Single Subject Designs

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Single Subject Designs

• Chapter 9

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• Historically, used a lot
• What kinds of questions can be answered
• Good in clinical work and neuroscience

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Advantages

• Average picture could be distortion
• Large samples increases likelihood of finding
  significant effect
• Issue of power
• Ethical considerations
• Flexibility in design

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Disadvantages

• Some effects are too small
• Lack of control
• Not as sophisticated statistical analyses
• Some effects are between-subject effects

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Types of Designs Case Study

• Advantages
• Source of ideas
• Opportunity for clinical innovation
• Study rare phenomena
• Challenge theoretical assumptions
• Offer tentative support for a theory
• Disadvantages
• Difficulty drawing cause-effect conclusions
• Bias in interpretation
• Bias in data collection
• Problem generalizing

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Applied Behavior Analysis

• Single case in experimental analysis
• Operant conditioning
• Behavior modification or behavior therapy

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Single Case Experiment

• Manipulate an IV typically no treatment vs
  treatment
• Must get baseline level of behavior of interest
  before presenting treatment
• ABAB or reversal design where A is baseline and B
  is treatment
• Ethically, may not go back to baseline
• Multiple baseline design across individuals,
  behaviors, or situations