Everyday, I help break down a confusing ABA term and put it in plain English! Whether you are studying for your BCBA exam, explaining ABA to parents or are a student, there is no reason to be so confused over ABA terms. While “behavioral language” is very confusing, these concepts don’t have to be. Today we will break down group…
Everyday, I help break down a confusing ABA term and put it in plain English! Whether you are studying for your BCBA exam, explaining ABA to parents or are a student, there is no reason to be so confused over ABA terms. While “behavioral language” is very confusing, these concepts don’t have to be. Today we will break down escape…
Guest Blog Post by Dr. Katherine May, Ed.D., BCBA When a behavior intervention consists of multiple components (treatment/behavioral package) and the practitioner manipulates each component to see which one is most effective for the client. A component analysis is an experimental design to identify the active elements of a treatment package, the relative contributions of different components in a treatment…
Guest Blog Post by Dr. Katherine May, Ed.D., BCBA Tact Extensions: Once a tact has been established, the tact response can occur under novel stimulus conditions through the process of stimulus generalization. In other words, there are many ways to label one stimuli. Skinner (1957) identifies four different levels of generalization based on the degree to which novel stimuli share…
Guest Blog Post Dr. Katherine May, Ed.D., BCBA Direct Instruction: “The Faster We Teach, The More They Learn.” Direct Instruction Explained: Direct instruction was founded by Siegfried Engelman and is a published ABA instructional methodology that believes all children can learn. This teaching methodology is commonly one of the best practices to serve a variety of learners in special and…
Guest blog post by Dr. Katherine May, Ed.D, BCBA Compound Schedules of Reinforcement: Defined and Applied In Applied Behavior Analysis practitioners can combine two or more basic schedules of reinforcement to form compound schedules of reinforcement. These schedules consist of continuous reinforcement, intermittent schedules of reinforcement, differential reinforcement of various rates of responding and extinction. It is important to note…
Guest blog post by Dr. Katherine May, Ed.D., BCBA Behavior traps are powerful contingencies of reinforcement with four defining features: Clients are “baited” with virtually irresistible reinforcers Only a low effort response already in the clients repertoire is needed to enter the trap Interrelated contingencies of reinforcement inside the trap motivate the student to acquire, extend, and maintain targeted skills…
Everyday, I help break down a confusing ABA term and put it in plain English! Whether you are studying for your BCBA exam, explaining ABA to parents or are a student, there is no reason to be so confused over ABA terms. While “behavioral language” is very confusing, these concepts don’t have to be. Today we will break down automatic…
A common mistake that people make is confusing Discriminating Stimulus (SD) with the Stimulus Delta (SΔ). However, it is a very easy distinction. Here is how to tell the difference. Discriminating Stimulus (SD) A SD signals that a reinforcer is available for a response. So example, Example 1.) Jenny, an ABA therapist, is working with Ben, a four year old…
Behavior falls under two main classes: respondent behavior and operant behavior. As a result, behavior analysts use two main procedures: respondent and operant conditioning. Respondent Behavior Respondent behavior is behavior that is caused by stimulus in the environment. The behavior is unlearned and a reflex. A behavior is elicited, unintentional and cannot be controlled. This was first developed by Watson…