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BCBA task list checklist

What is on the BCBA task list, and how do I track what I have studied?

The current BCBA exam is built on the Test Content Outline (6th ed.), which organizes examinable content into nine domains: philosophical foundations, concepts and principles, measurement and data display, experimental design, ethics, behavior assessment, behavior-change procedures, selecting and implementing interventions, and personnel supervision. This checklist lets you rate your confidence on every topic and shows which domains need the most study, and a built-in AI study coach reads your ratings so you can ask what to study first, have a concept explained in plain language, or check your own explanation of it. Your progress saves in your browser — no account needed until you want to keep it permanently.

Written by Operation Optimize editorial team

Rules version 2026.08 · Verified against the BACB source on 2026-08-17

Editorial policyCorrections policy

Rate your confidence in each topic

Your ratings stay in this browser until you choose to save them. Nothing is scored or sent anywhere.

0 of 46 answered

ABehaviorism and philosophical foundations

The assumptions and philosophy of behavior analysis that everything else rests on.

The goals of behavior analysis as a science: description, prediction and control
The philosophical assumptions of behavior analysis, including determinism and empiricism
How behaviorism differs from mentalistic and cognitive explanations of behavior
The dimensions of applied behavior analysis and what makes work 'applied'
Radical behaviorism and the role of private events in a behavioral account

Ask the coach about A. Behaviorism and philosophical foundations

Coaching is study support only. It is not supervision or clinical direction, it never writes behavior plans, and it never reproduces exam content. Check anything official against the BACB handbook.

BConcepts and principles

The core vocabulary: reinforcement, punishment, stimulus control, motivating operations and more.

Respondent and operant conditioning and how they differ
Positive and negative reinforcement and punishment, with examples of each
Schedules of reinforcement and their characteristic response patterns
Stimulus control, discrimination, generalization and stimulus equivalence
Motivating operations and how they alter the value of consequences
Verbal behavior and the elementary verbal operants

Ask the coach about B. Concepts and principles

Coaching is study support only. It is not supervision or clinical direction, it never writes behavior plans, and it never reproduces exam content. Check anything official against the BACB handbook.

CMeasurement, data display and interpretation

Choosing measures, graphing data, and judging whether data are trustworthy.

Selecting measurement procedures: frequency, duration, latency, IRT and interval systems
Measurement threats: reactivity, drift, bias and measurement artifact
Interobserver agreement: how to calculate it and what affects it
Graphing conventions and how to read level, trend and variability
Using visual inspection to decide whether behavior is changing

Ask the coach about C. Measurement, data display and interpretation

Coaching is study support only. It is not supervision or clinical direction, it never writes behavior plans, and it never reproduces exam content. Check anything official against the BACB handbook.

DExperimental design

Demonstrating functional relations with single-case designs.

The logic of single-case experimental designs versus group designs
Reversal, multiple-baseline, multielement and changing-criterion designs
Internal validity: what threats each design controls
Choosing a design that fits the question, setting and ethical constraints

Ask the coach about D. Experimental design

Coaching is study support only. It is not supervision or clinical direction, it never writes behavior plans, and it never reproduces exam content. Check anything official against the BACB handbook.

EEthical and professional issues

The Ethics Code for Behavior Analysts applied to everyday decisions.

Responsibility as a professional: integrity, competence and multiple relationships
Responsibility in practice: consent, assent, and least-restrictive procedures
Responsibility to clients and stakeholders: confidentiality, billing and documentation
Supervision responsibilities and the ethics of delegating to trainees and RBTs
Responding to ethical violations and using a decision-making framework

Ask the coach about E. Ethical and professional issues

Coaching is study support only. It is not supervision or clinical direction, it never writes behavior plans, and it never reproduces exam content. Check anything official against the BACB handbook.

FBehavior assessment

From referral to hypothesis: preference, skill and functional assessment.

Conducting preference assessments and interpreting their results
Skill-based assessment and identifying instructional targets
Indirect and descriptive functional behavior assessment methods
Functional analysis: conditions, interpretation and precautions
Writing operational definitions and measurable goals from assessment results

Ask the coach about F. Behavior assessment

Coaching is study support only. It is not supervision or clinical direction, it never writes behavior plans, and it never reproduces exam content. Check anything official against the BACB handbook.

GBehavior-change procedures

The intervention toolkit: acquisition, reduction, prompting and generalization strategies.

Reinforcement-based procedures: differential reinforcement, token economies, self-management
Antecedent interventions: NCR, high-probability sequences, demand fading
Extinction and punishment-based procedures, and their side effects
Prompting, prompt fading and errorless teaching procedures
Shaping, chaining and discrete-trial versus naturalistic teaching
Programming for generalization and maintenance from the start

Ask the coach about G. Behavior-change procedures

Coaching is study support only. It is not supervision or clinical direction, it never writes behavior plans, and it never reproduces exam content. Check anything official against the BACB handbook.

