Applied Behavioural Analysis - ABA: Applied Behaviour Analysis is a scientific and professional discipline that is concerned with applying scientific principles of learning and behaviour to socially important problems. It emphasizes careful measurement of observed behaviour, and analysis of behaviour in terms of its relationship to events in the environment that immediately precede or follow the behaviour.

An Applied Behaviour Analysis program establishes behavioural objectives or goals, breaks down complex behaviours into their functional parts, sets objective ways of measuring the relevant behaviours, implements teaching or behaviour change procedures based on behavioural principles, and then evaluates the results through careful analysis. ABA teaching methods are systematic and precise.

Applied Behaviour Analysis is a very broad field, and ABA principles and methodologies have been used for everything from developing language skills in children, eliminating self-injurious behaviour, to improving efficiencies in companies.  ABA surrounds and affects us to some degree everyday of our lives.

Applied Behaviour Analysis methods are known to be effective in treating autism, and are used to promote the child’s optimal development in all domains including motor skills, self-care, language and communication, play and social skills, pre-academic and academic skills, self-management to increase independence as well as vocational skills.

Applied Behaviour Analysis is concerned with the behaviour of the individual and implementing scientifically validated treatments and procedures to change those behaviours deemed important to increase that individual’s independence.  This important component of ABA sets itself apart from other psychological approaches that measure and compare individuals with the norms in society.

Some methods used in autism treatment which are based on ABA principles include: Discrete Trial Teaching, Precision Teaching, Programmed Instruction, Pivotal Response Training, Verbal Behaviour approaches, Fluency Training, Incidental Teaching, and Positive Behavioural Support. (Batstone, David, Queen Alexandra Centre, Vancouver Island Health Authority)

Analysis of Verbal Behaviour (AVB) - “an applied behaviour analysis approach that is used to teach communication.  AVB employs the many effective procedures based on ABA (e.g., reinforcement, prompting, fading, task analysis). A major feature is the use of Skinner’s (1957) analysis of the functions of language (e.g., to request, to name things, to refer to things not immediately present), which departs from a developmentally based language approach. The functional analysis of language is a major approach for teaching communication skills to children with autism. (John T. Neisworth & Pamela S. Wolfe”, The Autism Encyclopedia, Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co. Inc. 2005)

Behavioural Plan of Intervention - A plan developed by a qualified behavioural consultant, with parental input, that promotes developmental growth with both broad and specific goals related to improving daily living skills and increasing independence in a social or school environment. The Behaviour Intervention plan goals can be used to guide a family to decide what additional services are needed and what goals should be reached through those services. According to Ministry of Children and Family Development policy regarding children under 6 with ASD a behaviour plan of intervention must be developed within 90 days of enrolling for autism treatment funding from the Province.

Pivotal Response Training - PRT is a naturalistic behavioural intervention developed by Robert L. Koegel and Laura Schreibman at the University of California in Santa Barbara. Pivotal Response Training (PRT) is a behavioural treatment intervention based on the principles of applied behaviour analysis (ABA). PRT aims to increase the generalization of new skills by increasing motivation, including components such as child choice, turn-taking, reinforcing attempts and interspersing maintenance tasks. PRT has been used to develop language skills, play skills and social behaviours in children with autism.

Data Collection - Data collection refers to the process of gathering specific, objective information about a person’s academic or behavioural performance. Data is usually in a quantitative form, such as the number of times a behaviour occurs, how long a particular behaviour occurs, percentage of correct responses in a task, amount of work completed, etc. Collecting and analyzing data helps the consultant to evaluate a program's effectiveness. By collecting and analyzing data on a systematic basis, the consultant knows when to make changes in both academic and behavioural programs.

Data collection has two critical components: information gathering and decision-making. Information gathering may involve curriculum-based assessment, observing classroom behaviour, or parent interviews. The more structured and systematic the process, the more valid the information. Once the data is collected, the consultant must analyze it and make decisions based on that information. Decisions might be made regarding changes in curriculum, teaching strategies and techniques, or the management of specific behaviours.

Discrete Trials - Discrete Trial teaching is a specific method of teaching used to maximize learning. It is a teaching technique or process used to develop many skills, including cognitive, communication, play, social and self help skills.

The teaching strategy involves:

1. Breaking skills into the smallest steps
2. Teaching each step of the skill intensively until mastered
3. Providing reinforcement to correct responses and corrections to incorrect responses
4. Increasing opportunities to respond
5.  Fast and frequent discrete trial presentations to increase learning.

An instructional session uses repeated trials (or presentations) with each trial having a distinctly identifiable beginning, middle and end. So the trial is "discrete" in that it is distinct and it has clearly identifiable steps and a conclusion. Each step of a skill is mastered before new concepts are presented. In Discrete Trial teaching, a very small amount of information is given and the student’s response is immediately reinforced or given a correction as to the accurate response. This is different compared with more traditional teaching methods, which present large amounts of information with no clearly targeted interactive response on the student’s part. See Autism Treatment Info for more information.

Natural Environment - Teaching skills that are learned in one setting and then are specifically programmed to other “natural environments” to ensure generalization.  This is a key feature to Discrete Trial Instruction, which evaluates the ability for a child to use what he/she learned in one setting to other settings that are appropriate.

Functional Behaviour Assessment - A Functional Behavioural Assessment is a systematic process to obtain a precise description of behaviour and the factors that influence it. This usually includes a measure of the frequency and duration of the occurrence of the behaviour, information about the context in which it occurs, and information about the consequences or other factors that maintain that behaviour. The goal is to identify the purpose or function of a person’s behaviour(s); to develop and implement a plan to change consequences that maintain the problem behaviours; and to teach new functional communicative behaviours using positive interventions.

For more terms see the Glossary at the Autism Community Training website:
www.actcommunity.net/AI/Glossary.htm