Aba Inside Track

Enjoy a short preview of our latest full-length Book Club episode.  Want to hear the whole thing and get 2 CEs for free? Subscribe to our Patreon today at the premium $10+ levels for that plus other bonuses! As the summer wraps up and school begins in the U.S., many BCBAs will find themselves frustrated for their clients due to the continued inequitable practices which leave our schools failing learners of color. And what if I told you that your sweet sweet data may be a part of the failure of Western education? Yes....YOUR DATA! For our summer Book Club, we discussed “Street Data” by Safir and Dugan, a review of culturally responsive practices on how to collect relevant, student-centered, and antiracist information about learners to create a more equitable school system. Will the crew find these steps in line with our ethical BCBA obligations for client-centered practice? Or does an affront to the traditional way of “doing school” leave us calling our parents to pick us up early? Content discussed in this ep

Making decisions is hard. Yet somehow, most of us seem to muddle through the process. But how can we support children whose decisions lead them to negative outcomes? This week we review research related to teaching choice making, problem solving, and all kinds of big decision making, helping children move from being told what to do to deciding for themselves. This episode is available for 1.0 LEARNING CEU. Articles discussed this episode: Vlachou, A. & Stavroussi, P. (2016). Promoting social inclusion: A structured intervention for enhancing interpersonal problem-solving skills in children with mild intellectual disabilities. Support for Learning, 31, 27-45. doi: 10.1111/1467-9604.12112 Sparks, S.L., Pierce, T., Higgins, K., Miller, S., & Tandy, R. (2016). Increasing choice making in students with intellectual disability. Education and Training in Autism, 51, 331-343. Hune, J.B. & Nelson, C.M. (2002). Effects of teaching a problem-solving strategy on preschool children with problem behavior. Beh

While we’ve discussed becoming a trauma-informed practitioner and ABA frameworks for understanding trauma, what does a TIC approach look like when rubber meets the road? Saundra Bishop brings her years of doing just that to the show to help us better understand how a trauma-informed approach can improve our behavior plan writing and skill acquisition program development. We’re going beyond the four-term contingency, folks! This episode is available for 1.0 LEARNING CEU. Articles discussed this episode: Rajaraman, A., Austin, J.L., Gover, H.C., Cammilleri, A.P., Donnelly, D.R., & Hanley, G.P. (2022). Toward trauma-informed applications of behavior analysis. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 55, 40-61. doi: 10.1002/jaba.881 Bath, H. (2008). The three pillars of trauma-informed care. Reclaiming Children and Youth, 17, 17-21. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2019). Preventing adverse childhood experiences: Leveraging the best available evidence. Atlanta, GA: National Center for Injury Preventi

Whether the spice of life of the lifeblood of a field, it’s important that different people engage in different actions to create a robust group of practitioners. But what does it really mean to have a variety of behavior analysts in the world? This week, Dr. Matthew Normand explains the many benefits and frequent challenges of creating a plethora of ABA for the world. And it’s not just about getting a new job! This episode is available for 1.0 LEARNING CEU. Articles discussed this episode: Normand, M.P. & Kohn, C.S. (2013). Don’t wag the dog: Extending the reach of applied behavior analysis. The Behavior Analyst, 36, 109-122. doi: 10.1007/BF03392294 Friman, P.C. (2010). Com on in, the water is fine: Achieving mainstream relevance through integration with primary medical care. The Behavior Analyst, 33, 19-36. doi: 10.1007/BF03392201 Heward, W.L., Critchfield, T.S., Reed, D.D., Detrich, R., & Kimball, J.W. (2022). ABA from A to Z: Behavior science applied to 350 domains of socially significant behavior

With so many guests making time to join us this month, we almost didn’t have a chance to record this month’s preview! But, between our research-reading, jet-setting lifestyle, we found a peaceful—albeit much too hot—moment to head into the studio to run down what’s to come in August. We start off a variety of episodes by talking about variety itself in ABA with Dr. Matthew Normand. Then we review how trauma-informed care can be implemented in behavior management with Saundra Bishop before delving into the related area of compassion and collaboration with Dr. Jessica Rohrer and Dr. Mary Jane Weiss. Finally, we turn our baseball caps around to rap about teaching kids to make their own decisions. Don’t forget: new book club this month on the Patreon site. We’re talking all about Street Data, a.k.a., how data can be used for equity in schools. Articles for August 2022 Variety in ABA w/ Dr. Matthew Normand Normand, M.P. & Kohn, C.S. (2013). Don’t wag the dog: Extending the reach of applied behavior analysis. T

