RBT practice test: Data Collection and Graphing, set 2

Set 2 of 8 for content area A, Data Collection and Graphing (13 of the 75 scored exam questions). Every answer is explained.

20 questions

Question 1When is a behavior measurable?
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C: When a dimension of it can be counted or timed. Measurable means some feature of the behavior, such as how often, how long, or how soon after a cue, can be counted or timed.
- A: Severity does not make a behavior measurable.
- B: Measurability does not depend on behavior looking the same across clients.
- D: A behavior can be measured whether or not its cause is known.
Task A.5 · 40-hour curriculum section C
Question 2During a 40-minute class, a student was on task for three episodes lasting 6, 10, and 8 minutes. What percentage of the class was the student on task?
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C: 60%. Total duration is 6 + 10 + 8 = 24 minutes. Dividing by the 40-minute class and multiplying by 100 gives 24 / 40 x 100 = 60%.
- A: 24 is the total minutes on task, not a percentage of the class.
- B: 8 minutes is the mean episode length, not a percentage.
- D: 40% is the percentage of the class the student was not on task.
Task A.6 · 40-hour curriculum section C
Question 3Which best describes these data?

Number of instances of throwing by Session: 1: 2, 2: 9, 3: 1, 4: 10, 5: 3, 6: 8, 7: 2, 8: 9. Phases: Intervention from session 1.
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A: Highly variable, with no trend. The points jump between high and low values from session to session without moving in one overall direction. That pattern is high variability.
- B: The high and low points stay at about the same values over time, so the data do not rise overall.
- C: The data do not fall overall; the highs and lows stay about the same.
- D: Stable data stay close together; these points spread far apart.
Task A.7 · 40-hour curriculum section C
Question 4A client has made little progress on a skill program. Fidelity checks show the RBTs have been completing only about 60% of the program's steps correctly. Why does this make it hard for the supervisor to evaluate the program?
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A: The poor results may come from the implementation rather than the plan. When a plan is not implemented as written, the client never really experienced the plan. Lack of progress could be due to the plan or to the implementation errors, and the supervisor cannot tell which until fidelity improves.
- B: Fidelity data say nothing about the function of behavior.
- C: Low fidelity means the plan was not tested as designed, so it cannot show the design was wrong.
- D: Fidelity is about implementation; the client's data can still be recorded and graphed.
Task A.8 · 40-hour curriculum section E
Question 5A plan calls for the total duration of a student's on-task behavior during a 30-minute work period, kept on one stopwatch. The student works, goes off task for about a minute, then starts working again. What should the RBT do with the stopwatch while the student is off task?
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A: Pause it and resume it when work starts again. For total duration on a single timer, the timer runs only while the behavior meets the definition: pause it when the behavior stops and resume it when the behavior starts again. The final reading is the total duration for the period.
- B: A stopwatch left running would add the off-task minute to the total and overstate on-task time.
- C: Resetting erases the time already recorded, so the final total would be too low.
- D: An estimate is not observed data, and the stopwatch can capture the actual total.
Task A.1 · 40-hour curriculum section C
Question 6A classroom RBT uses 20-second intervals and marks an interval only if the student kept working on the assignment for the whole 20 seconds. Which procedure is this?
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D: Whole interval recording. Scoring an interval only when the behavior occurs throughout the entire interval is whole interval recording.
- A: Partial interval recording would score the interval if the student worked at any point during it.
- B: Momentary time sampling would check only at the end of each interval.
- C: Latency recording would time how long the student took to begin after an instruction.
Task A.2 · 40-hour curriculum section C
Question 7While a client completes a puzzle, an RBT makes a tally mark each time the client places a piece. Afterward the supervisor counts the pieces in the finished puzzle. Which statement is accurate?
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A: The RBT used frequency recording; the supervisor used permanent product recording. The difference is when and what is counted: the behavior as it occurs (frequency recording) or the lasting result after it is done (permanent product recording).
- B: The RBT counted each response as it happened, which is frequency recording, not a count of the product.
- C: The supervisor counted the finished product afterward, which is permanent product recording.
- D: This reverses the two: the live tally is frequency recording, and the later count of the finished puzzle is permanent product recording.
Task A.3 · 40-hour curriculum section C
Question 8Which display is best for showing how a client's rate of a behavior changed across 20 sessions?
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A: A line graph. Line graphs show change in a measure across time, so they are the standard display for session-by-session data.
- B: A single mean hides the session-by-session changes.
- C: The definition says what is measured, not how the measure changed.
- D: A scatterplot shows when behavior tends to occur during the day, not change across sessions.
Task A.4 · 40-hour curriculum section C
Question 9Which operational definition of aggression would lead to the most consistent recording across observers?
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D: Hitting, kicking or biting a person with contact (not high fives). This definition names specific actions, requires contact, and excludes look-alike responses, so observers know exactly what to count.
- A: "Violent" and "hostile" are not defined, so observers will judge differently.
- B: Intent and feelings cannot be observed, so observers would have to guess.
- C: This repeats the label without saying which actions count.
Task A.5 · 40-hour curriculum section C
Question 10An RBT recorded the latency from instruction to response on four trials: 3, 5, 10, and 6 seconds. What was the mean latency?
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B: 6 seconds. Mean latency is the sum of the latencies divided by the number of trials: (3 + 5 + 10 + 6) / 4 = 24 / 4 = 6 seconds.
- A: 24 seconds is the total of all latencies, not the mean.
- C: 5.5 seconds is the median of the four values, not the mean.
- D: 7 seconds is the range (10 minus 3), not the mean.
Task A.6 · 40-hour curriculum section C
Question 11Which describes the intervention data?

