Association for Behavior Analysis International

Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) is a field that has yet to extend globally. Diversity in cultural and socio-economic contexts create barriers to straightforward replication of ABA systems from more industrialized countries. Extensive supervision and collaboration between local and international providers are vital to foster growth, uphold standards, and ensure effectiveness in developing nations. Government agencies play a vital role in establishing new disciplines within its country. In the Philippines, a considerable portion of the population live in poverty with limited access to essential services. A lack of public and private funding and only 7 Board Certified Behavior Analysts serving the 13th most populated country in the world exacerbate the struggle for accessible behavioral healthcare. In response to the challenges, the city of Paranaque was the first to enact an ordinance including ABA in its provision of free services to the community. The local government unit and international behavior analysts collaborated to provide on-going training for families with special needs in a pilot program aimed at establishing an infrastructure of sustainable behavioral support in the tenth largest city in the Philippines. Initial outcomes and barriers will be presented alongside recommendations for further action and replication in other developing cities and countries.

BACB and QABA certified clinicians

Person-centered planning and support should be a pillar in applied behavior analytic research by focusing on the inclusion of participants in decision-making and supporting neurodiversity affirming practice (Belisle et al., 2021). The LIFE Functional Module (LIFE; Dixon, 2018) provides functional behavior targets of daily living and prescriptive methods to target behaviors across multiple categories and domains. The current set of studies detail a framework for centering the input and values of adult learners in the selection and design of LIFE programming to support autonomy and independence. Multiple behavior topographies were targeted and evaluated within single-subject experimental designs, such as cooking, filmmaking, and liesure skills. Each broad target area was comprised of multiple component skills and training was designed to promote independent completion of chained tasks, generalization of skills across contexts, and relational frames developed to support the behavior targets. In all cases, results showed rapid acquisition of the target skills and social validity scores obtained directly from the adult learners suggested the interventions were seen as both helpful and preferred. Overall, results suggest behavioral technologies like LIFE can be adapted within a values-based framework.

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is diagnosed through the American Psychiatric Association Diagnostic and Statistical Manual - Fifth Edition (2013). The DSM-V defines ASD through three areas of core deficits; social-emotional reciprocity, nonverbal communicative behaviors used for social interaction, and developing, maintaining, and understanding relationships. Addressing deficits, as seen through the medical model, is common in services for many Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) service providers (Matson, 2023). Pellicano and Houting (2022), echo a call from the autistic community to move away from a medical/deficit approach to autism services towards a paradigm of neurodiversity as an alternative method. The present study seeks to explore the relationship to which ABA practitioners utilize different paradigms of treatment to guide their practice and their perception of autism. Participants completed several surveys to obtain their perception of autism as well as a survey to understand their approach to practice. Results displayed a relationship between the paradigms that practitioners use to direct implementation and their perception of autism. The approach to services that practitioners use may have a relationship to their perception of autism as demonstrated by these results and may have implications for the use of a neurodiversity paradigm within the field of ABA to improve providers’ perceptions of the autistic clients that they serve.

Over several decades, researchers and clinicians have attempted to identify the function(s) of problem behavior through functional analyses to develop effective interventions. Past methods included evoking fully escalated problem behavior in multiple analogue conditions of isolated reinforcement contingencies. These methods led applied researchers to address concerns that may impact practical application such as safety and efficiency. For example, the interview-informed synthesized contingency analysis (IISCA) involves a process that is relatively quick to complete and reinforces non-dangerous precursors to problem behavior. The elements of safety and efficiency were eventually considered within the larger framework of trauma-informed care (TIC; Rajaraman et al., 2022). The guiding principles of TIC include (a) acknowledging trauma and its impact, (b) ensuring safety and trust, (c) choice and shared governance, and (d) emphasizing skill building. These principles have informed the development of specific assessment and treatment procedures. In this symposium we will discuss how TIC has influenced research in the assessment and treatment of problem behavior. We will review 20 years of functional analysis outcomes (Study 1), identify procedural modifications to pre-treatment assessments (Study 2), discuss the incorporation of TIC within skill-based treatment (Study 3), and consider the treatment utility of the novel performance-based IISCA (Study 4).

