In a classic alternating treatments design, an experimenter rapidly alters distinct conditions to determine differential effects and functional relations between behavior and the environment. The data are then graphed with multiple line, each representing a different condition.
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When to use an alternating treatment design in psychology?
Alternating Treatments Design • Use when: – You want to determine the relative effectiveness of more than one treatment on a given behavior – Baseline data are either unavailable or might be unstable – Treatments are sufficiently different from each other – Participants can discriminate the treatment conditions 7.
What is the alternating treatment design in abab?
In the alternating treatment design, following a baseline phase, the treatments are alternated in rapid succession (compared to the ABAB design which has more within phase observations or measurements) allowing a comparison of the treatment to baseline or an alternative treatment over repeated observations (e.g., ABABABABAB and ABCBCBCBC).
Can alternating treatment phases be counterbalanced or randomized?
The alternating treatment phases can be counterbalanced or randomized. In each of these designs the researcher must attend to various features of the data, including mean changes among phases, trend, variability, and autocorrelation in the data.
How do you alternate treatments in a sequence study?
You can alternate treatments back and forth (e.g., ABABABA) or you can semirandomize the sequence, with the rule that the same treatment is not conducted more than twice, consecutively (e.g., ABBABAAB). The former has the disadvantage of possible sequence effects and the latter has the disadvantage of requiring more planning effort.
How do you conduct an alternating treatment design?
To implement an alternating treatments design, begin as usual with a brief baseline, simply to ensure that the client actually needs intervention to eat those foods. You then alternate meals back and forth between the two different treatments that you want to evaluate.
What type of assessment can the alternating treatment design be used for?
It can be used to assess generalization effects. It does not include a return to baseline. It often doesn't include a baseline to begin with.
What is an example of an alternating treatment design?
For example, a researcher comparing two methods for eliminating the disruptive classroom behavior of a student might have the teacher use one method throughout the morning and the other method throughout the afternoon and then evaluate the student's behavior with each technique.
How is experimental control determined in an alternating treatments design?
An alternating treatment design is the rapid alternation of two or more different treatments while measuring the behavior of interest. Experimental control in this type of treatment design is determined by visually analyzing the difference between the data trends of the two (or more) treatment conditions.
What do researchers need before they can say that a functional relation is demonstrated?
What do researchers need before they can say that a functional relation is demonstrated? With the changing criterion design, a functional relation is demonstrated if the individual's performance level occasionally matches the continually changing criterion for performance.
What is an ABAB study?
An ABAB research design, also called a withdrawal or reversal design, is used to determine if an intervention is effective in changing the behavior of a participant. The design has four phases denoted by A1, B1, A2, and B2. In each phase, repeated measurements of the participant's behavior are obtained.
What is a limitation of the alternating treatments design?
limitation of alternating treatment designs: o it is susceptible to multiple treatment interference, o rapid back-and-forth switching of treatments does not reflect the typical manner in which interventions are applied and may be viewed as artificial and undesirable.
How many reversals are there in an ABAB design?
1 Reversal1 Reversal or ABAB design.
Why is ABAB design typically superior to AB design?
Why is an ABAB design superior to an ABA design? The ABAB design is superior to the ABA design because a single reversal is not strong enough for the effectiveness of the treatment. Also the sequence ends with the treatment rather than with people withdrawing from the treatment.
What are the three phases of an ABA reversal design?
In a reversal design, the participant is tested in a baseline condition, then tested in a treatment condition, and then returned to baseline. If the dependent variable changes with the introduction of the treatment and then changes back with the return to baseline, this provides strong evidence of a treatment effect.
What is a reason that alternating treatments designs may have good internal validity?
The patterns of response vary with the alternating treatment conditions, so there is minimal overlap among data in the conditions and if one treatment is consistently associated with an improved level of responding, then the design demonstrates good experimental control.
How is experimental control demonstrated in a reversal design?
Experimental control is demonstrated by the repeated changes in the dependent variable with each successive introduction of the independent variable. It protects against the inability of AB - type designs to demonstrate unequivocal control by the independent variable by showing the effects at different times.
What is alternating treatment?
In a classic alternating treatments design, an experimenter rapidly alters distinct conditions to determine differential effects and functional relations between behavior and the environment. The data are then graphed with multiple line, each representing a different condition. This type of design has been used for conducting functional analysis of challenging behavior, where an experimenter rapidly alternates between different reinforcement conditions (e.g., social positive reinforcement, social negative reinforcement) to determine the maintaining variables of the challenging behavior.
