RBT practice test: Data Collection and Graphing, set 5

B: One episode lasting 3 minutes 30 seconds. Because the pause lasted only 3 seconds, the definition makes this a single episode. It is timed from onset (10:00:30) to offset (10:04:00): 3 minutes 30 seconds. Onset and offset rules in the definition decide how episodes are counted and timed.

• A: The 3-second pause is shorter than 5 seconds, so by the definition it does not end the episode.
• C: The episode did not end at 10:02:00, because the crying resumed within 5 seconds.
• D: By the definition the pause is part of the episode, so the episode is timed from first onset to final offset without subtracting it.

Task A.1 · 40-hour curriculum section C

C: 25%. 10 minutes is 600 seconds, and 600 ÷ 15 = 40 intervals. Then 10 ÷ 40 = 0.25, or 25% of intervals.

• A: 10 is the number of scored intervals, not the percentage.
• B: 15 is the interval length in seconds, not the percentage.
• D: 40 is the total number of intervals, not the percentage.

Task A.2 · 40-hour curriculum section C

B: Permanent product recording. The RBT counts the labeled boxes, the lasting result of the work, after it is finished. That is permanent product recording.

• A: Frequency recording would count each labeling response as it happened, while watching.
• C: Partial interval recording would mark intervals in which labeling occurred.
• D: Duration recording would time how long the client spent labeling.

Task A.3 · 40-hour curriculum section C

B: Units of time, such as sessions or days. The horizontal axis shows the passage of time, usually sessions or dates, so the graph shows how behavior changes from one session to the next.

• A: The measured value, such as count or percentage, goes on the vertical (y) axis.
• C: Condition names are written as labels above each phase, not along the horizontal axis.
• D: A criterion is shown, if at all, as a line or note on the graph, not as the horizontal axis.

Task A.4 · 40-hour curriculum section C

B: Writing their name on a page. Writing is something a person actively does that can be seen and measured. The other options are traits, states or results rather than actions.

• A: This is a label or trait, not a specific action.
• C: Having a finished product is a result of behavior, not the behavior itself.
• D: Tiredness is an internal state, not an observable action.

Task A.5 · 40-hour curriculum section C

C: 6. To find the median, put the values in order (3, 5, 6, 9, 12) and take the middle one, which is 6.

• A: 7 is the mean (35 / 5), not the median.
• B: 9 is the range (12 minus 3), not the median.
• D: 12 is the middle value of the list as recorded; the values must be put in order first.

Task A.6 · 40-hour curriculum section C

C: Progress has leveled off. After rising early on, the data path has stayed flat for several sessions. The skill is no longer improving, which is a plateau worth reporting to the supervisor.

• A: The last several points are flat, not rising.
• B: The recent points have not dropped.
• D: The recent points are all the same value, which is no variability.

Task A.7 · 40-hour curriculum section C

D: The data may show more improvement than actually occurred. When an observer's expectations shape borderline decisions in one direction, the data are biased toward the expected result. Here the bias makes the intervention look more effective than it is. Applying the definition the same way regardless of phase prevents this.

• A: A biased observer would likely disagree more with an independent observer, not less.
• B: Recording unclear instances as non-occurrences lowers the count, which overstates improvement.
• C: That describes reactivity in the client, not a bias in the observer.

Task A.8 · 40-hour curriculum section C

A: 15 seconds. Latency runs from the instruction to the start of the response: 2:15:25 − 2:15:10 = 15 seconds. The time spent putting the shoes on is a separate duration measure.

• B: 25 is the seconds reading on the clock when the client started, not the time that passed since the instruction.
• C: 30 seconds is how long putting the shoes on took, which is duration.
• D: 45 seconds runs from the instruction to the end of the response; latency stops when the response begins.

Task A.1 · 40-hour curriculum section C

D: Momentary time sampling. Discontinuous procedures record a sample of the behavior instead of every occurrence. Momentary time sampling looks at the behavior only at the moment each interval ends.

• A: Frequency recording counts every occurrence during the observation period, so it is continuous.
• B: Duration recording times every occurrence from start to end, so it is continuous.
• C: Interresponse time recording times every gap between responses, so it is continuous.