Necessary prerequisite skills for the audience include: an understanding of functional analyses and function-based interventions.

Maintaining participant safety and managing risk during the assessment and treatment of severe problem behavior is of upmost importance. The performance-based interview-infomed synthesized contingency analysis (IISCA; Luigi et al. 2022) is a functional analysis format that incorporates an interview with caregivers asking questions about problem behavior to avoid dangerous escalation. We introduced additional questions during the interview to more readily identify participants who are prone to escalation to better predict and manage risk (Canniello et al. 2023). The performance-based IISCA was conducted for eleven individuals and we found that the percentage of dangerous problem behavior and the probability of a burst was correlated with reports of quick escalation. The results suggests that questions regarding escalation speed from minor to more severe instances of problem behavior may be particularly helpful for predicting any safety concerns. Future researchers may want to consider other procedural modifications to the functional analysis to ensure individuals feel physically and emotionally secure when safety concerns are anticipated.

Challenging behavior (e.g., aggression, self-injurious behavior) can adversely affect the trajectory and quality of an individual’s life. Historically, pharmacological and behavioral approaches are the most recommended interventions for challenging behavior (Newcomb & Hagopian, 2018; Valdovinos, 2019). Using a behavioral approach, putative reinforcers of challenging behavior are identified using a functional analysis to inform subsequent treatment. Multiple functional analysis formats exist (e.g., interview-informed synthesized contingency analysis [IISCA], standard, brief) and behavioral interventions informed by functional analysis formats have resulted in improvements of challenging behavior across copious individuals. However, the treatment validity of each of these formats has yet to be compared. The authors synthesized functional analysis-informed outcomes from a 20-year review of the literature to determine the magnitude of effect of subsequent intervention for each functional analysis format. Additionally, moderating variables (e.g., diagnosis, language ability) were evaluated to identify the bounds of functional analysis-informed intervention. The authors investigated the difference in treatment outcomes informed by the IISCA with treatments informed by other formats because of the contrast with the IISCA procedures and components. This presentation will present outcomes that compare the intervention effects of different functional analysis formats, with an emphasis on the IISCA compared to other formats.

Behavioral intervention for problem behavior often relies on the results of a functional analysis to identify environmental contributors. Multiple functional analysis formats have been developed to improve qualities of the process such as practicality, efficiency, and safety. More recently, the performance-based, interview-informed synthesized contingency analysis (IISCA) was developed as a functional analysis format that incorporates a trauma-informed framework. The performance-based IISCA (a) introduces evocative events following periods of calm to reduce dangerous escalation, (b) includes moment-to-moment measures of problem behavior to allow for ongoing visual analysis of data, and (c) maintains measures of positive affect. We conducted this study to evaluate the treatment utility of the performance-based IISCA when it is used to inform a skill-based treatment. The performance-based IISCA was conducted for the problem behavior of three autistic children before teaching communication, toleration, and cooperation during skill-based treatment in the home setting. Problem behavior was reduced for all participants across different therapists and across time (one, two, three-month maintenance probes). The results support the generality and longevity of treatment informed by the performance-based IISCA.

Assessing the efficacy of reinforcers is as puzzling as it is important in behavior analysis and psychopharmacology. Rates of responding vary with schedule requirements, choice varies with reinforcer abundance, and contextual factors often play unknown roles on the impact of reinforcement on behavior. Maximization theory, supplemented with empirically supported assumptions, provides the basis for the estimation of reinforcer efficacy in individual subjects in laboratory settings. This approach identifies efficacy with the economic concept of utility; it assumes that subjects continually choose those activities with higher utility within the constraints imposed by the environment. From these assumptions, predictions may be drawn on how rate of reinforcement varies with price (response requirement), how rate of responding for drugs of abuse varies with dose, how discrete choices change with income (rate of choice presentation), among other important behavioral metrics. Data from these procedures may be used to estimate the utility—i.e., the efficacy—of reinforcers. This presentation emphasizes practical considerations for conducting the estimation of utility parameters such as unit utility and marginal rate of substitution.

