ABA Review

ABA & Autism

1

What is Autism?

Autism, or Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), refers to a broad range of conditions characterized by challenges with social skills, repetitive behaviors, speech and nonverbal communication, and more. According to the Center for Disease Control, it is estimated that 1 in 54 children in the United states today are diagnosed with autism.

What is ABA?

ABA stands for Applied Behavior Analysis. It is a scientific approach for identifying environmental variables that influence the behavior. ABA focuses on changing behavior in two different directions:

• Increasing behaviors (called skill acquisition) involves teaching new behaviors, functionally related behaviors, self care skills, etc.
• Decreasing behavior (called behavior reduction) which is decreasing current negative behaviors such as tantrums, elopement, and screaming, etc.

ABA & Autism

3 Main Principles

Reinforcement

Extinction

Punishment

2

Withholding reinforcement from a previously reinforced behavior in order to eliminate or decrease such behavior

Adding or removing something in order to INCREASE the likelihood of a behavior occurring in the future

Adding or removing something in order to DECREASE the likelihood of a behavior occurring in the future

3 Main Principles

4 Functions of Behavior

Attention

Sensory

Engaging in a behavior in order to gain attention from another person. This includes both positive and negative behavior

Examples: physical aggression, throwing items, tugging on a shirt, spitting, disrobing

Engaging in a behavior just because it feels good to them. It is automatically reinforced meaning no one else is involved besides the person

Examples: hand flapping, rocking, cracking knuckles, twirling hair, pinching self

3

Engaging in a behavior in order to access a preferred item or action

Examples: screaming, physical aggression, grabbing, elopement

Engaging in a behavior in order to get out of a situation

Examples: physical aggression, tantrums, elopement,, throwing items, asking for a break

Escape

Tangible

4 Functions of Behavior

ABCs of ABA

What happens directly

BEFORE the behavior

Antecedent

What the person actually

says or does

Behavior

What happens directly

AFTER the behavior

Consequence

ABCs of ABA

DTT

NET

5

NET stands for Natural Environment Teaching

This is a more loose way of teaching. In this form, trials are ran naturalistically, using the client's current motivation as a guide for which trials to run

Reminder: Reinforcement for NET sessions comes from what the client is already playing with!!

DTT stands for

Discrete Trial Training

This is a more structured way of teaching. It is run in 3 distinct parts:

1. the trainers presentation ("Point to the red block")

2. the client's response (the client points)

3. the consequence (correction or reinforcement)

Reminder: in running DTT sessions the earned reinforcement is NOT part of the trials

DTT vs. NET

Verbal Behavior

Mand - a request for wants or needs (ex: I want a snack, pointing to outside)

Tact - a label (this can be objects, emotions, actions, people, places, etc.)

Intraverbal - fill in the blank, answering questions (peanut butter & _____)

6

Echoic - verbal imitation (this can be words, letter sounds, full sentences, etc.)

Motor Imitation - physical imitation ("do this" while spinning, the client copies)

Listener Responding - following directions (ex: "find the cow" or "come here")

Verbal

Behavior

7

Prompting

7 Dimensions of ABA

These are considered to be the gold standard of all program writing for BCBAs. Understanding these general rules follow will help you as a RBT/BT understand what the expectation of services are!

Generality

Effective

Technological

Analytic

Conceptually Systematic

Applied

Behavior

8

CAB