The Practical Importance of the Distinction Between Open and Closed-Ended Indirect Assessments

Fryling et al. (2016) wrote a how-to paper, not an experiment.

They looked at the wording we use in indirect FBA tools.

The authors split questions into open-ended ("Tell me what happens...") and closed-ended ("Does he hit for attention? Yes/No").

They then spelled out when each style helps or hurts your assessment.

Open questions catch details you did not think to ask for.

Closed questions give fast, easy-to-score answers that line up across parents, teachers, and staff.

Picking the wrong style can waste time or miss the real function.

The paper gives a simple rule: choose open for depth, closed for speed and match.

Finney et al. (1995) warned that yes/no questions create "say-yes" bias in people with intellectual disability. Fryling’s warning about closed FBA items echoes this risk.

Ng et al. (2019) showed parent ratings and objective tests can tell opposite stories. Fryling adds that even two parent questionnaires can clash if one is open and the other closed.

Antaki (2013) found that gentle follow-up after open questions helps adults with ID talk more. This supports Fryling’s point that open FBA items often need extra probing to pay off.

Kang et al. (2013) reviewed preference assessments and noted format effects on validity. Fryling narrows the lens to functional-assessment interviews and gives pick-and-choose guidance.

Next time you email a FBA checklist, glance at the item style. If every question is yes/no, add one open box at the end: "Anything else that triggers the problem?" You may hear about a setting event you never listed. The five-minute tweak can save hours of wrong guesses later.