Number of instances of elopement by Session: 1: 8, 2: 8, 3: 9, 4: 8, 5: 8, 6: 9, 7: 8, 8: 5, 9: 3, 10: 2, 11: 1. Phases: Baseline from session 1, Intervention from session 6.
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A: No change at first, then a decreasing trend. The first intervention sessions stay at the baseline level. After that, the data path falls steadily, so the change was delayed rather than immediate.
- B: The first few intervention points are at the baseline level.
- C: The intervention data fall, not rise.
- D: The later intervention points are well below baseline.
Task A.7 · 40-hour curriculum section C
Question 12An RBT is busy during a 3-hour home session and waits until the session ends to write down how many times the client hit, estimating the number from memory. What is the main risk of this practice?
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C: The count may not match what happened, leading to wrong decisions. Counts reconstructed from memory are estimates, and estimates are easily too high or too low. The supervisor relies on these numbers to decide whether the plan is working, so inaccurate counts can lead to the wrong decision. Behavior should be recorded as it occurs, following the data procedure in the plan.
- A: Nothing about late recording by itself would make the hitting increase.
- B: A rate can still be calculated from any count and time; the problem is that the count may be wrong.
- D: Recording late does not turn a count into an interval or time-sampling procedure; it simply makes the count unreliable.
Task A.8 · 40-hour curriculum section C · RBT Ethics Code 2.02
Question 13The plan says to count aggression, defined as hitting, kicking or biting. A client pushes a peer, and the RBT is unsure whether to count it. What should the RBT do?
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C: Follow the definition and ask the supervisor. The operational definition decides what counts as an occurrence. Pushing is not listed, so the RBT records according to the definition and asks the supervisor to clarify; the supervisor decides whether to revise it.
- A: Counting behavior that is not in the definition makes the data inconsistent with other sessions and observers.
- B: Stopping data collection leaves the rest of the session unmeasured.
- D: Only the supervisor can change an operational definition.
Task A.1 · 40-hour curriculum section C · RBT Ethics Code 2.06
Question 14At an adult day program, an RBT checks every 5 minutes whether a client is working on their assigned task at that exact moment and marks yes or no. Which procedure is this?
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D: Momentary time sampling. Looking at the behavior only at the moment each interval ends and recording whether it is occurring then is momentary time sampling.
- A: Partial interval recording would score an interval if the behavior happened at any point during it, which requires watching throughout.
- B: Whole interval recording would score an interval only if the client worked during the entire interval.
- C: Duration recording would time how long the client worked.
Task A.2 · 40-hour curriculum section C
Question 15After an independent spelling worksheet, the RBT and the client go over the errors together and the client fixes them on the same page. The worksheet is the permanent product for the spelling goal. When should the RBT score it?
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D: Before the errors are corrected. The product must reflect the client's independent responses. Scoring before any corrections keeps the data accurate; the error correction can follow.
- A: Once errors are fixed, the page no longer shows what the client did independently.
- B: Waiting until the next session does not undo the corrections made to the page.
- C: The supervisor may review the work later, but the page must be scored before it is changed.
Task A.3 · 40-hour curriculum section C
Question 16On a cumulative graph, each session's count is added to the running total. What happens to the data path in a session in which the behavior does not occur?
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B: It stays level at the previous total. A cumulative record can only rise or stay flat. A session with no responses adds nothing, so the data path stays at the same height as the session before.
- A: A cumulative total never falls back to zero; a zero would only appear on a noncumulative graph.
- C: Nothing is subtracted on a cumulative record; the running total is carried forward.
- D: The path rises only when responses occur; no responses means no rise.
Task A.4 · 40-hour curriculum section C
Question 17A note reads: "The client covered their ears, said 'too loud,' and was overwhelmed by the noise." Which part cannot be directly observed?
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D: Was overwhelmed. Being overwhelmed is an inferred internal state, not something an observer can see. Covering ears and speaking are actions an observer can see and hear.
- A: Covering the ears is a visible action.
- B: What the client said can be heard and recorded.
- C: Noise is a feature of the environment that observers can hear.
Task A.5 · 40-hour curriculum section C
Question 18A client made brief one-word requests at minute 1, minute 5, minute 11 and minute 13 of a session. What was the mean interresponse time?
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B: 4 minutes. Interresponse time is the time that passes between two consecutive responses. The three IRTs are 4, 6 and 2 minutes, so the mean is 12 / 3 = 4 minutes.
- A: This divides the 12 minutes by 4 responses; there are only 3 intervals between 4 responses.
- C: 6 minutes is the longest single IRT, not the mean.
- D: 12 minutes is the total time from the first request to the last.
Task A.6 · 40-hour curriculum section C
Question 19This graph shows a behavior targeted for reduction. What do the data show?