What is a graph in medical research?
The graph is one that consists of multiple data paths in a single phase.
What is an alternate treatment design?
Alternating treatments design (i.e., multielement design) – the rapid alternation of comparing two or more treatments (i.e., independent variable) while measuring the effects on the target behavior (i.e., dependent variable).
What is multiple treatment interference?
Multiple treatment interference – While ATD minimizes sequence effects, it can raise questions about multiple treatment interference: confounding effects of one treatment influenced by another treatment administered at the same time.
What is single phase design?
Single-phase without a no-treatment control condition. Single-phase with two conditions, one of which is a no-treatment control condition. Two-phase design with initial baseline and treatment phase of two or more conditions (one being a no-treatment condition)
What are quantitative methods for single case design?
Multiple quantitative methods for single-case experimental design data have been applied to multiple-baseline, withdrawal, and reversal designs. The advanced data analytic techniques historically applied to single-case design data are primarily applicable to designs that involve clear sequential phases such as repeated measurement during baseline and treatment phases, but these techniques may not be valid for alternating treatment design (ATD) data where two or more treatments are rapidly alternated. Some recently proposed data analytic techniques applicable to ATD are reviewed. For ATDs with random assignment of condition ordering, the Edgington’s randomization test is one type of inferential statistical technique that can complement descriptive data analytic techniques for comparing data paths and for assessing the consistency of effects across blocks in which different conditions are being compared. In addition, several recently developed graphical representations are presented, alongside the commonly used time series line graph. The quantitative and graphical data analytic techniques are illustrated with two previously published data sets. Apart from discussing the potential advantages provided by each of these data analytic techniques, barriers to applying them are reduced by disseminating open access software to quantify or graph data from ATDs.
What is an ATD in data analysis?
Alternating treatments designs (ATDs) have received comparatively less attention than other single-case experimental designs in terms of data analysis, as most analytical proposals and illustrations have been made in the context of designs including phases with several consecutive measurements in the same condition. One of the specific features of ATDs is the rapid (and usually randomly determined) alternation of conditions, which requires adapting the analytical techniques. First, we review the methodologically desirable features of ATDs, as well as the characteristics of the published single-case research using an ATD, which are relevant for data analysis. Second, we review several existing options for ATD data analysis. Third, we propose 2 new procedures, suggested as alternatives improving some of the limitations of extant analytical techniques. Fourth, we illustrate the application of existing techniques and the new proposals in order to discuss their differences and similarities. We advocate for the use of the new proposals in ATDs, because they entail meaningful comparisons between the conditions without assumptions about the design or the data pattern. We provide R code for all computations and for the graphical representation of the comparisons involved. (PsycINFO Database Record
What is visual analysis?
Visual analysis of single-case research is commonly described as a gold standard, but it is often unreliable. Thus, an objective tool for applying visual analysis is necessary, as an alternative to the Conservative Dual Criterion, which presents some drawbacks. The proposed free web-based tool enables assessing change in trend and level between two adjacent phases, while taking data variability into account. The application of the tool results in (a) a dichotomous decision regarding the presence or absence of an immediate effect, a progressive or delayed effect, or an overall effect and (b) a quantification of overlap. The proposal is evaluated by applying it to both real and simulated data, obtaining favorable results. The visual aid and the objective rules are expected to make visual analysis more consistent, but they are not intended as a substitute for the analysts' judgment, as a formal test of statistical significance, or as a tool for assessing social validity.
What is consistency in statistics?
Consistency is one of the crucial single-case data aspects that are expected to be assessed visually, when evaluating the presence of an intervention effect. Complementarily to visual inspection, there have been recent proposals for quantifying the consistency of data patterns in similar phases and the consistency of effects for reversal, multiple-baseline, and changing criterion designs. The current text continues this line of research by focusing on alternation designs using block randomization. Specifically, three types of consistency are discussed: consistency of superiority of one condition over another, consistency of the average level across blocks, and consistency in the magnitude of the effect across blocks. The focus is put especially on the latter type of consistency, which is quantified on the basis of partitioning the variance, as attributed to the intervention, to the blocking factor or remaining as residual (including the interaction between the intervention and the blocks). Several illustrations with real and fictitious data are provided in order to make clear the meaning of the quantification proposed. Moreover, specific graphical representations are recommend for complementing the numerical assessment of consistency. A freely available user-friendly webpage is developed for implementing the proposal.