Understanding the ABCs of ABA Therapy

Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) therapy is a great way to help children with challenging behavior and learn new skills.

To influence good behavior changes, ABA therapy employs strategies including positive reinforcement. Since its success has been proven by more than 30 years of research, ABA therapy is now commonly used when treating autistic people.

ABA therapy was first made by Dr. Ivar Lovaas in 1980. It is a part of the behaviorist school of psychology. In the 1950s, Dr. Skinner and Pavlov made this area of psychology well-known as a way to train animals. However, it quickly grew to include research on how people act.

With the help of this kind of therapy, we may be able to learn more about three important parts of behavior: how learning happens, how behavior works, and how the environment affects behavior.

The ABCs of ABA therapy that we also use in our autism therapy services in Georgia are:

• Antecedent
  It is something that occurs before the intended behavior. It could be a request or command, a plaything or object, or something else in the surrounding area. This may originate inwardly or from someone else, such as an emotion or notion.
• Behavior
  The reaction to the antecedent, or lack thereof, is the following action. This could be expressed verbally, physically, or in another way.
• Consequence
  Last but not least, this is the outcome of the behavior. This can involve either no response or positive reinforcement.

Our ABA therapy in Alpharetta, Georgia, has always strived to use cutting-edge and efficient techniques to assist kids with autism.

Please get in touch with Able Autism Therapy Services right away if you’re interested in learning more about speech-language pathologists or how to enroll your child.