Which research method focuses on observing and analyzing the behavior of individual subjects to infer intervention effects?

Which research method focuses on observing and analyzing the behavior of individual subjects to infer intervention effects?

• A. Punishment
• B. Extinction
• C. Single-Subject Research
• D. Functional Analysis

Answer: (C)

Single-subject research focuses on observing and analyzing the behavior of one or a few individuals across different conditions or over time to determine the effect of an intervention. By gathering many repeated measurements within the same subject, you can show a functional relation—the target behavior changes in a predictable way when the intervention is applied, withdrawn, or modified. This design emphasizes within-subject data and experimental control, allowing you to infer that the intervention caused the observed change rather than attributing it to external factors. Punishment and extinction are intervention procedures, not the study design itself, and functional analysis aims to identify environmental variables that maintain a behavior, which is a different purpose within the same field.

Single-subject research focuses on observing and analyzing the behavior of one or a few individuals across different conditions or over time to determine the effect of an intervention. By gathering many repeated measurements within the same subject, you can show a functional relation—the target behavior changes in a predictable way when the intervention is applied, withdrawn, or modified. This design emphasizes within-subject data and experimental control, allowing you to infer that the intervention caused the observed change rather than attributing it to external factors. Punishment and extinction are intervention procedures, not the study design itself, and functional analysis aims to identify environmental variables that maintain a behavior, which is a different purpose within the same field.