Did you know that multiple exemplar training and multiple exemplar instruction are actually two different procedures? Neither did we! But, on this week’s episode we learned to tell both apart as well as how both techniques can be a boon (mostly) for improving the efficiency of your teaching procedures. Please enjoy our review of multiple exemplars of multiple exemplar research! This episode is available for 1.0 LEARNING CEU. Articles discussed this episode: Sivaraman, M. (2017). Using multiple exemplar training to teach empathy skills to children with autism. Behavior Analysis in Practice, 10, 337-346. doi: 10.1007/s40617-017-0183-y Marzullo-Kerth, D., Reeve, S.A., Reeve, K.F., & Townsend, D.B. (2011). Using multiple-exemplar training to teach a generalized repertoire of sharing to children with autism. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 44, 279-294. doi: 10.1901/jaba.2011.44-279 LaFrance, D.L. & Tarbox, J. (2020). The importance of multiple exemplar instruction in the establishment of novel verbal

ADHD may seem to be so prevalent in our society that you think doctors prescribe Ritalin to kids at birth. But, there’s actually a robust research literature on the effectiveness of behavioral treatment that you may not be aware of. This week, we hit the big points of behavioral interventions for ADHD before diving into some recent articles to fine-tune the details. If you were hoping to find research to support your fidget spinner addiction, this episode may be for you! This episode is available for 1.0 LEARNING CEU. Wish you could earn that CEU for no cost and/or see a video of our live recording for this episode? Head to our Patreon page and subscribe at our $5 tier for just that. Articles discussed this episode: Pfiffner, L.J. & Haack (2014). Behavior management for school aged children with ADHD. Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Clinics of North America, 23, 731-746. doi: 10.1016/j.chc.2014.05.014 Aspiranti, K.B. & Hulac, D.M. (2022). Using fidget spinners to improve on-task classroom behavior fo

For clinicians working in schools, you probably know that being asked to write up functional behavior assessments is a nigh-weekly occurrence. And while functional analyses may be the gold standard of behavior assessment, barely 50% of BCBAs in the world regularly use them. Rather than wag our fingers for a full hour, we take a look at the literature around conducting the best FBAs possible taking into account time, space, and efficiency. Plus, Rob’s spicy hot takes on descriptive assessments! This episode is available for 1.0 LEARNING CEU. Articles discussed this episode: Nesselrode, R., Falcomata, T.S., Hills, L., & Erhard, P. (2022). Functional analysis in public school settings: A systematic review of the literature. Behavior Analysis in Practice. doi: 10.1007/s40617-022-00679-8 Oliver, A.C., Pratt, L.A., & Normand, M.P. (2015). A survey of functional behavior assessment methods used by behavior analysts in practice. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 48, 817-829. doi: 10.1002/jaba.256 Asmus,

With summer vacation underway here at the ABA Inside Track studios, we’ve decided to take a vacation with ourselves in this month’s episodes while still checking out 14 recent articles across three different topics. Possibly at the beach. First, we’ll be discussing the best way to min-max your school FBA before breaking out our fidget spinners with an updated review of research on ADHD treatments. Finally we look at multiple examples of articles discussing multiple exemplars. So, whether you’re wearing a t-shirt, pajamas, or something in between, we’ve got a topic for you. At least, if we can pull Diana away from her Star Trek fanfic writing. Articles for July 2022 Functional Behavior Assessments in Schools Nesselrode, R., Falcomata, T.S., Hills, L., & Erhard, P. (2022). Functional analysis in public school settings: A systematic review of the literature. Behavior Analysis in Practice. doi: 10.1007/s40617-022-00679-8 Oliver, A.C., Pratt, L.A., & Normand, M.P. (2015). A survey of functional behavior a

Somehow we managed to go 200+ episodes without ever directly discussing one of the oldest ABA procedures, incidental teaching. So, let’s make up for lost time by reviewing almost 50 years of articles on incidental teaching. Well, more like one article in almost every decade since Hart and Risley’s original findings. We’ll discuss how the definition of incidental teaching has changed over time, when incidental teaching may not be your first treatment choice, and how to get your friends to share the best toys. This episode is available for 1.0 LEARNING CEU. Articles discussed this episode: Hart, B. & Risley, T.R. (1975). Incidental teaching of language in the preschool. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 8, 411-420. doi: 10.1901/jaba.1975.8-411 McGee, G.G., Almeida, M.C., Sulzer-Azaroff, B., & Feldman, R.S. (1992). Promoting reciprocal interactions via peer incidental teaching. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 25, 117-126. doi: 10.1901/jaba.1992.25-117 Heal, N.A., Hanley, G.P., & Layer, S.A.

