What Is ABA?

What Is ABA?

ABA (Applied Behavior Analysis) is using principles based off empirical evidence in order to increase or decrease targeted behaviors. Principles include but not limited to: proactive strategies, reactive strategies, teaching strategies, reinforcement, prompting, prompt fading, errorless learning, and naturalistic environmental training.

Therapy Team

• Registered Behavior Technician (RBT): They are the therapist/teacher that will be conducting the daily sessions of ABA and running all the goals.
• Case Supervisor (CS): The Case Supervisor will be checking in weekly, training the RBTs, observing sessions, changing/modifying the goals, answering any questions from RBTs or caregivers, and helping troubleshoot barriers.
• Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA): Checking in weekly, biweekly, or monthly (depending on authorization of supervision hours), analyzing data, supporting all staff members, troubleshooting barriers, and assisting with client progress.
• Client Care Assistant (CCA): These staff members oversee administrative and clinical duties such as training staff, scheduling sessions, are RBT certified as well, and will cover client sessions as needed.

Session Structure

• Early Stages of ABA: The staff will mostly be playing with the participant and building rapport (this usually lasts between 1-2 weeks). During these first few weeks of therapy, staff will be collecting information on the client’s preferences (i.e., preferred activities or items the client mostly engages with), collecting data on what skills require what type of assistance/prompting, and getting to know your family dynamics/schedule.
• Collecting Data/Caregiver Participation: Staff will be collecting data on our online platform. Supervisors (BCBAs and Case Supervisors) will always make data-based decisions. Staff will collect baseline data (what the client currently is observed to do without assistance) before introducing any new goals. Staff may ask caregivers to participate during sessions to ensure the generalization of skills across people/environments.
• Child-Led Play/Participant-Led Recreation: A lot of our ABA sessions will be child-led play or participant-led recreation. Staff will be incorporating goals within play or recreational activities that the client prefers to engage in normally during their leisure time. Teaching through play/recreation is very important, as it increases the client’s buy-in and compliance within sessions.
• Teaching Caregivers: Staff will also teach caregivers many different strategies, both proactive strategies (what to do to prevent an inappropriate behavior from occurring) and reactive strategies (what to do after an inappropriate behavior occurs). We also assist caregivers in teaching their children new skills. A parent is a child’s first and last teacher. It is important to transition instructional control from the staff to the caregiver.

What Goals Do We Work on in ABA?

We focus on the core deficits of Autism or other developmental disabilities. Such as Communication, Socialization, Adaptive Living (eating, hygiene routines, dressing, grooming, etc.), and Decreasing Maladaptive Behaviors (tantrums, verbal protesting, self-injurious behaviors, stereotypy, aggression, etc.).

• Caregiver Meetings: Caregiver meetings will be conducted at least once a month. Staff will review caregiver goals, direct intervention goals, behavioral goals, and any concerns or questions from caregivers/staff.
• Telehealth Modalities: At times your supervisory team or assessment team will be conducting sessions via a Telehealth setting (i.e., use of Google Meets, Zoom, and Microsoft Teams platforms). All direct therapy/therapists will be in person (this is referring to the Registered Behavior Technician – RBT).
• Assessment/Re-Assessment: Every 6 months the clinical team and caregivers will discuss services and whether services should be reduced, increased, or terminated/discharged.

Location of Services

Services will be provided in the home setting or in the community at the local supermarket, retail store, bookstore, park, etc. All community outings need to be approved by Case Supervisors.

Caregiver Expectations

• Caregivers are required to participate in ABA sessions.
  • Participation includes:
    • Running goals with the aid of the clinical staff.
    • Follow the Behavior Intervention Plan created by the Case Supervisors.
    • Collect data during and outside of the session.
    • Completing homework assignments provided by the Case Supervisors.
• Caregivers are expected to maintain a harmonious environment by:
  • Being respectful to all staff
  • Engaging in effective communication with staff by allowing an open dialogue between both parties
  • Having and maintaining a positive attitude
  • Being collaborative and positive to achieve a shared purpose
  • Fostering inclusivity among different people from different backgrounds
  • Accepting corrective feedback in a polite and appreciative manner
  • Maintaining boundaries with our staff
  • Respecting the time of our staff by having the client ready and able to start a session on time