Association for Behavior Analysis International

The program co-chair, Dr. Terry Falcomata, will provide opening remarks.

Interventions based on applied behavior analysis (ABA) have become the most common and effective interventions for individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Decades of research has supported the efficacy of ABA-based interventions to treat the symptoms related to ASD (e.g., language, social skills, problem behaviors). This has resulted in the recognition of ABA-based interventions by scientific and professional organizations such as NIMH, The U.S. Surgeon General, and the American Academy of Pediatrics. Despite the wide-scale recognition, questions remain about the efficacy of ABA-based interventions with adults with ASD because most of the research has been conducted with younger learners. Adults with ASD present unique challenges given their physical size, different treatment goals, and long reinforcement history. Research focused on adults will provide additional evidenced-based interventions, which may provide data to provide more support for this population. This presentation will include examples of clinical research with adults with ASD in employment and college settings.

ABA Practitioners

Certain theories of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) implicate a neurogenic insensitivity to social reward as the basis for social deficits, and less directly, other core diagnostic symptoms of ASD. This is sometimes referred to as the Social Motivation Theory of Autism and has, on occasion, been used as a basis for avoiding social reinforcers when working with children with ASD. I will review and discuss evidence, from my lab and others, for and against this insensitivity. I will specifically consider: (a) research on identifying or verifying socially mediated reinforcers in ASD; (b) research that compares social and non-social reinforcers in ASD; and (c) research that compares social reinforcement in persons with and without ASD. I will conclude by resurrecting early behavioral theories of social deficits in ASD—accounts that contact contemporary thinking on the role of reinforcement in psychopathology and the discriminative functions of social signals and perhaps provide a more parsimonious interpretation of the collective evidence.

TBD

Complimentary coffee will be available in the Exhibit Hall.

Passport prize drawing will occur at 10:15AM in the conference bookstore.

Attendees are invited to join for updates from the Autism Special Interest Group.

This presentation begins by reviewing research on predictors of early intensive behavioral intervention outcomes as well as empirical investigations identifying sub-groups of cases with distinct patterns of response to treatment. Building from this research, the presentation describes how baseline and early treatment information might be used to tailor the treatment approach, including selection of treatment targets and teaching strategies. Finally, the talk describes objective and subjective measures that would be useful to monitor and how technology can facilitate the ongoing collection of assessment information to inform changes to the intervention plan.

Practitioners, researchers, those working in the field of behavior analysis and early intensive behavioral intervention.

Play is an important repertoire for learning, quality of life, and social opportunities for children. Because of the play skill deficits commonly observed in autistic children/children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), behavioral intervention programs often target play as part of a broader curriculum. Selection of individualized play targets, however, has received relatively little attention in the literature, leaving important empirical and ethical questions for clinicians. This presentation will review recent play assessments based on development of children without ASD, the empirical literature on teaching development-matched play skills, and a conceptual analysis of differential effectiveness and maintenance of development-matched targets. Social validity and ethical considerations for selection of play targets and future directions will be discussed.

ABA practitioners

Program co-chair, Dr. Ruth Anne Rehfeldt, will provide closing remarks.