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In Part Two we described considerations and procedures for selecting and defin- ing target behaviors and discussed detailed methods for measuring behavior; we also examined techniques for improving, assessing, and reporting the veracity of measurement. The product of these measurements, called data, is the medium with which the behavior analyst works. But what does the behavior analyst do with the data? The five chapters in Part Three are devoted to the presentation and interpretation of behavioral data and to the design, conduct, and evaluation of ex- periments analyzing the effects of interventions.

In Chapter 6 we describe the graphic displays used by researchers, practi- tioners, and consumers to make sense of behavioral data. We discuss considera- tions for selecting, constructing, and interpreting the major types of graphs most often used by behavior analysts. Although measurement and graphic displays can reveal whether, when, and to what extent behavior has changed, they alone can- not reveal what brought about the behavior change. Chapters 7 through 10 are devoted to the analysis in applied behavior analysis. Chapter 7 describes the req- uisite components of any experiment in behavior analysis and explains how re- searchers and practitioners apply steady-state strategy and the three elements of basic logic—prediction, verification, and replication—-to seek and verify func- tional relations between behavior and its controlling variables. In Chapters 8 and 9 we describe the logic and operation of the reversal, alternating treatments, multiple baseline, and changing criterion designs—the most commonly used experimental designs in applied behavior analysis. Chapter 10 covers a wide range of topics necessary for developing a more complete understanding of be- havioral research. Beginning with the assumption that the research methods of any science should reflect the characteristics of its subject matter, we examine the importance of analyzing behavior at the level of individual client or research par- ticipant, discuss the value of flexibility in experimental design, identify some common confounds to the internal validity of experiments, present methods for assessing the social validity of an applied behavior analysis, and describe how replication is used to determine the external validity of research. We conclude Chapter 10 and Part Three with a series of issues and questions that should be considered in evaluating the “goodness” of a published study in applied behavior analysis.

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