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Autism and applied behavior analysis
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One of the most practiced and scientifically validated therapies for those having autism spectrum disorder is applied behavior analysis (also called ABA or ABA Therapy). Research on this therapy began in 1963 and was formally published as a research study in 1987 by Ivar Lovaas.
Lovaas’s studies have determined that roughly half of those children who underwent intensive ABA therapy at early ages (ideally before 3.5 years of age, but up to 7) and followed the program for a minimum of 2 years at 30-40 hours a week were able to enter primary school with minimal additional support.
The system uses as an operating premise that human behavior and how we learn can be broken down into three steps: antecedent, behavior, consequent. Essentially this means that “something happens” that makes us behave a certain way, and our behavior creates an action from which we develop patterns of future behavior and learning. From childhood through adulthood, most individuals learn and build their universe of cause-effect and behaviors accordingly.
In those that have an autism spectrum disorder, the process of establishing this system can often times be misaligned due to the way sensory information is processed. ABA is a means to help reinforce appropriate behavior and move the individual to a point where a set of basic skills becomes preconditioned and thereafter moves into more advanced sets of behaviors. The goal is to eventually have the individual self-aware to the point where he can self-monitor and more effectively manage personal behavior for an overall improved quality of life.
This is the first in a multi-part series on ABA Therapy.
Brian Field is the co-founder of the Autism Support Network.
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