Instant Behavioral Pharmacology: How to Conduct a Multiple-Baseline Experiment with Animals in under an Hour
Run a full multiple-baseline lab in one class period with planarians and light/dark transitions—no IACUC needed.
01Research in Context
What this study did
The author built a 60-minute lab using tiny flatworms called planarians.
Students watch three worm behaviors under light and dark.
They then give caffeine drops and see which behaviors change first.
No animal board approval is needed because the worms are returned to their tank alive.
What they found
The demo fits a full multiple-baseline design into one class period.
Students see clear shifts in movement, feeding, and light-avoidance after caffeine.
The setup costs under five dollars and uses only a phone camera and desk lamp.
How this fits with other research
Cihon et al. (2021) showed a 15-minute video can teach BCBAs to graph multiple-baseline data.
Byrne (2025) gives the matching hands-on demo to create that data in the same time.
Lanovaz et al. (2017) warn you need at least three A points and five B points to trust dual-criteria tests.
The worm lab meets these rules by giving six baseline points per behavior, so students learn both speed and rigor.
Manolov (2026) offers free web tools to analyze the graphs after class.
Why it matters
You can run this lab next Monday to teach staff or parents how multiple-baseline works.
They will leave with a live memory of staggered baselines and clear effects.
Use it as a bridge before asking them to read real client graphs.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
Acquiring proficiency with single-case experimental designs is a critical part of behavior-analytic training. Here, I describe a simple multiple baseline-design experiment that can be conducted during a single classroom meeting using planarians as an animal model. Planarians, aquatic flatworms, are inexpensive to acquire and maintain, and they are often exempt from Institutional Animal Use and Care Committee oversight, making them ideal subjects for laboratory experimentation. The classroom demonstration takes advantage of the flatworm’s reliable movement from a lighted to a dark side of a Petri dish. This negative phototaxis results in reasonably stable baselines against which the behavioral effects of drugs may be tested. The procedures are flexible, and I describe several possible extensions for both training and research. Following the procedures described, students gain firsthand experience in experimental design, graphing, and data analysis. The activity also serves students as an empirical introduction to behavioral pharmacology.
Perspectives on Behavior Science, 2025 · doi:10.1007/s40614-025-00465-1