Aba Whitebook Ch. 5

Front 1

accuracy (of measurement)

Back 1

The extent to which observed values, the data produced by measuring an event, match the true state, or true values, of the event as it exists in nature. (See observed value and true value)

Front 2

Believability

Back 2

The extent to which the researcher convinces herself and others that the data are trustworthy and deserve interpretation. Measures of interobserver agreement (IOA) are the most often used index of believability in applied behavior analysis (See interobserver agreement, IOA)

Front 3

Calibration

Back 3

Any procedure used to evaluate the accuracy of a measurement system and, when sources of error are found, to use that information to correct or improve the measurement system

Front 4

continuous measurement

Back 4

measurement conducted in a manner such that all instances of the response class(es) of interest are detected during the observation period.

Front 5

direct measurement

Back 5

occurs when the behavior that is measured is the same as the behavior that is the focus of the investigation

Front 6

discontinuous measurement

Back 6

measurement conducted in a manner such that some instances of the response class(es) of interest may not be detected

Front 7

exact count-per-interval IOA

Back 7

the percentage of total intervals in which two observers recorded the same count; the most stringest description of IOA for most data sets obtained by event recording

Front 8

indirect measurement

Back 8

occurs when the behavior that is measured is in some way different from the behavior of interest; considered less valid than direct measurement because inferences about the realtion between the data obtained and the actual behavior of interest are required

Front 9

interobserver agreement (IOA)

Back 9

the degree to which two or more independent observers report the same observed values after measuring the same events

Front 10

interval-by-interval IOA

Back 10

an index of the agreement between observers for data obtained by interval recording or time sampling measurement

Front 11

mean count-per-interval IOA

Back 11

average percentage of agreement between the counts reported by two observers in a measurement period comprised of a series of smaller counting times; a more conservative measure of IOA than total count IOA

Front 12

mean duration-per-occurrence IOA

Back 12

an IOA index for duration per occurrence data; also a more conservative and usually more meaningful assessment of IOA for total duration data calculated for a given session or measurement period by computing the average percentage of agreement of the durations reported by two observers for each occurrence of the target behavior

Front 13

measurement bias

Back 13

nonrandom measurement error; a form of inaccurate measurement in which the data consistently overestimate or underestimate the true value of an event

Front 14

naïve observer

Back 14

an observer who is unaware of the study's purpose and/or the experimental conditions in effect during a given phase or observation period. Data obtained by a naïve observer are less likely to be influenced by observers' expectations

Front 15

observed value

Back 15

a measure produced by an observation and measurement system. Observed values serve as the data that the researcher and others will interpret to form conclusions about an infestigation

Front 16

observer drift

Back 16

any unintended change in the way an observer uses a measurement system over the course of an investigation that results in measurement error; often entails a shift in the observer's interpretation of the original definitions of the target behavior subsequent to being trained.

Front 17

observer reactivity

Back 17

influence on the data reported by an observer that results from the observer's awareness that others are evaluating the data he reports.

Front 18

reliability

Back 18

refers to the consitency of measurement, specifically, the extent to which repeated measurement of the same event yields the same values

Front 19

scored-interval IOA

Back 19

interobserver agreement index based on on the intervals in which either observer recorded the occurrence of the behavior

Front 20

total count IOA

Back 20

simplest indicator of IOA for event recording data

Front 21

total duration IOA

Back 21

relevant index of IOA for total duration measurement

Front 22

trial-by-trial IOA

Back 22

an IOA index for discrete trial data based on comparing the observers' counts (0 or 1) on a trial-by-trial basis; yields a more conservative and meaningful index of IOA for DT data than does total count IOA

Front 23

true value

Back 23

measure accepted as a quantitative description of the true state of some dimensional quantity of an event as it exists in nature

Front 24

unscored-interval IOA

Back 24

interobserver agreement index based only on the intervals in which either observer recorded the nonoccurrence of the behavior

Front 25

validity

Back 25

extent to which data obtained from measurement are directly relevant to the target behavior of interest and to the reason for measuring it