FAQ’s
Below is a list of frequently asked questions. If you don’t find an answer to your question, please feel free to contact us.
What is ABA therapy?
Do you accept Insurance or Medicaid?
What are the costs?
What is the BCBA designation?
Do you use Floortime, or RDI?
How Effective Is ABA Therapy?
What is ABA used for?
What kinds of diagnoses has ABA addressed?
How do schools, agencies or individuals get started?Q- How do schools or families get services started?
Call the ASN office at (800) 306-8602.
Q-What is ABA therapy?
” ABA therapy” is a term used to describe the myriad procedures that are based on the laws of applied behavior analysis. Applied behavior analysis (ABA) is a discipline concerned with the application of behavioral science in real-world settings such as clinics or schools with the aim of addressing socially important issues such as behavior problems and learning (Baer, Wolf, & Risley, 1968). These can include incidental teaching, naturalistic teaching, shadowing, facilitation, discrete trial training, and other instructional methods that use consistent, systematic, and frequent prompts and consequences to teach new skills.
“ABA Therapy” is not synonymous with any one procedure even though it is commonly, but erroneously, described as such in the autism community (like Discreet Trial Teaching). The procedures that collectively make up what is known as ” ABA therapy” have been very well researched for more than 40 years. There is NO OTHER therapy or approach that even comes close to demonstrating the positive effects seen in ABA.
Furthermore, ABA-based approaches for educating children with autism and related disorders have been extensively researched and empirically supported (e.g., Howard, Sparkman, Choen, Green, & Stanislaw, 2005; Koegel, Koegel, & Harrower, 1999; Krantz & McClannahan, 1998; Lovaas,1987; McGee, Morrier, & Daly, 1999; Strain & Kohler, 1998).
Q – Do you accept Insurance or Medicaid?
Yes, we are constantly working with private insurance companies to provide ABA Therapy. Many states are legislating that private insurance companies provide an Autism benefit. Please contact us regarding your insurance company to see if we can partner with them to provide services for your child. Currently we do not utilize the Medicaid system.
Q – What are the costs?
Costs vary by the specific assessment or service provided, and by the length of service as we generally consult by the hour. Many different types of contracts are available and costs of services decrease if expanded contracts are developed.
Q – What is the BCBA designation?
The BCBA designation is a National Board Certification in Behavior Analysis. It is an abbreviation that stands for “Board Certified Behavior Analyst.” To sit for the BCBA exam, one must have educational, practical, and experiential requirements typically only found with those formally trained in their graduate work to become behavior analysts. More specific information can be found at the web site of the Behavior Analysis Certification Board: www.bacb.com
Q – Do you use Floortime, or RDI?
No. If there were empirical research studies supporting their use, they would be therapies to consider. Until that time, we’ll stick to what we know can be demonstrated empirically and under the highest level of scrutiny afforded to the field.
Q – How Effective Is ABA Therapy?
“Intensive, sustained special education programs and behavior therapy early in life can increase the ability of the child with autism to acquire language and ability to learn.” “Thirty years of research demonstrated the efficacy of applied behavioral methods in reducing inappropriate behavior and in increasing communication, learning, and appropriate social behavior.”
Journal of Pediatrics
On identifying the most scientifically supported treatments for Autism, Pediatrics, (the official journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics), says, “The most efficacious psychosocial treatment for autism is applied behavior analysis…” (Lilienfeld, 2005).
Kennedy Krieger Institute
“Scientific Support for Applied Behavior Analysis. Over the past 40 years a large body of literature has shown the successful use of ABA-based procedures to reduce problem behavior and increase appropriate skills for individuals with intellectual disabilities (ID), autism, and related disorders. Several review articles and meta-analyses have been published summarizing this large body of literature. Six of these articles (DeMyer, Hingtgen, & Jackson,1981; Herbert, Sharp, & Gaudiano, 2002; Hingtgen & Bryson, 1972; Kahng, Iwata, & Lewin, 2002; Matson, Benavidiz, Compton, Paclawskyj, & Baglio, 1996; Sturmey, 2002) collectively reviewed thousands of published studies spanning the years 1946 to 2001. Each of these reviews supported efficacy of ABA-based procedures in the assessment and treatment of problem behavior associated with autism, mental retardation, and related disorders. The large body of literature reviewed in these studies provides empirical evidence indicating that procedures developed using ABA-based principles are effective at assessing and treating a variety of socially important behaviors engaged in by individuals with a variety of diagnoses. Furthermore, ABA-based approaches for educating children with autism and related disorders have been extensively researched and empirically supported (e.g., Howard, Sparkman, Choen, Green, & Stanislaw, 2005; Koegel, Koegel, & Harrower, 1999; Krantz & McClannahan, 1998; Lovaas,1987; McGee, Morrier, & Daly, 1999; Strain & Kohler, 1998).”
ABA is used by and for…
Hospitals (e.g., Iwata, et al., 1994)
Schools (e.g., Boyajian, DuPaul, Handler, Eckert, & McGoey, 2001; Northup et al., 1997)
Homes (e.g., Derby, et al. 1997; Harding et al., 1999)
Juvenile Delinquency Centers
Self-injurious behavior (e.g., Iwata, Dorsey, Slifer, Bauman, & Richman, 1982/1994; Kahng, Iwata, & Lewin, 2002)
Aggression (e.g., DeLeon, Fisher, Herman, & Crosland, 2000; Oliver, Oxener, Hearn, & Hall, 2001.) stereotypic behavior (e.g., Ahearn, Clark, DeBar, & Florentino, 2005; Durand & Carr, 1997; Rapp, Vollmer, St. Peter, Dozier, & Cotnoir, 2004)
Pica (e.g., Hagopian, & Adelinis, 2001; McCord, Grosser, Iwata, & Powers, 2005; Piazza, Roane, Keeney, Boney, & Abt, 2002)
Organization Business Management (OBM)
Dentist Offices
Smoking cessation
Toileting
Weight Loss
Communication (e.g., Carr & Durand, 1985; Durand, & Carr, 1992; Hagopian, Fisher, Sullivan, Acquisto, & LeBlanc, 1998; Wacker et al., 1990)
Daily living skills (e.g., Cuvo, Jacobi, & Sipko, 1981; Horner & Keilitz, 1975)
Academic skills (e.g., Daly & Martens, 1994; McComas, Wacker, & Cooper, 1996)
What kinds of diagnoses has ABA addressed?
Schizophrenia (e.g., Wilder, Masuda, O’Connor, & Baham, 2001)
Mental retardation (e.g., Lindauer, Zarcone, Richman, & Schroeder, 2002; Saunders, McEntee, & Saunders, 2005)
Autism (e.g., Hoch, McComas, Thompson, & Paone, 2002; Lerman, Vorndran, Addison, & Kuhn, 2004; Lovaas et al. 1987)
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (e.g., Northup et al. 1997)
Stereotypic movement disorder with self-injury (e.g., Kahng, Iwata, & Lewin, 2002; Smith, Iwata, Goh, & Shore, 1995)
Down Syndrome (e.g., Dalton, Rubino, & Hislop, 1973)
Pediatric feeding disorders (e.g., Cooper et al., 1995; Kerwin, Ahearn, Eicher, & Burd, 1995; Piazza, et al., 2003).
I have been on the same dose of anti-depressants for 15 years, and my nerves still go up and down in cycles; but my nerves are cycling at a lower level than they were before.
Temple Grandin