Sure, most ABA services are getting back in person, but what will you do the next time some horrible worldwide event happens? This week, we comb through a metric ton of literature on how behavior analysis managed the COVID-19 pandemic and summarize what lessons we should take into the future. Whether zombies, earthquakes, or bears made out of bees, get your ABA company prepared for every possible crisis. This episode is available for 1.0 LEARNING CEU. Articles discussed this episode: Baumes, A., Colic, M., & Araiba, S. (2020). Comparison of telehealth-related ethics and guidelines and a chiecklist for ethical decision making in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. Behavior Analysis in Practice, 13, 736-747. doi: 10.1007/s40617-020-00475-2 Nicolson, A.C., Lazo-Pearson, J.F., & Shandy, J. (2020). ABA finding its heart during a pandemic: An exploration in social validity. Behavior Analysis in Practice, 13, 757-766. doi: 10.1007/s40617-020-00517-9 Colombo, R.A., Wallace, M., & Taylor, R. (2020). An ess

UNLOCKED from our Patreon page, it’s “The Other End of the Leash Book Club”! Interested in more Book Clubs? Want to vote on what we read next? Feeling FOMO at getting this a full year late? Wish your 2 CEs for listening to the episode were FREE??? Join us on Patreon to get all of our episodes a week early, access to these bonus episodes, plus other goodies. As voted on by our patrons, we read and discussed Dr. Patricia McConnell's "The Other End of the Leash". Jackie was thrilled to suggest that our summer book club choice feature one of her favorite writers/speakers about dog behavior. But, this book wasn't just another training manual: It delved a lot deeper into both dog and human patterns of behavior. We learned that humans love to talk, dogs don't love being patted on the head, and just why these two Peter Pan species get along so darn well. This episode is worth 2.0 LEARNING CEUs References for this episode McConnell, P.B. (2002). The other end of the leash: Why we do what we do around dogs. Ballantine

Despite the fact that behavioral science has a boatload of research on the treatment of problem behavior, there are times when you have to wonder why we don’t use all of this info to prevent the development of problem behavior. This week, Dr. Shahla Ala’i-Rosales discusses just that possibility as well as how we can combine a prevention approach with the joy that should be a part of early caregiver interactions. If you’ve been feeling a tad robotic and prescriptive in your client interactions, this is the episode for you! This episode is available for 1.0 LEARNING CEU. Articles discussed this episode: Ala’i-Rosales, S., Cihon, J.H., Currier, T.D.R., Ferguson, JL., Leaf, J.B., Lear, R., McEachin, J., & Weinkauf, S.M. (2019). The big four: Functional assessment research informs preventative behavior analysis. Behavior Analysis in Practice, 12, 222-234. doi: 10.1007/s40617-018-00291-9 Ala’i-Rosales, S. (2021, February 19-20). Nurturing contingencies of joy [Conference presentation]. Oklahoma Autism Conferen

Board games are so hot right now, but that doesn’t mean their only purpose is to entertain us. I had the opportunity to chat with Dr. Jon Freeman, neuroscientist turned store owner, about how his passion for learning and games created fascinating avenues for skill development through his store’s after-school programs. Dr. Freeman explains how using neuroscience and patterns of play in common games has led to some interesting gains, and how programs like these might benefit our learning. Plus, Rob just chats about favorite board games for a bit! Interested in seeing some programs in action? Check out Dr. Freeman’s store The Brooklyn Strategist in Brooklyn, New York. Works discussed this episode: Donovan, T. (2017). It’s all a game: The history of board games from Monopoly to Settlers of Catan. Thomas Dunne Books.