Analyses of operant demand data have advanced precipitously over the past 5 years. These advances include refinement of quantitative models, newly proposed theoretical models, and advanced statistical modeling approaches. Concurrent with these advances has been an increase in behavioral economic extensions to applied questions in non-laboratory settings. Unfortunately, however, the advanced mathematical approaches to quantifying demand are often antithetical to applied pursuits where there are limited resources for software or inadequate training in quantitative modeling. Toward this end, some researchers have suggested the use of model-independent metrics of demand, such as observed markers along the demand curve (e.g., observed maximum output [Omax], price associated with observed maximum output [Pmax], breakpoints, observed intensity). While there is strong translational support for these observed markers, these fail to capture the most critical aspect of demand curve analyses: elasticity. We propose the use of arc elasticity to measure the percentage change in consumption as a function of the percentage change across specific price values. The presentation will provide specific data examples across numerous commodity types. We will present correlations between observed markers, model-derived variables, and clinical outputs with various approaches to arc elasticity. We will conclude with recommendations for applied researchers.

This study aims to evaluate the effects of teaching problem-solving strategies (categorization and rule-used prompts) on the accuracy of tacts of past events. Three neurotypical children (4-5-years-old) were first taught to tact 36 unfamiliar visual stimuli (pictures of animal, plants, objetcts) using a auditory-visual discrimination instruction with echoic response requirement (preexperimental condition). After meet the learning criteria, participants will be exposed to the experimental conditions in a multiple probe across participants design. During probes, participants will be allowed to play with different toys and games, including a card game (critical activity) during which the experimenter will present nine out of the 36 pictures previously learned and require the children to tact each of them. After 10 min, they will be asked to respond questions about past events (e.g., What pictures did you see today at the playing room?). Intervention will consist in a teaching both categorization and medianting-response prompting (rule-used prompts) to the participants, according to Sautter et al. (2011). Data collection for the preexperimental condition is still in progress. Partial results shows that the auditory-visual discrimination instruction with echoic response requirement is producing emergent tact responses.

The mission of Behaviorists for Social Responsibility Special Interest Group (BFSR SIG) is to expand applications of behavior analysis and cultural analysis addressing global issues such as social justice, environmental justice, and human rights. For the past several years BFSR has been using a matrix analysis (Biglan, 1995; Mattaini, 2013) to identify the practices that support, oppose, motivate, and select the development and utilization of scientific behavioral systems to address social issues. Upon identifying 28 societal sectors, work groups comprised of SIG members have been applying the matrix analyses to various issues of social importance. The symposium aims to highlight the work of two of those work groups, the Sustainability Work Group and the Public Health Work Group. Each of these presentations will provide an update on recent actions taken by each work group as members carry out the mission of the BFSR SIG and the matrix project. Implications and future directions will be discussed.

A basic understanding of the fundamental concepts and principles of behavior analysis (i.e., principles of reinforcement) would support audience members in understanding the content discussed in this presentation. Additionally, while it is not required to understand, some knowledge of the Behaviorists for Social Responsibilities Matrix Analysis may be beneficial.

The purpose of the Behaviorists for Social Responsibility (BFSR) Public Health Work Group is to explore the intersection between behavioral science and public health. This Work Group explores the ways in which behavioral and public health scientists can collaborate and learn from one another to develop strategies that improve population level outcomes. Previous work by the Work Group includes creating a fact sheet for public health as an ABA subspeciality area for the BACB website, presenting posters and symposium at the ABAI’s Annual Convention, and developing a special section on human behavior and public health for Behavior and Social Issues. Currently, the group is collaborating with other BFSR chapters to facilitate communication and create learning opportunities, identifying faculty who may provide opportunities for students to work in public health areas, building a comprehensive database that contains information on behavioral friendly public health programs, highlighting people who are working in both public health and behavior analysis, listing language that is necessary to work in both areas, and creating panels and posters for behavior analytic conferences.

