Applied Behavior Therapy
Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) is the practice of applying the psychological principles of learning theory in a systematic way to alter behavior. The practice of Applied Behavior Analysis is used extensively in education, healthcare and business management. It is widely used and accepted in the treatment of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Applied Behavior Analysis is one of the only scientific and empirically validated treatment available.
Who Needs Applied Behavior Therapy (ABA) ?
Although ABA is best known for the treatment of symptoms of autism it has much broader applications. Applied behavior analysis is used in general and special education, healthcare/clinical settings and in business operations. ABA treatment is applied to numerous disorders in both children and adults including
· Autism
· Depression
· ADD/ADHD
· Phobias
· Anxiety
· Obsessive-compulsive disorder
· Traumatic Brain Injury
Examples of areas of specialization:
Activities of daily living
Speech/language and communication skills
Core knowledge/academics
Play/recreational and leisure skills
Social skills
Pre-vocational/vocational skills
Behavior reduction
ABA and Evaluation
ABA uses evaluations that carefully prioritize the skills that are deficit. These evaluations lead to goals and objectives that are critical for the individual to learn. A sequential, data driven and systematic approach to increase these skills is applied using positive reinforcement and errorless teaching. The use of such direct intervention allows for high frequency and deliberate positive reinforcement, repetition, and practice of these critical skills. When behavior is interfering with the learning process or is undesirable (such as aggression or self-injury) a functional behavior assessment is conducted to understand the relationship between the behavior and motivation. Behavior intervention plans are carefully designed and developed based on data from the analysis