ABSTRACT
It is a bedrock principle of behavior analysis that it is necessary to “take a baseline” before any treatment is contemplated. ‹e reasons are not so obvious to outsiders, and the methodology by which it is accomplished is out of the reach of most other professions. For us, taking a baseline means many things, including the following:
• A referral has been made of a behavior that is problematic. • ‹e behavior is observable and has been operationally
de—ned in some manner that allows quanti—cation. • A trained observer has visited the setting where the behav-
ior occurs and has documented the occurrence and the circumstances under which it occurs (this indicates that the referral is legitimate, that the problem is measurable, and that the behavior may or may not require treatment, depending on what the graphs of the data show).
