Most funding sources require an FBA, a functional behavior assessment before treatment for autism
can be started and sometimes at regular intervals, especially if new problem behaviors occur.
There's also a lot of confusion between an FBA and an FA, a functional analysis.
Last week I got an email from a psychologist, um, that said that he wished more BCBAs would
stop focusing so much on an FA, a functional analysis and start using my common sense approach.
Um, so today I wanted to talk to you about the email I received and this important topic
between an FBA, FA and my common sense approach.
Hi, I'm doctor Mary Barbera, autism mom board certified behavior analyst online course creator
and bestselling author of the verbal behavior approach.
Each week I provide you with some of my ideas about turning autism around.
So if you haven't subscribed to my youtube channel, you can do that now.
As I said, I received an email last week from a psychologist who's been a psychologist for
40 years.
It was in response to my video blog a couple of weeks ago about the speech therapy student
who read my book and did a book report and a presentation and she learned two big things.
So I want to read this email or at least part of it from the psychologist who's also a behavior
analyst.
It's 40 years of experience.
He said Mary the two big lessons that were learned from your book I found very interesting.
The recent trend in Aba is that as soon as any problem behaviors emerge, drop what you're
doing and complete a functional analysis.
My approach is simply change something that I can see as a problem right away and move
on without losing lots of time.
Your point about if problem behavior, emergent merges, it's probably too difficult, is easily
fixed by reducing difficulty right on the fly.
The other point about the reinforcement not being powerful enough is another thing that
can be fixed on the fly.
Both of these quick operations can have a drastic positive effect on teaching without
resorting to a complicated FA that delays progress that can be made in a couple of quick
changes on the fly.
I've been doing the things this way for over 40 years and I'm glad to see you talk about
it in your video.
What you were saying is a lot more significant, the tag teachers teaching with acoustical
guidance for those of you that don't know what tag is, and clicker trainers have been
doing it this way since they began, if the seaworld animal trainers had stopped to do
an FA, every time animal had a problem behavior, we would have no seaworld shows.
They solve the problem on the fly by changing something as you suggest.
I really appreciated this email.
I did a video blog, another video blog on why I believe my approach is different and
better.
And one of the reasons is because I use a common sense of ABA approach.
I have done functional behavior assessments, which is really just gathering all the data
that you can, interviews, surveys and some observation review of the records and coming
up with a hypothesis of function at functional analysis is can be part of an Fba.
But that is when we, um, experimentally control the variables and really test the hypothesis.
The problem is, is that FAs, in my opinion, can really only be done in clinical settings
with at least a room, a safe room where you have a two way glass to measure the alone
condition.
And so what I've found in schools and in homes is that most problem behavior is really caused
by both socially mediated positive reinforcement.
That being a past history of attention or access to tangible and the socially mediated
negative reinforcement being a past history of escape from demand.
And so it is usually both in my experience.
Now, one may be higher than the other, you might, it might be like 70% escape and 30%
attention access tangibles or the opposite.
But in general, all we need to do is back up do an assessment, like an a VB MAPP assessment,
for instance, including the barriers and put good programming in place to shift this around.
While FBAs are certainly required for funding and need to be done, I agree with the psychologist,
let's not jump into FAs.
Let's not jump into even formal FBAs unless they're really necessary.
I remember I was in a verbal behavior project classroom and one of the behavior analysts
said, oh, I just ran, you know, a 45 minute escape extinction procedure on this boy.
I'm calling Joe.
And um, you know, he was, he was really out of control for 45 minutes.
And, and I looked at her and I said, well, what is his VB MAPP look like?
And she said, I have no idea.
And so there is an example where I don't jump into getting into 45 minutes escape extinction
procedures ever, but especially if I don't have a good handle, if you're seeing real
big problem behaviors, demands are probably too high reinforcement is probably too low.
And you really in my opinion, need to take a common sense approach and um, learn more
about transfer procedures.
I just recently did a video blog on that.
You need to learn more about my approach and you can do that by attending a free online
workshop at marybarbera.com forward slash workshop.
My goal is for each of my clients and my two boys to reach their fullest potential, be
as safe as possible, as independent as possible, and as happy as possible.
I use a very different approach that, um, parents can use, professionals can use no
matter what type of professional you are.
My goal is for everyone to climb the mountain together and to really help kids reach their
fullest potential.
If you liked this video, give me a thumbs up, share the video and I hope to see you
right here next week.