Why ABA?

There are many misconceptions about what behaviour consultants do, and what Applied Behaviour Analysis (ABA) is. Ultimately, ABA is about discovering why we do what we do, and we "do" a lot of different things: talking, eating, stimming, throwing, etc. Because behaviour can be defined so broadly, ABA practitioners bring a unique behaviour perspective to a wide range of practice (see "Focus Areas"). 

I'll give a simple example, and explain how a behaviour perspective is different than that of other practitioners. Let's say I'm helping a child put together a simple puzzle, and we're both sitting in chairs at a table. 

A Physiotherapist (PT) might look at their core strength and ability to comfortably support themselves in an upright position. 

An Occupational Therapist (OT) might look at their fine motor ability (e.g., physical ability to pick up the pieces and put them together) and assess whether they have the right chair to best support them.

A Speech and Language Pathologist (SLP) might look at the child's ability to label visual aspects of the puzzle, like colours and shapes, and whether they understand some of the words and phrases involved like "look for," "find," and "put together." 

As a Behaviour Consultant, I'm more looking at motivation. Is this child really motivated to put the puzzle together? If they are, they will probably be willing to push through any frustration they encounter. They'll also be motivated to ask for help, because they want to complete the puzzle. 

If the child is not motivated, however, my approach is going to change. If puzzle-building is one of their goals, there are strategies we can use to work towards that goal. For example, we could agree together to work for 5 minutes in exchange for a fun item or activity, or agree on a certain number of pieces that we are going to put together before we're done. It would also be a great time to practice asking for a break! 

The goal is to reasonably balance the need for skill development and the ability to tolerate activities that aren't preferred, which is an issue that everybody faces. Think about getting up on a cold morning to go to the gym... there are some days you can do it, and some days you just CAN'T. It's my job as a consultant to nudge people towards their goals while always respecting when they just "can't." 

I'll mention one more thing before I close: I often hear it said that ABA is about changing the behaviour of other people. In my experience, however, ABA is more about understanding the behaviour of other people, and changing my own behaviour. If I understand, for example, that a child struggles with puzzles and is prone to aggression when they are frustrated, I'm going to be very careful about how and when I present that activity, because I want to create an environment in which that child can be as successful as possible! As I said on the home page, my main goal is to work collaboratively with families to create an environment in which people of all abilities can thrive.

Let's get started!