RBT Task List 3rd Edition — All 43 Tasks

A. Data Collection and Graphing

Formerly the Measurement domain in the 2nd Edition

7 tasks · ~17% of the exam · 13 of 75 scored questions

A.1Describe behavior and environment in observable and measurable terms

Write what you actually saw, not what you think it meant. "Screamed for 12 seconds" is observable; "was frustrated" is an interpretation a second observer could not confirm.

A.2Prepare for data collection

Have the right datasheet, timer and materials ready before the session starts, and know which behaviors you are recording and by which procedure.

A.3Implement continuous measurement procedures

Frequency and rate, duration, latency, and inter-response time. Continuous means every occurrence in the observation period is captured.

A.4Implement discontinuous measurement procedures

Partial interval, whole interval and momentary time sampling. These sample behavior rather than capturing every instance, so each one over- or under-estimates in a predictable direction.

A.5Implement permanent-product recording procedures

Measure the lasting result of behavior instead of the behavior itself — worksheets completed, toys put away, dishes washed.

A.6Enter data and update graphs

Transfer session data accurately and on time, and plot it on the line graph your supervisor uses to make treatment decisions.

A.7Assist with interobserver agreement and data accuracy checks

Record independently alongside a second observer so agreement can be calculated, and follow procedures that keep data accurate and unbiased.

Study guide for Data Collection and Graphing · 20-question quiz

B. Behavior Assessment

Formerly the Assessment domain in the 2nd Edition

5 tasks · ~11% of the exam · 8 of 75 scored questions

B.1Assist with the assessment of the client's skills and behavior

Support the assessment process by collecting the data your supervisor specifies. Interpreting the results and designing the program are the supervisor’s job, not yours.

B.2Conduct preference assessments

Run paired-stimulus, MSWO, MSWWO, free-operant and single-stimulus assessments to identify what is likely to function as a reinforcer right now.

B.3Assist with individualized assessment procedures

Help administer curriculum-based, developmental and social-skills assessments under supervision.

B.4Assist with functional assessment procedures

Collect ABC and other descriptive data, and assist with functional analysis conditions when your supervisor directs it.

B.5Describe motivating operations and their effect on behavior

Recognise when deprivation or satiation has changed how valuable a reinforcer is, and how that changes behavior right now.

Study guide for Behavior Assessment · 15-question quiz

C. Behavior Acquisition

Formerly the Skill Acquisition domain in the 2nd Edition

10 tasks · ~25% of the exam · 19 of 75 scored questions

C.1Identify the essential components of a written skill acquisition plan

Know what a plan must tell you: target skill, definition, teaching procedure, prompting and fading, reinforcement, mastery criteria and data collection.

C.2Prepare for the session as required by the skill acquisition plan

Gather materials, arrange the environment and set up reinforcers before the client arrives so teaching time is not lost.

C.3Use contingencies of reinforcement

Deliver reinforcement contingent on the target response, on the schedule the plan specifies — including conditioned and unconditioned reinforcers.

C.4Implement discrete-trial teaching procedures

Run structured trials: SD, prompt as needed, response, consequence, then the inter-trial interval, repeated to build fluency.

C.5Implement naturalistic teaching procedures

Teach inside the client’s ongoing activity, following their motivation and using natural reinforcers — incidental teaching, NET, mand training.

C.6Implement task analysis and chaining procedures

Break a multi-step skill into its components, then teach with forward, backward or total-task chaining.

C.7Implement discrimination training

Reinforce responding in the presence of the SD and withhold it in the presence of the S-delta so the right cue comes to control the behavior.

C.8Implement prompt and prompt-fading procedures

Use prompts to make responding successful, then systematically fade them — most-to-least, least-to-most, time delay — so control transfers to the natural SD.

C.9Implement shaping procedures

Differentially reinforce successive approximations toward a terminal behavior the client cannot yet perform.

C.10Implement generalization and maintenance procedures

Make sure the skill holds up across people, settings and materials, and keeps working after teaching stops.

Study guide for Behavior Acquisition · 25-question quiz

D. Behavior Reduction

6 tasks · ~19% of the exam · 14 of 75 scored questions

D.1Identify the essential components of a written behavior reduction plan

Know what the plan must contain: operational definition, function, antecedent strategies, replacement behavior, consequence procedures and data collection.

D.2Describe common functions of behavior

Attention, escape or avoidance, access to tangibles, and automatic reinforcement — and why the same-looking behavior can serve different functions.

D.3Implement interventions based on modification of antecedents

Change what happens before the behavior: NCR, high-probability request sequences, choice, priming, and changes to motivating operations.

D.4Implement differential reinforcement procedures

DRA, DRI, DRO and DRL — reinforce one class of responding while withholding reinforcement for the problem behavior.

D.5Implement extinction procedures

Withhold the reinforcer that has been maintaining the behavior, and be ready for the extinction burst and spontaneous recovery that follow.

D.6Implement crisis and emergency procedures

Follow the written safety plan, protect the client and others, and report the incident as required.

Study guide for Behavior Reduction · 20-question quiz

E. Documentation and Reporting

Formerly the Documentation domain in the 2nd Edition

5 tasks · ~13% of the exam · 10 of 75 scored questions

E.1Report variables that might affect the client

Tell your supervisor about illness, medication changes, sleep, a new sibling, a schedule change — anything that could explain a shift in the data.

E.2Generate objective session notes for service verification

Write what happened in observable terms: what was targeted, what the data showed, what you did, without opinion or diagnosis.

E.3Comply with legal, regulatory and workplace requirements for data collection, storage, transport and documentation

Handle records the way HIPAA and your employer require — no client data on personal devices, no unsecured transport, no unauthorised disclosure.

E.4Communicate with stakeholders as authorized

Share only what you are authorised to share, with the people authorised to receive it, and refer clinical questions to your supervisor.

E.5Report data and observations accurately and in a timely manner

Submit real data, on schedule. Never reconstruct, estimate or back-fill numbers you did not actually record.

Study guide for Documentation and Reporting · 15-question quiz

F. Ethics

Formerly the Professional Conduct and Scope of Practice domain in the 2nd Edition

10 tasks · ~15% of the exam · 11 of 75 scored questions

F.1Describe the RBT's role in the service delivery system

You implement plans designed and monitored by a supervisor. You do not design, modify or interpret them.

F.2Respond appropriately to feedback and maintain or improve performance

Take supervisory feedback without defensiveness and actually change what you do in the next session.

F.3Communicate with stakeholders within the scope of the RBT role

Answer what is yours to answer and route clinical, diagnostic and prognosis questions to the supervisor.

F.4Maintain professional boundaries and avoid multiple relationships

No babysitting, no gifts of significant value, no social media connections with client families, no personal relationships that compromise objectivity.

F.5Maintain client dignity

Protect privacy, offer choice, speak about clients respectfully, and never discuss them where they or others can overhear.

F.6Comply with supervision requirements

Meet the required supervision percentage each month, including direct observation with a client, and stop practising if supervision lapses.

F.7Maintain confidentiality and comply with privacy requirements

Client information is disclosed only with authorisation — including anonymised details, which are often still identifying in a small community.

F.8Comply with the RBT Ethics Code and reporting requirements

Follow the code, and report to the BACB and to authorities where required — including mandated reporting of suspected abuse or neglect.

F.9Maintain certification requirements

Keep renewal, the annual renewal competency assessment and supervision current. An expired credential means you may not practise as an RBT.

F.10Practise within scope of competence with cultural humility and responsiveness

New in the 3rd Edition. Recognise the limits of your training, and adapt respectfully to the family’s culture, language and values.

Study guide for Ethics · 15-question quiz