Exam 13: Single-Case Evaluation Designs

A practitioner conducts a single-case evaluation to test whether a recently developed intervention is effective in reducing antisocial behaviors by children in a residential facility.During the 20 days before implementing the new intervention she observes between 15 and 17 antisocial behaviors each day.After implementing the intervention she observes between 15 and 17 antisocial behaviors each day for 19 days,but then on the twentieth day no antisocial behaviors occur.She should conclude:

It is never appropriate to conduct single-case experiments with unstable baselines.

Although AB designs offer the least control for history,they are often worth doing.

Which of the following statements is/are true about ambiguities in the visual significance of single-case design outcomes?

Explain what is accomplished by replicating single-case designs.One part of your answer should address internal validity; another part should address external validity.

Explain why it is important to obtain a stable baseline,if possible.Explain your answer in connection to threats to internal validity.

Most social work target problems or goals cannot be defined in operational terms.

The ability to construct a retrospective baseline is one of the advantages of using available records.

Suppose you wish to measure progress in increasing the amount of time a child in institutional care spends studying as an indicator of the effectiveness of your group work intervention.Which of the following approaches most likely would be least vulnerable to reactivity problems?

B and B+ designs have value in the evidence-based practice process despite lacking a baseline phase.

Self-monitoring is an example of obtrusive observation.

Which of the following approaches would be least obtrusive in regard to measuring the impact of the above group work intervention on school performance?

A practitioner tests whether a new technique will be effective in reducing the number of time-outs required in play therapy sessions for children with conduct disorders.In each of the two sessions before implementing the new technique,five time-outs occurred.In each of the two sessions after implementing the new technique,no time-outs occurred.The practitioner should conclude:

If the target problem improves at any point during the intervention phase,it is safe to infer that the intervention is effective.

Target problems can be quantified in terms of their

If a self-report scale has high reliability and validity in group research,we can assume it will have equally high reliability and validity in single-case experiments.

In single-case experiments,direct observation is always better than using self-report scales or available records.

What would you infer from the following graph?

The term research reactivity means that

For most clinical social work situations there are multiple ways to operationally define target problems or objectives for research purposes.