Slide 1

Guidelines for Graphing Data Erin E. Barton Slide 2 Rationale Visual inspection of graphed data is the primary means by which data analysis occurs in SCR Graphs assist in communicating information quickly and without extensive transformation Slide 3 Rationale Graphical displays of single-case data are very well-suited for online monitoring of the participants progress, by altering them every time new data become available, and for communicating results. Patterns are easily and quickly identified Makes raw data transparent with minimal transformation Slide 4 Rationale Requires little training in mathematics and statistics Simplicity often (but not always) is desirable Allows easy communication with others Guards against accepting small effects (theoretically) Slide 5 Components Origin Abscissax axis Abscissa labelalmost always a time unit Ordinatey axis Ordinate labelthe value of the dependent measure Scale break Condition labelshould be descriptive Condition change lines Phase change lines Datum point, data points, data series, data path Slide 6 Graphing Guidelines 1.Fair 2.Objective 3.Clear 4.Without deception Slide 7 Graphing Guidelines 1.Well-designed presentation 2.Complex ideas communicated with clarity, precision, and efficiency 3.More ideas in less time 4.Usually multiple variables displayed 5.Extreme clarity: the truth about the data (Tufte, 2001) Slide 8 JABA Graphing Guidelines 1.Data points must be constructed of thin lines and be of sufficient size so that reduction will neither obscure their differentiation nor fill in such symbols as unfilled circles, triangles, and squares. 2.Percentage of should be used instead of Percent of when labeling the ordinate axis (percent of is grammatically incorrect). Slide 9 JABA Graphing Guidelines 3.Avoid heavy lines for axes 4. Provide scale marks along both axes at sufficiently frequent intervals to permit x and y values of data points to be read accurately. 5.Be sure that axes meet at a right angle and that labels parallel their axes. 6.Align scale marks with labels and data points. Slide 10 JABA Graphing Guidelines 7.Legends identify the data points within the figure. 8.Identify data paths with arrows and labels when possible. 9.Use text boxes only when space is not available for arrows and labels. 10.It is best to use all capital letters, but do not hesitate to use upper and lower cases when needed to fit in the area available. Slide 11 BaselineInterventionBaselineIntervention Components Sessions Verbal Targets Time Series: Abscissa or x-axis Target Behaviors: Ordinate or y-axis Conditions Condition change lines Slide 12 BaselineInterventionBaselineIntervention Components Sessions Verbal Targets Time Series: Abscissa or x-axis Target Behaviors: Ordinate or y-axis Conditions Condition change lines Slide 13 BaselineIntervention Participant 1 Participant 2 Participant 3 Time Series: Abscissa or x-axis Target Behaviors: Ordinate or y-axis Conditions Condition change lines Social Interactions Days Slide 14 BaselineIntervention Participant 1 Participant 2 Participant 3 Social Interactions Days Slide 15 BaselineIntervention Participant 1 Participant 2 Participant 3 Social Interactions Days Slide 16 BaselineIntervention Participant 1 Participant 2 Participant 3 Social Interactions Days Slide 17 BaselineIntervention Participant 1 Participant 2 Participant 3 Pretend Play Days Slide 18 BaselineIntervention Participant 1 Participant 2 Participant 3 Pretend Play Days (Kennedy, 1989) Slide 19 Spoken Words Sessions BaselineIntervention BaselineIntervention Slide 20 Spoken Words Sessions BaselineIntervention BaselineIntervention Slide 21 Frequency of Child Behaviors Sessions BaselineIntervention BaselineIntervention Slide 22 Sessions BaselineIntervention BaselineIntervention Frequency of Child Behaviors Slide 23 Days Frequency of Social Interactions Creating Alternating Treatment Design Graphs Slide 24 Days Frequency of Social Interactions The default will be to have gaps. Slide 25 Days Frequency of Social Interactions .or to plot the days without data as zero. Slide 26 Days Frequency of Social Interactions Resulting Alternating Treatment Design Graphs Slide 27 Practice ABAB Baseline 1: B1: (0, 0, 0, 0, 0) B2: (10, 13, 15, 10, 11) Intervention 1: B1: (4, 7, 2, 8, 10, 12) B2: (1, 3, 5, 1, 1, 0) Baseline 2: B1: (4, 1, 2, 3, 0) B2: (5, 13, 10, 9, 15) Intervention 1: B1: (8, 6, 9, 10, 12) B2: (0, 1, 0, 1, 1) Slide 28 Frequency Sessions BaselineIntervention BaselineIntervention Slide 29 Review Ensure all components are clearly identified Ordinates must be the same Scales should be appropriate Use distinct markers Separate conditions Slide 30 References Barton, E. E. & Reichow, B. (2012). Guidelines for graphing data with Microsoft PowerPoint for Office 2007. Journal of Early Intervention, 34, 129-150. Dixon, M. R., Jackson, J. W., Small, S. L., Horner-King, M. J., Mui Ker Lik, N., Garcia, Y., & Rosales, R. (2007). Creating single-subject design graphs in Microsoft Excel. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 42, 277-293. Wolery, M., Dunlap, G., & Ledford, J. R. (2011). Single- case experimental methods: Suggestions for reporting. Journal of Early Intervention, 33, 103-109. Slide 31 Resources Gast & Ledford (2014) Gast & Lane: Visual Inspection