This symposium explores the intricate dynamics of relapse phenomena in behavior-analytic contexts through two distinct yet interconnected research projects. The first study delves into the complex interplay of renewal and reinstatement—two forms of treatment relapse—in the realm of challenging behavior within behavior-analytic services. In this study, undergraduate college students engaged in a simulated computer task under varying conditions. One group experienced ABA renewal alone during differential reinforcement of an alternative response (DRA). The second group experienced the same conditions, but with renewed target behavior temporarily contacting reinforcement during relapse tests in Context A. Findings suggest increased relapse persistence when renewed target responses are briefly reinforced during contextual shifts, posing nuanced challenges for behavior analysts. The second study introduces a rat model simulating commission errors in relapse scenarios, emphasizing the significance of inadvertent reinforcement. Theoretical and practical implications from both studies illuminate the complexities of relapse phenomena, offering valuable insights for behavior-analytic interventions and highlighting the need for precise strategies in addressing challenging behaviors.

Researchers; Graduate students; Clinicians

Communication in the workplace can have multiple functions for behavior. For example, it can serve as an antecedent to prompt appropriate behavior or as a reinforcer that increases correct responding, such as with feedback. Communication may also function as a motivating operation and alter the value of current consequences for behavior. In the workplace, employee preference for different forms of communication can impact efficacy and, in some cases, the wrong communication can result in unintended consequences. While some may assume that employees would avoid corrective feedback, results from the first study in our symposium suggest that not only is corrective feedback more effective, employees actually prefer it to positive feedback. The second study will explore how aversive control in the workplace can backfire. Depending on how critical messages are delivered, they may increase performance, but they may also evoke countercontrol, which is behavior intended to punish the behavior of the individual delivering the aversive statement (e.g., sabotage). Overall, this symposium will discuss how communicating with employees, whether as feedback or other forms of communication, needs to take into consideration preference, efficacy, and potential side-effects.

The target audience for this symposium are individuals with some background or education in behavior analytic principles and concepts.

Research is pivotal in advancing the field of behavior analysis. For graduate students, learning to writing for publication is often viewed as a cornerstone of academic growth. Scholarly activities include first conducting high quality research and learning to effectively convey research findings to disseminate in peer-reviewed journals. This panel discussion will delve into the nuances of writing for behavior analytic journals. Well-known mentors and researchers will share invaluable insights into learning to write for publication, including essential elements that are required for crafting successful journal submissions. Panel members will speak from the perspective of mentors who teach graduate students scholarly writing as well as expectations for publications from the perspective of the journal. This event aims to empower graduate students and researchers by providing a roadmap for accessing publication opportunities and generating high quality written work suitable for dissemination within the field of behavior analysis. Through these discussions, attendees will be better equipped with the knowledge needed to craft high-quality writing to fit for the purpose of publication within the field of behavior analysis.

Intermediate audience: currently enrolled or recently graduated graduate student that is learning how to write for publication

Research has demonstrated the effectiveness of behavioral treatments, such as Functional Communication Training (FCT) and FCT with delay-and-denial tolerance training, for reducing challenging behavior. Relapse refers to the recurrence of a previously decreased response when a treatment is challenged, such as treatment integrity omission errors (i.e., resurgence) or when treatment is transferred from clinics to community settings, such as the home or school (i.e., renewal). Although effective, relapse following FCT is highly prevalent, and there is relatively little research evaluating relapse following FCT with delay-and-denial tolerance training. Additionally, there have been mixed findings across basic and applied studies, and guidance for practice is limited. In this symposium, one presentation investigates renewal following differential reinforcement of alternative behavior in single- and multiple-context training across basic and applied arrangements. Two presentations will highlight investigations of relapse during delay-and-denial tolerance training—one empirical demonstration of relapse following programmed treatment integrity errors and context changes during FCT with delay-and-denial tolerance training, and one systematic review of the magnitude and prevalence of resurgence during distinct components of delay-and-denial tolerance training. The final presentation will identify everyday examples of relapse and provide strategies and tools to assist practitioners in preparing for relapse in applied settings.

