Practice question
Concepts and Principles

Stimulus and stimulus class: Stimulus control, discrimination, and generalization.

Original BCBA scenario practice question with answer explanation and wrong-choice notes.

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Question

Difficulty: medium. Skill: apply. Type: concept discrimination.

In a home program, child's dropping to the floor when demands are presented changes after a specific antecedent and consequence arrangement. Which analysis best matches stimulus and stimulus class? The case file includes 2 recent sessions, 1 implementer, and 3 settings.

A
Base the decision on the descriptive label for dropping to the floor when demands are presented and bypass stimulus and stimulus class
B
Use a familiar protocol even though it does not address stimulus control, discrimination, and generalization
C
Analyze the antecedent conditions and whether responding occurs across trained and untrained stimuli in relation to child's dropping to the floor when demands are presented

Correct answer

D
Rely on parent's report alone and stop collecting direct evidence

Explanation

Answer C

The clue is the combination of caregiver notes plus one direct observation, dropping to the floor when demands are presented, and the required task: Stimulus and stimulus class. The case file includes 2 recent sessions, 1 implementer, and 3 settings. Analyze the antecedent conditions and whether responding occurs across trained and untrained stimuli in relation to child's dropping to the floor when demands are presented is best because it answers that clue through stimulus control, discrimination, and generalization instead of treating the scenario as a generic behavior problem. On exam items like this, name the decision point first, then eliminate options that rely on one report, a label, a familiar protocol, or an action that skips the relevant data check.

Why this question is hard

Clue
Key scenario clue

The clue is the combination of caregiver notes plus one direct observation, dropping to the floor when demands are presented, and the required task: Stimulus and stimulus class. The case file includes 2 recent sessions, 1 implementer, and 3 settings.

Trap
Common trap

This is weaker because the label does not answer the Stimulus and stimulus class decision point or test Stimulus control, discrimination, and generalization.

Next
If you missed it, review Motivating operations versus discriminative stimuli

Then answer a few related scenarios before moving back to broad practice.

Why the other choices are weaker

A
Choice A

This is weaker because the label does not answer the Stimulus and stimulus class decision point or test Stimulus control, discrimination, and generalization.

B
Choice B

A familiar protocol is not enough unless it matches the assessed variables and the current decision question.

D
Choice D

Stakeholder input matters, but direct data, context, and integrity checks are still needed for a defensible answer.

Study tags

Stimulus control, discrimination, and generalizationStimulus and stimulus classstimulus controldiscrimination

Turn this into a study plan

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Related study guides

GuideDistractor patternsUse this if the wrong answer sounded plausible.GuideMissed-question reviewUse this if you want to turn the miss into a study rule.GuideScore plateau guideUse this if similar mistakes keep repeating.

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Question FAQ

What BCBA domain does this question cover?

This practice question is tagged to Concepts and Principles. It also includes study tags for Stimulus control, discrimination, and generalization, Stimulus and stimulus class, stimulus control, discrimination.

How should I review this practice question?

Answer the scenario before reading the explanation, compare your reasoning with the correct answer, then review why the distractors are weaker.

Is this an official BACB exam question?

No. This is an original study question for BCBA Scenario Tutor and is not an official BACB exam item.

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