Test-specific control conditions for functional analyses.
Drop DRO as a control condition when negative reinforcement is suspected; use ignore or alone instead.
01Research in Context
What this study did
The team ran a single-case test of three control conditions used in functional analysis. They compared ignore, alone, and differential reinforcement of other behavior (DRO) with kids whose problem behavior was maintained by either positive or negative reinforcement.
What they found
All three controls worked when the behavior was kept going by attention or tangibles. But when the behavior was kept going by escape from demands, DRO failed. Ignore and alone still worked as controls in those cases.
How this fits with other research
Sorrell et al. (2025) extends these findings by showing teachers can learn to run trial-based FAs after watching short videos. Their work builds on the 2013 control-condition rules you just read.
Ferron et al. (2017) offers a method tip: use masked visual analysis with response-guided phase extension when you graph your next FA. This keeps false positives under 5 %.
Verriden et al. (2019) looks at the next step—what to do after the FA shows automatic reinforcement. They found NCR plus DRA alone failed, so they added a punisher. Together the papers give you a full road map: pick the right control, then pick the right consequence.
Why it matters
Next time you suspect escape-maintained behavior, skip DRO as your control. Run ignore or alone instead. You will get a clearer test and avoid a false negative. This small switch saves sessions and gets your treatment plan moving faster.
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Join Free →Open your last five FA graphs—if you used DRO with escape behavior, re-run the escape condition with an ignore control.
02At a glance
03Original abstract
Most functional analyses of problem behavior include a common condition (play or noncontingent reinforcement) as a control for both positive and negative reinforcement. However, test-specific conditions that control for each potential source of reinforcement may be beneficial occasionally. We compared responding during alone, ignore, play, and differential reinforcement of other behavior (DRO) control conditions for individuals whose problem behavior was maintained by positive or negative reinforcement. Results showed that all of the conditions were effective controls for problem behavior maintained by positive reinforcement; however, the DRO condition was consistently ineffective as a control for problem behavior maintained by negative reinforcement. Implications for the design of functional analyses and future research are discussed.
Journal of applied behavior analysis, 2013 · doi:10.1002/jaba.9