ABSTRACT
The previous Point highlighted that most complex, clinically relevant human behavior is operant in nature. To fully understand operant behavior, one must understand its function. This involves specifying, as precisely as possible, the current context that evokes the behavior, the form of the behavior itself, and the historical context that has reinforced the behavior. The process of specifying these three components of operant behavior is termed functional analysis, or, more loosely, functional assessment. To make functional analysis simple for clinicians, modern behavioral theory employs a distinct ABC model.
