Abstract
Behavioral assessment is a multimethod approach for gathering information about behavior using procedures that are both empirically validated and developmentally sensitive (Ollendick & Hersen, 1984). In contrast to traditional assessment methods, behavioral assessment emphasizes environmental and organismic control over behavior, reliance on the direct observation of behavior and subsequent deemphasis on inference, consideration of temporal and contextual bases within which the target behavior is embedded (Mash & Terdal, 1981), and the use of multiple assessment methods. The purposes of behavioral assessment are twofold: (1) to aid treatment plnning by providing predictive information with respect to the potential efficacy of one intervention over another, and (2) to monitor and evaluate the effects of the intervention, once implemented.
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Powers, M.D. (1988). Behavioral Assessment of Autism. In: Schopler, E., Mesibov, G.B. (eds) Diagnosis and Assessment in Autism. Current Issues in Autism. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4899-0792-9_10
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