The intended audience is behavior analysts who have or currently work with individuals that engage in challenging behavior, as well as researchers who specialize in relapse. The audience should have some knowledge on treatment relapse and its clinical implications. Additionally, familiarity with experimental models of different forms of relapse will be useful, but a general overview will be provided for pertinent presentations.

Individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) often receive behavioral treatment for severe problem behavior. Although treatment may be effective in reducing problem behavior, the possibility of renewal of problem behavior may be of a concern to clinicians and caregivers. Renewal is the reemergence of a previously reduced response following a change in treatment conditions (Pritchard et al., 2014). One potential solution to mitigate renewal may incorporate multiple implementers across different settings before implementing treatment in contexts in which the target behavior was initially reinforced (Kimball et al., 2023). Additionally, translational human laboratory studies are conducted under the assumption that outcomes will be relevant to clinical conditions. However, few studies have examined the extent to which laboratory preparations predict whether similar findings will be obtained with clinically relevant behaviors. During the present study, single- and multiple- context training was evaluated with human participants recruited via Amazon Mechanical Turk (MTurk) and individuals with ASD, who engaged in problem behavior. Across both studies, minimal renewal effects were observed following the implementation of DRA plus extinction for both single- and multiple-context participants.

Resurgence is the recurrence of target behavior (e.g., severe destructive behavior) during a worsening of reinforcement conditions (e.g., increases in response effort or decreases in reinforcement rate for appropriate behavior). Previous studies have examined the prevalence and magnitude of resurgence of severe destructive behavior during functional communication training with discriminative stimuli (i.e., multiple schedules). We conducted a systematic review of the literature to analyze the magnitude and prevalence of treatment relapse during functional communication training with delay-and-denial tolerance training, including during shaping of the complex communication response, introduction of tolerance responses, and increases in delays. Similar to previous studies with discriminative stimuli, resurgence occurred in nearly all participants (87%) and in about one-third of transitions. Resurgence was less likely to occur during response-effort manipulations (i.e., complexity training, tolerance-response training) and was most likely to occur during increases in delays that ended following the passage of time rather than a response criterion. These results highlight the importance of further evaluation of resurgence across different applications of functional communication training.

BIPOC students face disproportional disciplinary practices (Badger et al., 2018; Little & Tolbert, 2018; Noguera, 2003), special education identification (Sullivan & Proctor, 2016), and teacher-student interactions (Decker et al., 2007; Wymer et al., 2020) as compared to their white peers. Disproportionality may be a result of implicit bias or behaviors influenced by cues that function as an indicator of the social group to which others belong (De Houwer, 2019). School-based behavior analysts and classroom consultants are well-positioned to measure and subsequently intervene on disproportionately. This symposium will describe current research within the field to measure and promote equitable practices in the classroom setting. The first paper describes the role of school-based behavior analysts in providing culturally humble services and research. The second paper describes the implementation of Positive Behavior Intervention Supports (PBIS) and disproportionality in schools. The third paper assesses teachers’ perceptions of their own cultural responsiveness and students’ classroom behaviors. The final paper describes an intervention for increasing proportional teacher-student interactions in the classroom setting during unstructured times.

