Partial Interval Recording is a data collection method used to measure whether a behavior occurred at any point during a specific, brief interval of time. The observer records whether the behavior occurred at least once during each interval, regardless of how long it lasted or how many times it occurred within that interval.
Example
A teacher is tracking how often a student talks out of turn during class. The observation period is broken into 10-minute intervals. If the student talks out of turn at any point during each 10-minute interval, the teacher marks it as occurring. Even if the behavior only happens briefly or multiple times within that interval, it is recorded as occurring once. This helps in measuring the frequency of behavior without needing to track every single instance.