What does social validity refer to in ABA interventions?

• A. The statistical significance of the results
• B. The acceptability and perceived usefulness of goals, procedures, and outcomes to the client and stakeholders
• C. The economic cost of the intervention
• D. The frequency of data collection

Answer: (B)

Social validity is about whether the intervention is meaningful and acceptable to the person receiving it and to others who care about them. It focuses on three parts: the goals being pursued should address real, important needs; the procedures should be acceptable, respectful, and feasible within the person's context; and the outcomes should be valued and noticeable to the client and their stakeholders. In practice, you’d assess social validity by gathering feedback from the client, family, teachers, or other involved others to see if the goals matter, the methods respect preferences and cultural context, and the resulting changes truly improve quality of life. This concept is about meaningfulness and acceptability, not about statistical significance, cost, or how often data are collected.