After 10 minutes describing our lack of web design experience, we kick off the summer proper with a preview of what’s coming out this month. We kick things off with a bonus episode where Dr. Jon Freeman from The Brooklyn Strategist game store explains how board games and learning can combine. Then, for our full-length episodes, we talk with Dr. Shala Ala’i-Rosales about bringing joy through early childhood instruction, start preparing for the next apocalypse, and visit a foundational topic in behavior analysis for the first time ever. Minus our two-hour Book Club episode about it. Articles for June 2022 (BONUS) Board Game Educational Programs w/ Dr. Jon Freeman Donovan, T. (2017). It’s all a game: The history of board games from Monopoly to Settlers of Catan. Thomas Dunne Books. Joy and the Big Four w/ Dr. Shala Ala’i-Rosales Ala’i-Rosales, S., Cihon, J.H., Currier, T.D.R., Ferguson, JL., Leaf, J.B., Lear, R., McEachin, J., & Weinkauf, S.M. (2019). The big four: Functional assessment research informs pre

Enjoy a short preview of our latest full-length Book Club episode.  Want to hear the whole thing and get 2 CEs for free? Subscribe to our Patreon today at the premium $10+ levels for that plus other bonuses! Who’s ready to save the world with behavior analysis? While our original goal of reading books about ACT may have only been partially accomplished, what we got instead is Dr. Anthony Biglan’s overview of what 40+ years of prevention science, behavioral science, and policy making say about improving our lives at the family, school, community, and global stages. Tune in to our mega-long discussion to see where we agree, where we disagree, and what’s still left to do. Content discussed in this episode Biglan, A. (2015). The nurture effect: How the science of human behavior can improve our lives and our world. Oakland, CA: New Harbinger Publications. To download the whole epiosde plus a code for 2 free CEs, just subscribe to our Patreon at the $10+ levels.

The days of assuming traumatic events are terrible situations that couldn’t happen to us are past. But how can we work to minimize the risk of traumatic events, especially when working with children? Dr. Adithyan Rajaraman returns to the show with collaborator Dr. Jennifer Austin to discuss the state of research on trauma-informed applications in ABA. We review the goal of compassionate care, the impacts of trauma, and steps that you can take tomorrow to work within a trauma-informed framework of practice. This episode is available for 1.0 LEARNING CEU. Articles discussed this episode: Rajaraman, A., Austin, J.L., Gover, H.C., Cammilleri, A.P., Donnelly, D.R., & Hanley, G.P. (2022). Toward trauma-informed applications of behavior analysis. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 55, 40-61. doi: 10.1002/jaba.881 Taylor, B.A., LeBlanc, L.A., & Nosik, M.R. (2019). Compassionate care in behavior analytic treatment: Can outcomes be enhanced by attending to relationships with caregivers? Behavior Analysis in

New code, new ethics problems, new episode! Friend of the show, Dr. Darren Sush, joins us just in time for all of these changes with a second edition of one of our favorite publications, “A Workbook of Ethical Case Scenarios in Applied Behavior Analysis.” We tackle six big cases from the book covering whole new areas of ethical behavior, as well as a classic or two. Plus, we discuss how we’ve been using ethical case scenarios in our own groups to keep sharp. Come along and see if you get the same answers as us! This episode is available for 1.5 ETHICS CEU. Articles discussed this episode: Sush, D.G. & Najdowski, A.C. (2022). A workbook of ethical case scenarios in applied behavior analysis (2nd Ed). Academic Press. Behavior Analyst Certification Board. (2020). Ethics code for behavior analysts. If you're interested in ordering CEs for listening to this episode, click here to go to the store page. You'll need to enter your name, BCBA #, and the two episode secret code words to complete the purchase. Email

Ever wonder whether there's more to ABA than education and autism? Surprise! There are plenty of fields currently accepting more and more behavior analysts and even some new trails to blaze with bringing our science to new ventures and areas of study. But it's not going to be easy. This episode, we discuss just what it takes to change professional focus while maintaining both your professional AND ethical good-name. This episode is available for 1.0 LEARNING CEU. Patrons can receive this CE for FREE! Articles discussed this episode: Alligood, C.A. & Gravina, N.E. (2020). Branching out: Finding success in new areas of practice. Behavior Analysis in Practice, 14, 283-289. doi: 10.1007/s40617-020-00483-2 Alligood, C.A., Anderson, C., McGee, H. (2019). Casting a wider net: an Analysis of scholarly contributions of behavior analysis graduate program faculty. Behavior Analysis in Practice, 12, 466-472. doi: 10.1007/s40617-018-00281-x Brodhead, M.T., Quigley, S.P, & Wilczynski, S.M. (2018). A call for discus

(c) Robert Parry-Cruwys