BCBA study guide
BCBA · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.
The Board Certified Behavior Analyst® (BCBA®) credential is a graduate-level certification in behavior analysis issued by the Behavior Analyst Certification Board. BCBAs are independent practitioners who provide behavior-analytic services and supervise the work of RBTs, BCaBAs, and other professionals who implement behavior-analytic interventions. The BCBA study guide has 9 sections and about 2,754 words.
01Behaviorism and Philosophical Foundations
Behavior analysis rests on a specific philosophy of science: determinism (behavior is lawful, not random), empiricism (knowledge comes from observation), parsimony (prefer the simplest adequate account), pragmatism (truth is judged by what works), and selectionism (behavior is selected by consequences at the levels of phylogeny, ontogeny, and culture). Radical behaviorism is inclusive : private events - thoughts, feelings - are behavior subject to the same laws, and they are not causes of public behavior.
303 words, about 2 min02Concepts and Principles
Operant behavior is explained by motivating operation (MO) → discriminative stimulus (SD) → response → consequence . Reinforcement increases behavior; punishment decreases it.
333 words, about 2 min03Measurement, Data Display, and Interpretation
Prefer direct, continuous measurement : frequency and rate, duration (total or per occurrence), latency to onset, interresponse time, percentage of opportunities, and trials-to-criterion. Discontinuous methods are time sampling: whole interval (underestimates), partial interval (overestimates), and momentary time sampling (estimates duration and usually lands closest to true values).
302 words, about 2 min04Experimental Design
Every design must demonstrate prediction (baseline would have continued), verification (a return to baseline confirms it), and replication (the effect occurs again). A functional relation requires that the independent variable, not an extraneous variable, produced the change - and that requires at least two demonstrations.
301 words, about 2 min05Ethical and Professional Issues
The ethics code is organized around core principles: beneficence, nonmaleficence, autonomy, justice, fidelity, and veracity , along with dignity, equity, and accountability. Learn them as principles rather than rules to memorize - many questions present a conflict and ask which principle is implicated.
304 words, about 2 min06Behavior Assessment
Indirect - interviews, rating scales (FAST, MAS, QABF), records review. Fast and low effort, low confidence.
310 words, about 2 min07Behavior-Change Procedures
Shaping : reinforce successive approximations toward a defined terminal response. Chaining : forward, backward, and total task; backward chaining suits terminal steps that are highly reinforcing.
304 words, about 2 min08Selecting and Implementing Interventions
Select interventions by (1) the function identified in assessment, (2) the evidence base , (3) social validity - acceptability to the client and stakeholders, (4) feasibility and resources , (5) least restrictive and least intrusive options, and (6) risk–benefit . A technically elegant plan the teacher will never run fails criterion 4.
293 words, about 1 min09Personnel Supervision and Management
BST comprises instruction, modeling, rehearsal, and feedback - all four must be present. Feedback is immediate, specific, behavior-focused, and delivered while performance is visible.
304 words, about 2 min