HSelecting and implementing interventions

Choosing the right procedure and making sure it is actually delivered as planned.

Selecting interventions based on assessment results, evidence and client context
Considering social validity, acceptability and client assent in treatment selection
Writing intervention plans others can implement consistently
Monitoring treatment integrity and responding when fidelity drops
Making data-based decisions to continue, modify or fade an intervention

Ask the coach about H. Selecting and implementing interventions

Coaching is study support only. It is not supervision or clinical direction, it never writes behavior plans, and it never reproduces exam content. Check anything official against the BACB handbook.

IPersonnel supervision and management

Training, supervising and evaluating the people who deliver services.

Establishing supervision relationships: contracts, scope and expectations
Behavioral skills training: instruction, modeling, rehearsal and feedback
Delivering performance feedback that changes behavior
Evaluating supervisee performance and documenting supervision activities
Function-based approaches to improving staff performance

Ask the coach about I. Personnel supervision and management

Coaching is study support only. It is not supervision or clinical direction, it never writes behavior plans, and it never reproduces exam content. Check anything official against the BACB handbook.

A preparation and planning aid. It is not the official BACB competency assessment, not proof of certification eligibility, and not a substitute for a qualified assessor. Official BCBA requirements and Test Content Outline

How it is calculated

Each topic on the outline is rewritten here in plain, original language and grouped under its domain, so you can rate it in seconds.

You rate each topic from 'not yet studied' to 'exam-ready'. The summary ranks your weakest domains first and suggests a concrete next step for each.

The AI coach box under each domain already knows how you rated that domain, so you can ask an open question — 'why do I keep confusing negative reinforcement and punishment?' — and get an answer aimed at your gaps rather than a generic definition, plus one follow-up question to test yourself.

The coach is study support only. It explains concepts, checks your reasoning and suggests what to review; it does not write behavior plans, treatment goals or clinical recommendations.

Supervisors can switch to a supervision mode that reframes the same checklist as a trainee-competence rating, with a summary formatted for supervision notes and coaching answers written for a supervisor.

Your ratings stay in this browser. Choosing 'Save my progress' creates a free account and stores the checklist as a self-recorded note you can update as you study.

Worked example

  1. A candidate three months from their exam date rates all 44 topics.
  2. Measurement and experimental design come out lowest, both averaging 'familiar'.
  3. They ask the coach 'what should I study first in measurement?' and get a ranked answer built from those ratings, ending with a question to answer back.
  4. The checklist suggests graphing a week of real data and sketching a design for one current client goal.
  5. They copy the summary into their study planner and return weekly to re-rate.

Result: A ranked study-priority list, with a coach to explain the parts that are not landing, instead of re-reading the outline front to back.

Official sources and effective dates

Cross-checked against published sources on 2026-08-17. These pages summarize publicly published certification requirements and are not certification advice — always confirm current requirements with the certifying body.

Related questions

Is the BCBA task list the same as the Test Content Outline?
The Test Content Outline replaced what earlier editions called the task list. It defines the content the BCBA examination assesses. The 6th edition applies to examinations from 2025 onward; always confirm the current edition in the BCBA Handbook.
How many domains are on the BCBA exam content outline?
Nine, lettered A through I — from behaviorism and philosophical foundations through personnel supervision and management.
Is this the official BACB content outline?
No. This is an original, plain-language study checklist organized around the same nine domains. It is a preparation aid, not the official document — download the current Test Content Outline from bacb.com for the authoritative wording.
Can a supervisor use this with a trainee?
Yes. Switching to supervision mode reframes every item as a demonstrated-competence rating and formats the summary for supervision notes.
Do my ratings get saved?
They save automatically in your browser. To keep them permanently and update them across devices, choose 'Save my progress' and create a free account.
Can AI help me study for the BCBA exam?
Yes, for explanation and self-testing. The coach box on this page reads your confidence ratings for a domain and answers your question against those gaps — explaining a concept in plain language, checking an explanation you wrote, or ranking what to study first. It is a study aid, not a source of exam content.
Is the AI study coach free?
You get one free answer without an account and three in total once you create a free account. After that, unlimited coaching is a paid add-on at $9 per month or $79 per year, separate from Professional Pro.
Will the coach write a behavior plan or treatment goals for me?
No. It is deliberately limited to study and preparation support. It will not write behavior plans, treatment goals or clinical recommendations, and nothing it says substitutes for your supervisor's judgment.

Save to your Professional Passport

Save this checklist into a free Professional Passport as a self-recorded study note, alongside your credentials and supervision record, and update it as you prepare.

Save to Professional Passport

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