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Effects of session duration on functional analysis outcomes.

M D Wallace¹, B A Iwata

¹University of Florida, Gainesville 32611, USA.

Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis

|July 9, 1999

Summary

Reducing functional analysis session duration to 10 minutes maintained assessment clarity. Shorter 5-minute sessions showed minor discrepancies, suggesting efficiency gains are possible in behavioral assessments.

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Area of Science:

Behavioral Psychology
Applied Behavior Analysis

Background:

Functional analyses are critical for assessing self-injurious and aggressive behaviors.
Standard functional analysis sessions are typically 15 minutes long.
The impact of varying session durations on functional analysis outcomes is not well-established.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate how reducing session duration affects the accuracy of functional analysis interpretations.
To determine if shorter assessment sessions can maintain diagnostic clarity for individuals with intellectual disabilities.

Main Methods:

Functional analyses were conducted with 46 individuals diagnosed with intellectual disability.
Data from 15-minute sessions were truncated to create 10-minute and 5-minute data sets.
Trained graduate students, blind to session duration, interpreted behavioral function from all data sets.

Main Results:

10-minute sessions produced identical interpretations to 15-minute sessions.
5-minute sessions resulted in three discrepancies, linked to response rate changes within sessions.
Reduced session durations appear to maintain the integrity of functional analysis outcomes.

Conclusions:

Assessment efficiency can be improved by reducing functional analysis session duration.
Shortening sessions to 10 minutes offers a viable alternative without compromising clarity.
Further research may explore optimal session durations for specific behavioral assessments.

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