Task A.2 · 40-hour curriculum section C

C: Not count it, because it does not meet the definition. The operational definition decides what counts as a product. A toy on the lid is not inside the bin, so it is not counted; if the definition seems unclear, the RBT asks the supervisor.

• A: Counting effort that does not meet the definition makes the data inconsistent with other sessions and observers.
• B: The definition does not allow partial credit, and inventing it changes the measure.
• D: Changing the product before counting it records the RBT's behavior, not the child's.

Task A.3 · 40-hour curriculum section C

D: It is not connected; a phase change line separates them. Data points are connected only within the same condition. The data path stops at the phase change line and a new data path begins in the intervention phase.

• A: Connecting across a phase change line would blend two conditions into one data path.
• B: No line of any kind joins data paths across a phase change; the only line there is the vertical phase change line.
• C: Baseline data stay on the graph; the new session is added as its own point.

Task A.4 · 40-hour curriculum section C

C: The caregiver said, "Bath time," and turned off the TV. The entry describes exactly what happened just before the behavior: what the caregiver said and did.

• A: This states an effect on the client's feelings, not what the caregiver did.
• B: This is a guess about what the client wanted.
• D: A "bad mood" is an inferred state, not an observable event.

Task A.5 · 40-hour curriculum section C

C: The behavior occurred at some point during half of the intervals. Partial-interval recording scores an interval if the behavior occurs at any point in it, so the result is the percentage of intervals with any occurrence. It tends to overestimate how much of the time the behavior actually occurred.

• A: An interval is scored even for a brief occurrence, so this does not tell how much time the behavior took up.
• B: Interval data do not give a count of responses.
• D: That describes whole-interval recording, not partial-interval recording.

Task A.6 · 40-hour curriculum section C

A: One session may be unusual; trend is a pattern. A single high or low session may reflect a one-time event. Trend describes the direction of the data across several sessions.

• B: Each session is shown as its own data point.
• C: There is no fixed number of sessions in the definition of trend.
• D: Trend comes from the pattern across sessions, not one point.

Task A.7 · 40-hour curriculum section C

A: Recording each trial's outcome right after the trial. Recording each response immediately leaves little room for memory errors. Delayed or selective recording leads to estimates that can be biased in either direction.

• B: Recording only some trials gives an incomplete and possibly biased picture.
• C: Waiting until the end relies on memory and invites errors.
• D: An estimate is not a record of what happened on each trial.

Task A.8 · 40-hour curriculum section C

D: 10 minutes. Total duration is the sum of the durations of every episode: 3 + 5 + 2 = 10 minutes.

• A: 3 is the number of tantrums (and the length of the first one), not the total time.
• B: 3.33 minutes is the mean duration per tantrum (10 ÷ 3), not the total.
• C: 5 minutes is the longest single tantrum, not the total.

Task A.1 · 40-hour curriculum section C

C: A short talk-out marks the whole interval, so actual talking time is probably lower. Partial interval data tell you in how many intervals the behavior occurred at least once. Because a brief talk-out scores an entire interval, the true share of time spent talking is likely less than 80%.

• A: Partial interval recording tends to overestimate time spent in a behavior, not underestimate it.
• B: 80% is a percentage of intervals, not a count of talk-outs.
• D: Looking only at the end of each interval is momentary time sampling, not partial interval recording.

Task A.2 · 40-hour curriculum section C

C: The count stayed the same, but the rate doubled. Monday: 15 ÷ 10 = 1.5 problems per minute. Tuesday: 15 ÷ 5 = 3 problems per minute. The product count alone would hide this improvement, which is why work time is recorded when fluency matters.

• A: The count was 15 both days; the rate is what changed.
• B: The rate changed from 1.5 to 3 problems per minute.
• D: The rate went up, not down: 15 ÷ 5 = 3 per minute is higher than 15 ÷ 10 = 1.5.

Task A.3 · 40-hour curriculum section C

C: The most recent point was entered wrong and needs correcting. The last plotted value does not match the data sheet. The RBT corrects the entry through the organization's procedure and lets the supervisor know.

• A: The data sheet is the original record; a mismatched graph point is the error.
• B: The apparent rise comes from an entry error, not from the client's behavior.
• D: Changing the original record to match an error would falsify data.

Task A.4 · 40-hour curriculum section C · RBT Ethics Code 2.02