What Are the Steps in Applied Behavior Analysis?

The statistics are staggering. According to research done by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for the reporting year 2006, an average of one in 110 children in the United States has an autistic spectrum disorder and these disorders are "reported to occur in all racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic groups." Odds are that at least one child you care about has an ASD. Applied Behavior Analysis is a multi-step therapy style widely recognized for its effectiveness in the treatment of autistic spectrum disorders.

Tailor Goals

• Therapists, teachers and parents can collaborate to help an autistic child learn to be more successful and independent in different settings, such as home or school. Determine what the child needs to learn and what strengths he already possesses and can build on. Make smaller goals to help achieve this. Address parts of daily routines, or teach social or basic life skills.

Select Target Behavior

• Self-injury, ritualistic behaviors and stereotyping can interfere with learning new skills. Aim to reduce or eliminate these types of behaviors by selecting a behavior to build. Eye contact, conversational skills and basic self-care routines are often among those taught.

Measure the Behavior

• Define the behavior very specifically and objectively. You must be able to see and quantify the behavior. Determine whether to measure the number of times the behavior occurs, for example, or exactly how long each occurrence of the target behavior lasts.

Establish a Baseline

• Measure the target behavior to establish a baseline before doing an intervention. Compare future data to this baseline measurement to determine whether the behavior is being affected by the treatment.

Plan an Intervention

• Pay attention to what occurs immediately before and after each performance of the target behavior. Predict what triggers it, such as a certain type of situation or environment, and what might be reinforcing the behavior. Decide to reward each occurrence of a desired target behavior or consistently apply such strategies as time outs or ignoring an unwanted target behavior in order to reduce it. Make a change in the situation or environment. Concentrate on only one intervention and one target behavior at a time.

Continue Measuring and Recording Data

• You may need to make changes to the intervention in order to achieve the desired increase or decrease in the behavior. If the data demonstrates that the intervention is successful, identify a new target behavior to work on in pursuit of the stated goal.