Scribd
Upload
16 views

ABC Data Collection Procedure

The ABC Data Collection Procedure is a method for observing and recording the antecedents, behaviors, and consequences associated with a child's problem behaviors. It emphasizes the importance of identifying specific events before and after the behavior to understand its function and form hypotheses. Detailed descriptions of behaviors and their contexts are crucial for effective data collection and analysis.

Uploaded by

waleskacrz
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
16 views

ABC Data Collection Procedure

The ABC Data Collection Procedure is a method for observing and recording the antecedents, behaviors, and consequences associated with a child's problem behaviors. It emphasizes the importance of identifying specific events before and after the behavior to understand its function and form hypotheses. Detailed descriptions of behaviors and their contexts are crucial for effective data collection and analysis.

Uploaded by

waleskacrz
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 2

ABC Data Collection Procedure

ABC Data: “ABC” stands for Antecedent-Behavior-Consequence, often called Three Step
Contingency. ABC Data is a direct observation tool that can be used to collect information about
the events that are occurring within a child's environment. "A" refers to the antecedent, or the
event or activity that immediately precedes a problem behavior. The "B" refers to observed
behavior, and "C" refers to the consequence, or the event that immediately follows a response.
Observing and recording ABC data assists in forming a hypothesis statement and gathering
evidence that the function maintaining a problem behavior has been identified.

Antecedents: What happened before the behavior?


When identifying the antecedents, consider these questions:
- Where does the behavior happen?
- With whom does the behavior occur?
- When does the behavior happen?
- What activity is the behavior occurring during?
- What are other students doing when the behavior begins?
- What are other teachers/adults doing when the behavior begins?

It is also helpful to consider possible contributing factors, such as:


* Specific person
* Proximity of others
* Noise level in the home
* Number of individuals in the area
* Other environmental conditions: lighting, door (open/closed), noise in hallway, etc.

Additionally, it is valuable to take into account distant antecedents/setting events such as:
~ Medication changes
~ Family/Home Variables (e.g. visiting family members, divorce, birth of a sibling, etc.)
~ Current health status of the child

Behavior: Describe the behavior and duration


Even though you should have a clear, operationally defined target behavior with examples and
non-examples, it is important to record as much information about the behavior of concern
during your observations. Rather than writing only, "aggression", your notes may be enhanced
by more detail, such as, "kicked sister", "hit peers with fist", "pinched brother's arm".

Operationally defined target behaviors should be described as clearly and concisely as possible.
For the purposes of the example below:
Unsafe behavior is defined as any instance in which Alexander displays behaviors that could
pose an imminent threat or dangerous acts that could often result in injuries such as climbing on
things or grabbing knives.
Tantrums are defined as any instance in which Alexander engages in two or more of the
following behaviors at the same time: crying, throwing objects, stomping his feet, screaming,
throwing himself on the floor, and slamming doors.
Non-compliance is defined as any instance in which Alexander refuses to follow a direction,
complete a task, saying “no” walks away, or ignores directions given by an adult.

Consequences: What happened after the behavior?


When identifying consequences, it may not be as clear as "time out", "reprimand" or "ignore".
Often times when observing behavior one may find that multiple events will follow the behavior
of concern. All behavior should be recorded and evaluated for its influence on the target
behavior. what is the child getting as a result of the behavior? for example, every time the child
screams, he gets a reaction from his sister.
Verbally redirected or corrected (e.g., told “no”)
Reminded of a loss of privilege or consequence
Adult attempts to explain or reason with him
Other child interacted with him in some way (redirecting him, reprimanding him)
Removed from room
Redirected to ask for a break or attention
Redirected to another activity or action
Redirected to sensory activity (e.g., sensory box)
Child’s reaction (does he stop? how does he stop?) (child continued with the behavior)

You might also like