A Guide to Collecting and Using Data Neil H. Schwartz, Ph.D. 7/13/11

What is data and why take it? Data is the measurement of key aspects of behavior. We measure these key aspects in order to understand the behavior. Data can tell us: Where behavior occurs. What situations trigger a behavior. If a behavior is part of a sequence that forms a behavioral chain. If a behavior is changing toward, or away from, the expected direction. Data is one of the strongest tools for making change. 7/13/11

What are the Aspects of Behavior? Frequency Duration Intensity Latency 7/13/11

What is Frequency? Hitting How many times John hits others. Biting How many times John bites others Pulling Hair How many times John pulls the hair of someone else. The frequency of a behavior tells us how often a behavior occurs. To measure frequency, you simply count the number of times the behavior occurs. 7/13/11

What is Duration? The duration of a behavior tells us how long a behavior lasts. Yelling When John yells, how long does it last? Howling When John howls, how long does it last? Eating When John eats, how long does it take him to finish his plate? To measure duration, you simply count the amount of time the behavior last when it occurs. 7/13/11

What is Intensity? The intensity of a behavior tells us how strong the behavior is. Yelling When John yells, how loud is it? Hitting When John hits, how strong is it? Exercising When John exercises, how much effort does he put into it? To measure intensity, you simply make a scale, and rate the behavior on the scale. 7/13/11

Getting up in the morning What is Latency? The latency of a behavior tells us how long it takes for a behavior to begin after the antecedent is presented. Cleaning up When John is asked to clean up, how long does it take him to begin? Turning off the TV When John is asked to turn off the TV, how long does it take him to comply? Getting up in the morning When John is awakened in the morning, how long does it take him to get out of bed? To measure latency, you simply measure the time between the antecedent and the occurrence of the behavior. 7/13/11

How would we Measure frequency? Frequency is the easiest aspect of behavior to measure. To measure, you simply designate whether the behavior was observed. There are several ways we try to make the measurement of behavioral frequency easy. We typically ask you to either: Circle symbols Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday x x x x x x x x x x x x Make hash marks Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday ///// /// // ////// /////// 7/13/11

If we graph the frequency data we collected… It would look like this: 7/13/11

How would we Measure duration? Duration is a little trickier to measure than frequency. To measure duration, you could measure the time a behavior lasts. But, this would require you to use a stopwatch or keep your eye on a clock. The problem is: Stopwatches are no fun because they are a hassle to use. Watching a clock can be very distracting. So, there are several ways we try to make the measurement of behavioral duration easy. We can ask you to: Record start and stop time of the behavior by looking at a clock when the behavior starts and looking at the clock again when the behavior stops. Use momentary time sampling. Use interval sampling. We typically ask you to use: Clock start and stop time. Interval sampling. 7/13/11

What is interval sampling? 7/13/11

Let’s say we measured “yelling” over a 2-hour period in the morning. Time Interval Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday 8:00-8:10 Y N 8:10-8:20 8:20-8:40 8:40-8:50 8:50-9:00 9:00-9:10 9:10-9:20 9:20-9:30 9:30-9:40 9:40-9:50 9:50-10:00 Let’s say we measured “yelling” over a 2-hour period in the morning. 7/13/11

What does this recording tell us? 7/13/11

Time Interval Y N 8:00-8:10 8:10-8:20 8:20-8:30 8:20-8:40 8:40-8:50 Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday 8:00-8:10 Y N 8:10-8:20 8:20-8:30 8:20-8:40 8:40-8:50 8:50-9:00 9:00-9:10 9:10-9:20 9:20-9:30 9:30-9:40 9:40-9:50 9:50-10:00 6/12 = 50% 5/12 = 42% 4/12 = 33% 3/12 = 25% 1/12 = 8% 60 min. in a 2 hr. period 50 min. in a 2 hr. period 40 min. in a 2 hr. period 30 min. in a 2 hr. period 10 min. in a 2 hr. period 7/13/11

If we graph the interval duration data we collected… It would look like this: Amount of time yelling 7/13/11

If we graph the duration data we collected in another way… It would look like this: Amount of time yelling 7/13/11

If we graph the duration data we collected in a third way… It would look like this: 40% of yelling occurs on Monday and Tuesday 20% of yelling occurs on the weekend Yelling drops in half from the beginning to the end of the week 7/13/11

How would we Measure Intensity? Intensity of behavior is easy to measure. All you need is a measuring scale. Once you have the scale, you simply observe the behavior and assign a value from the scale. We make up the scale for you, and ask you to assign a value from the scale as soon as the behavior is ended. Consider the scales on the next slide… 7/13/11

These are examples of intensity scales One is a scale to measure mood: Another is a scale to measure the severity of tantrums: -2 -3 -1 +2 +1 +3 Extremely Happy Sad Neutral 2 1 3 4 5 Moderate Severe Mild 7/13/11

What do you do to measure intensity? Collecting data is very straightforward You simply: Observe the behavior Wait for it to end Assign a number from the scale Record the number in the empty cell Let’s look at the data collection example on the next slide… 7/13/11

-2 -3 -1 +2 +1 +3 Extremely Happy Sad Neutral +1 -2 -1 +2 +3 -3 +2 +1 +3 Extremely Happy Sad Neutral Time of Day Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday 8-9 AM +1 -2 -1 +2 +3 9-10 AM 10-11 AM 11-12 PM 12-1 PM 1-2 PM 2-3 PM 3-4 PM 4-5 PM 5-6 PM -3 7/13/11

What do the data tell us? 7/13/11

Let’s do a little math on the data. Time of Day Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday 8-9 AM +1 -2 -1 +2 +3 9-10 AM 10-11 AM 11-12 PM 12-1 PM 1-2 PM 2-3 PM 3-4 PM 4-5 PM 5-6 PM -3 Mean .4 .3 .5 .3 .5 .2 .1 -.2 -.3 -.4 Mean .4 -.9 -1.9 -.2 1.5 2.0 .4 Let’s do a little math on the data. 7/13/11

What can we see when these mood data are graphed? 7/13/11

What does our client’s mood look like over the week? 7/13/11

What does our client’s mood look like during the day? 7/13/11

Why are graphs so important? Graphs tell a story; They give us the big picture. They reveal trends. They allow us to identify where interventions should be placed. They allow us to see improvements where we would otherwise see none. They can pinpoint difficult-to-notice antecedents. They can tell us when an intervention should be changed. 7/13/11

Let’s take a look at some real graphs These graphs are From real consumers at CVI. Based on real data. See what you learn about these consumers… 7/13/11

Some real data… What do the data reveal. 7/13/11

What does this tell you? 7/13/11

What does this tell you? 7/13/11

And this? What does this show? 7/13/11

And this? What does this show? 7/13/11

And Finally: What does this show? 7/13/11