphs are relatively simple formats for visually displaying relationships among and between a series of measurements and relevant variable. These visual displays can help people make sense of quantitative information. Graphs are the major device with which BCBAs organise, store, interpret and communicate the results of their work.
The most common graph used in ABA is a line graph. Each point on a line graph shows the level of some quantifiable dimension of the target behaviour (the dependent variable) in relation to a specified point in time and or environmental condition (the independent variable) in effect when the measure was taken. Comparing points on the graph reveals the presence and extent of changes in level, trend, and or variability within and across conditions.
The assessor may give you some example data and ask you to plot this data onto a line graph. Your assessor will be looking for the graph to have all of the detail needed such as: Title on axis, condition change lines, conditional labels, figure caption.
Here is an example graph
Your assessor may then ask you questions about your graph such as, was there a stable baseline? What is the trend? Based on this data what would you say the intervention increased or reduced the rates of aggression towards staff. Excel is the most common computer program to produce graphs so it is definitely worth while spending time to ensure you know how to use excel.
Section 2: Assessment
Competency 4: Preference assessment
Your assessor may assess you on one or all of the preference assessment procedures; free operant, paired preference assessment, multiple stimulus with and without replacement.
Here is an example of a free operant fidelity checklist, these are the areas your assessor will be looking for during your competency assessment.
Here is an example of a paired preference assessment fidelity checklist, these are the areas your assessor will be looking for during your competency assessment.
Competency 5: Collect ABC data
ABC data collection is where you look at three categories: A – Antecedents, B – Behaviour and C – Consequences. Antecedent: what happens immediately before the behaviour occurred, include any triggers, signs of distress or environmental information. Behaviour: describe what the behaviour looked like. Consequence: what happened immediately after the behaviour? Include information about other people's responses to the behaviour and the eventual outcome for the person. Where were you? What was your response?
There are two formats for collecting ABC data narrative and structured.
Here is an example of a narrative ABC data sheet:
Here is an example of a structured ABC data sheet:
There are pros and cons to each format. Working in a busy environment staff may struggle to find time to complete a narrative recording form with the detail needed to establish the function for the behaviour. A structured ABC is more likely to be completed but may miss key information as staff are just selecting from the options on the sheet.
The assessor may ask for one or both data collection methods. This may be done by role play, with a client or the assessor may show you a video clip. The assessor will be looking for objective information so it is important to avoid being subjective. For example, avoid writing “Bob was aggressive towards staff member Jay” instead write something like “Bob ran towards staff member Jay with his arms raised open palm and with his left hand hit Bob across the head with force”.
How to conduct a preference assessment. Your assessor may ask you based on the ABC you have written what was the potential function of the behaviour? Sensory, Escape, Attention, Tangibles? It is important to note that you cannot establish function from one ABCs you tend to need a few before you can truly establish the function of the behaviour. As once you have multiple ABCs data sheets you will be able to find patterns that will help you establish the function.
Section 3: Skill Acquisition and Behaviour Reduction
Previously 3 of these competencies were expected to be done with a client, however since COVID this is currently no longer a requirement. However, if possible if three can be done with a client that would be preferable.
Competency 6: Discrete-Trial Teaching
The assessor will either observe you demonstrating the skill with a client or conduct this via role play. With Discrete Trial Teaching the assessor will want you to demonstrate your fluency with this behavioural technique. DTT uses direct instruction and places certain behaviours on extinction while other responses are reinforced. For example, if you present an array of three items and ask “touch apple” reinforcement would be given to the child for touching the apple and you would either block or place touching the other two items on extinction. Prompting can also be used to support the learner, but you will need to demonstrate how you fade the prompt so the response is under the correct stimulus control.
Competency 7: Naturalistic teaching
The assessor will either observe you demonstrating the skill with a client or conduct this via role play. They may also ask you to video yourself demonstrate the skill with a consenting individual. With naturalistic teaching you are teaching the person in their natural environment, it is unstructured and you are using natural reinforcers based on current motivating operations. When completing naturalistic teaching you need to look out for signals of the individuals wants. Once this has been established this can then be used as an opportunity to teach an appropriate behaviour. The environment can also be set up in a way that the individual will need your help to be able to teach an appropriate behaviour.
Example:
Client points to the door
This is an indicator for this individual that they want to go for a walk
Teaching opportunity: This is an opportunity to work on the persons requesting (manding/ echoic). The way this will be done will vary from individual. If we were working on speech, we may prompt with verbal of “Walk” and encourage the individual to say walk.
It may be that you are teaching to tie shoe laces so you could use this opportunity to teach that skill as the individual will need shoes on before they go for a walk.
The MO for the walk is high as it has been requested by the individual
As with DTT we are putting pointing on extinction and reinforcing the desired behaviour in this case saying “walk”
Reinforcement – is going for the walk
Competency 8: Chaining
Your assessor may give you a behaviour such as “Make a drink”. You will then need to complete a task analysis before demonstrating chaining.
There are three types of chaining: Backwards, forwards and total chaining. Before chaining can be used a task analysis for the task must be completed to establish the components. A task analysis is where you break down a complex skill into smaller teachable units. A task analysis must be individualised to the person you are teaching the skill to.
Forward chaining: Teach the first step in the task analysis, prompting may be used. The prompt needs to be faded for the person to reach mastery. All other steps are prompted. Once mastery has been established for step 1, you then move on to teach step 2 till mastery and so on.
Backwards chaining: Teach the last step in the task analysis, prompting may be used. The prompt needs to be faded for the person to reach the mastery criteria set out. Whilst teaching the last step all the other steps in the behaviour chain are prompted. Once the person has reached mastery with the last step, you then move on to teach the second to last step till mastery and so on.
Total-task chaining: Teaching is given during each step of the task analysis. Assistance or prompting is given during any step the person is unable to perform independently.
Example data sheet for total-task chaining:
Competency 9: Shaping
Your assessor will be seeing if you can use differential reinforcement, understand when to put a previously reinforced behaviour on extinction and that you are providing reinforcement for the next behaviour that is closer to the terminal behaviour. You will be reinforcing successive approximations toward the target behaviour. The two key procedural components of shaping are differential reinforcement and successive approximations.
1. Select the target behaviour
2. Determine the criterion for success e.g. 90% over 2 consecutive days
3. Analyse the response class: attempt to identify the successive approximations but be able to make clinical judgement whether or not a new behaviour is or is not a closer approximation to the target behaviour
4. Identify the first behaviour to reinforce: (should already occur at some minimum frequency and be a member of the targeted response class)
5. Eliminate interfering or extraneous stimuli
6. Proceed in gradual stages: be able to detect behavioural change and reinforce, many trials may be needed before the individual can advance to the next approximation
7. Limit the number of approximations at each level: not to offer too many trials at a given approximation
8. Continue to reinforce when the terminal behaviour is achieved: reinforcement must continue until the criterion for success is achieved and a maintenance schedule of reinforcement is established.
9. Percentile schedules: behaviours must be a) measured constantly and b) rank-ordered using a system of comparisons to previous responses
Adapt Behaviour offer the RBT competency assessment, we also provide training to support passing the assessment to a high standard. CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION
We highly recommend you familiarise yourself with the RBT handbook if you are thinking about pursuing this certification.
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