Number of tantrums by Session: 1: 12, 2: 11, 3: 9, 4: 8, 5: 6, 6: 5, 7: 3. Phases: Intervention from session 1.
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C: The behavior is decreasing across sessions. The data path falls steadily, which is a decreasing trend, the desired direction for a behavior targeted for reduction.
- A: The values get lower over time, not higher.
- B: The values change steadily from session to session.
- D: The points follow a steady downward path with little bounce.
Task A.7 · 40-hour curriculum section C
Question 20Over several weeks, an RBT gradually stops using the 3-second time delay written in a client's plan and starts prompting immediately on every trial. What is this gradual departure from the written procedure called?
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B: Treatment drift. Treatment drift is a gradual change in how an intervention is carried out so that it no longer matches the written plan. It lowers procedural fidelity, often without the implementer noticing.
- A: Stimulus fading is a planned, gradual removal of an added stimulus prompt, not an unplanned change.
- C: Observer drift is a change in how a behavior definition is applied when recording, not in how the intervention is delivered.
- D: Reactivity is a change in behavior caused by being observed.
Task A.8 · 40-hour curriculum section E

Answer every question to see your score.

Practice test 3

What this test covers

Questions in this test by task
Task	Questions
A.1 Continuous measurement	2
A.2 Discontinuous measurement	2
A.3 Permanent product recording	2
A.4 Entering data and updating graphs	2
A.5 Describing behavior in observable, measurable terms	3
A.6 Calculating and summarizing data	3
A.7 Identifying trends in graphed data	3
A.8 Unreliable data and poor procedural fidelity	3

5 easier, 9 exam-level and 6 harder questions. Each task link opens its study page.

Question 1When is a behavior measurable?

Question 2During a 40-minute class, a student was on task for three episodes lasting 6, 10, and 8 minutes. What percentage of the class was the student on task?

Question 3Which best describes these data?

Question 4A client has made little progress on a skill program. Fidelity checks show the RBTs have been completing only about 60% of the program's steps correctly. Why does this make it hard for the supervisor to evaluate the program?

Question 5A plan calls for the total duration of a student's on-task behavior during a 30-minute work period, kept on one stopwatch. The student works, goes off task for about a minute, then starts working again. What should the RBT do with the stopwatch while the student is off task?

Question 6A classroom RBT uses 20-second intervals and marks an interval only if the student kept working on the assignment for the whole 20 seconds. Which procedure is this?

Question 7While a client completes a puzzle, an RBT makes a tally mark each time the client places a piece. Afterward the supervisor counts the pieces in the finished puzzle. Which statement is accurate?

Question 8Which display is best for showing how a client's rate of a behavior changed across 20 sessions?

Question 9Which operational definition of aggression would lead to the most consistent recording across observers?

Question 10An RBT recorded the latency from instruction to response on four trials: 3, 5, 10, and 6 seconds. What was the mean latency?

Question 11Which describes the intervention data?

Question 12An RBT is busy during a 3-hour home session and waits until the session ends to write down how many times the client hit, estimating the number from memory. What is the main risk of this practice?

Question 13The plan says to count aggression, defined as hitting, kicking or biting. A client pushes a peer, and the RBT is unsure whether to count it. What should the RBT do?

Question 14At an adult day program, an RBT checks every 5 minutes whether a client is working on their assigned task at that exact moment and marks yes or no. Which procedure is this?

Question 15After an independent spelling worksheet, the RBT and the client go over the errors together and the client fixes them on the same page. The worksheet is the permanent product for the spelling goal. When should the RBT score it?

Question 16On a cumulative graph, each session's count is added to the running total. What happens to the data path in a session in which the behavior does not occur?

Question 17A note reads: "The client covered their ears, said 'too loud,' and was overwhelmed by the noise." Which part cannot be directly observed?

Question 18A client made brief one-word requests at minute 1, minute 5, minute 11 and minute 13 of a session. What was the mean interresponse time?

Question 19This graph shows a behavior targeted for reduction. What do the data show?

Question 20Over several weeks, an RBT gradually stops using the 3-second time delay written in a client's plan and starts prompting immediately on every trial. What is this gradual departure from the written procedure called?

What this test covers