ABA Clinics
ABA4Kids
www.aba4kids.com
888-802-4ABA
Amanda Boutot PhD, BCBA
amandaboutot@gmail.com
512-983-8388
Autism Center for Education
www.aceautism.com
9600 Escarpment Blvd., Suite 745-222
Central Texas, TX 78749
512.895.9570
Autism Spectrum Instructional Resources (ASpIRe)
www.autismconsulting.org
Bluebonnet Trails MHMR Autism Program
rany.thommen@bluebonnetmhmr.org
1009 N. Georgetown Street
Round Rock, Texas 78664
512-244-8209
Central Texas Autism Consulting
www.Central Texasautismconsulting.com
Central Texas Autism Center
www.ctac1.com
3006 Bee Cave Rd., Suite B-200
Central Texas, TX 78746
(512)328-5599
Children's Autism Center
www.cactexas.com
1707 N. Mays, Round Rock 78664
Phyllis_rr@yahoo.com
512-248-0644
CARD
http://centerforautism.blogspot.com/
Explore Autism
www.exploreautism.com
The Shape of Behavior
www.shapeofbehavior.com
1000 Westbank Drive
Austin, Texas
866-437-2165
Biomedical | ABA | RDI | RPM
1. What is Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA)?
Applied behavior analysis (ABA) is the process of using behavioral principles to teach new skills and increase desirable behaviors. ABA methods break skills down into small, measurable units and use high rates of positive reinforcement. ABA is committed to objective measurement and data-driven analysis of behavior within relevant settings, like home, school, and the community. ABA uses many different teaching strategies to increase and maintain desirable behaviors, teach new skills, and generalize behaviors to new environments or situations.
2. Is ABA the same thing as discrete trial instruction or the Lovaas Method?
No. Discrete trial instruction is a specific instructional method that can be used in the context of an ABA program. It involves multiple trials of presenting a direction (called the discriminative stimulus or SD), eliciting an independent or prompted response, and delivering a consequence (reinforcement). The Lovaas Method or Model is a program based heavily on discrete trial instruction, with specific guidelines in terms of intensity and focus of intervention. More information about the Lovaas Method can be found at http://www.lovaas.com/.
Other teaching strategies that fall under the umbrella of ABA include incidental teaching, Verbal Behavior, Pivotal Response Training, task analysis instruction, and fluency-based instruction. For more information on specific ABA-based teaching methodologies, visit the Association for Science in Autism Treatment.
3. Is ABA just for students with autism?
No. ABA is a much broader science that is used in many fields, including marriage counseling, sports psychology, corporate management, animal training, and many more. Parents and teachers can certainly apply these principles to working with their children and students without autism as well.
4. What is reinforcement and why is it important?
Reinforcement is a process in which an event follows a behavior and increases the likelihood of that behavior occurring in the future. In positive reinforcement, something is added to the environment and increases the likelihood of the behavior occurring in the future (e.g. If a child asks for a cookie and gets a cookie, he is more likely to ask in the future. If I go to work and get a paycheck, I am more likely to go to work in the future). In negative reinforcement, something is removed or avoided, thereby increasing the likelihood of the behavior occurring in the future (e.g. If a student asks appropriately for a break and gets a break, he is more likely to ask in the future, If taking Ibuprofen gets rid of my headache, I am more likely to take that type of pain reliever in the future). Punishment is often confused with negative reinforcement, but they are not the same thing; punishment is a procedure that decreases the likelihood of a behavior occurring in the future.
The behavioral approach is based on an assumption that, if a behavior is occurring, it is being reinforced in some way. For students with autism, the social and intrinsic reinforcers that affect many of us may not be as powerful. Therefore, we often must begin by offering more explicit reinforcers (preferred activities, toys, or foods) to build appropriate skills, and pair these with other more normalized reinforcers over time. In a classroom setting, reinforcers may include access to privileges, verbal praise, stickers, or breaks from work. It is important, however, to recognize that an item is not a reinforcer if it is not successful in increasing the desired behavior.
5. What do I do after my child has been diagnosed?
A diagnosis of autism can feel very overwhelming, especially with the flood of conflicting information parents may get from doctors, concerned family and friends, and the internet. For a guide to next steps after diagnosis, we recommend the 100 day kit from Autism Speaks.
These questions from VIA School
