Researcher: Mathew Gwangwaa
Institution: Walden University
Purpose of the Study:
You are invited to take part in a research study comparing implementation of Traditional Functional Assessment (FBA) Vs Practical Functional Assessment (PFA). This study aims to capture practitioners’ opinions on the efficiency, resource requirements, and social validity of both assessment models when helping people with difficult behaviors across settings.
The goal is to assess the relative strengths and constraints of PFA and FBA across service environments by means of insights gathered from Board Certified Behavior Analyzes (BCBAs) and Board-Certified Assistant Behavior Analyzes (BCaBAs). Your comments will help professionals in applied behavior analysis to have a better knowledge of the choices, application, and interpretation of assessment tools.
The study targets a sample size of roughly 50–100 participants, uses a quantitative, survey-based, non-experimental design employing a correlational approach. This sample size guarantees statistical relevance and meaningful interpretation of results by matching accepted criteria for survey research.
Your participation is voluntary; you are free to save a copy of this consent form for your records.
Eligibility Criteria
You are eligible to participate in this study if you:
- Are a BCBA, BCBA-D, or BCaBA with experience using FBA in practice.
- Have heard of or used PFA, even in limited capacity or training in any setting.
Procedures
If you agree to participate, you will complete a 47-item anonymous online survey that will take approximately 15–20 minutes to complete. The survey includes:
- Section 1: Demographics and background
- Section 2: Frequency and context of FBA and PFA use
- Section 3: Perceived effectiveness of both methods for specific behaviors
- Section 4: Feasibility and practicality of implementation
- Section 5: Ethical and contextual considerations
- Section 6: Open-ended reflections and clinical observations
You will also be asked whether you have received formal training in PFA, and whether you have applied it in your practice.
Confidentiality
This survey is completely anonymous. No personal identifiers such as name, email, address, or contact information will be collected. Your responses will be securely stored in a password-protected file accessible only to the principal researcher and dissertation committee. Results will be reported in aggregate form only.
Voluntary Participation
Your participation in this study is entirely voluntary. You may decline to answer any question or withdraw from the survey at any point before submission without penalty or consequence.
Risks and Benefits
Your involvement in this research poses no known or predictable hazards. All answers will be kept private; you are not asked to provide any sensitive personal data or identifying information.
Although there are no direct personal gains from taking part, your professional behavior analysis expertise could be quite valuable for the field. The results of this study seek to improve knowledge of the relative strengths of Practical Functional Assessment (PFA) and Traditional Functional Behavior Assessment (FBA) as applied across settings, and particularly to persons with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (IDD) and comorbid dementia. Your observations could enable better ethical and effective application of these tools in aging populations, to produce more individualized, effective, and socially appropriate services. In the end, this can help to lower the caregiver burden in clinical and home-based environments and support better outcomes for the people served.