School-based BCBAs

Racially and ethnically minoritized (REM; Proctor & Owens, 2019) youth are disproportionately exposed to detrimental exclusionary discipline procedures. To address disproportionality, researchers and policymakers have proposed implementing a multi-tiered system of support (MTSS) framework, universally screening students for behavioral concerns. The relationship between teachers' perceptions of their cultural responsiveness, teacher’s perceptions of students’ social-emotional well-being and classroom behavior, and students; observed behavior may impact equitable screening results and access for behavioral health services. This presentation will review two studies conducted with teachers in two large suburban school districts in which linear modeling applied to predict the relationships between variables. Study 1 investigated the relationship between teachers' (n = 20) ratings on a measure of cultural responsiveness, the Assessment of Culturally and Contextually Relevant Supports (ACCReS) and students' classroom behavior. Results indicated that higher ACCReS scores significantly predicted lower class wide disruptive behavior. Study 2 investigated the relationship between teachers' (n = 30) ratings on the ACCReS and ratings of their students' risk on the Social, Academic, and Emotional Behavior Risk Screener. For social behavior, higher ACCReS scores predicted teachers perceiving lower social risk; however, identification as a Black student and a student with a disability predicted higher risk.

Identifying, understanding, and teaching concepts are each key for high-quality behavior-analytic approaches to our clinical work, research, and instruction. Yet, we sometimes use conceptual terms without clearly identifying the boundary conditions of the concept. Failure to clearly define the concept can result in learners using the concept in ways that are unintended or incorrect, and can leave teachers wondering how to resolve the errors. In the current symposium, we start with an example of the first step of conceptual instruction: conducting a concept analysis. We demonstrate how concept analysis can be used within the context of research and clinical practice by analyzing the concept of "treatment integrity." We then expand on this example by discussing how the critical features identified during the concept analysis can be used to develop a set of stimuli to teach the concept, to provide opportunities for learners to practice, and to assess generative responding. We close with advice about how to respond to learner errors during the acquisition of the concept.

Audience members should have skills related to: (1) teaching a variety of learners, (2) instructional design in its foundational forms, (3) concepts like examples, non-examples, generalization, and generative learning.

An important dimension of instruction involves teaching conceptual behavior related to the broadly applicable generalizations of a content domain. In this presentation, after defining and exemplifying “concept” and conceptual behavior, I will outline the necessary components for teaching a concept in any domain. The first step is to conduct a concept analysis of the critical features that define a concept, and the features that vary from instance to instance of the concept. From this prescription we must develop a range of typical or “close-in” examples and “far-out” examples of the concept that illustrate both the critical and variable features, develop a minimum rational set of close-in non-examples of the concept, each of which is missing only one critical feature, and develop additional examples and non-examples that may be needed to produce the desired discriminations. Teaching a concept this way produces generative responding to examples and non-examples not presented during instruction. To assess learners’ generative responding, we must create another set of far-out examples and close-in non-examples from the concept-analysis prescription. Finally, after initially acquiring conceptual behavior, learners must practice with additional far-out examples and close-in non-examples. Once these components are created, a teacher is ready to develop an instructional sequence of tasks that include context-setting descriptions, rules, examples, and non-examples.

One strategy instructional designers use involves creating lean programs with the fewest components necessary to get fluent performance of the skill we wish to teach. When teaching more complex skills, where the antecedent stimuli may be physically dissimilar to one another, designers must ensure they have provided a enough stimuli to adequately establish simple generative responding. Concept analyses present designers with a blueprint for assembling a minimum rational set of divergent examples and close-in non-examples. However, designers often need to include additional teaching, practice, and testing stimuli to adequately establish conceptual behavior. The question is, which additional stimuli should the instructional designer include? This presentation will highlight how instructional designers can conduct error analyses to identify learner error patterns in response to your instructional program. Based on these patterns, three types of errors can occur when learning concepts: Overgeneralization, undergeneralization, and misconceptions. Each of these types of errors require a different prescription from the instructional designer. We will discuss how to identify these errors, generate additional stimuli informed by these errors, and revise the instructional programs.

Equivalence-based instruction (EBI) uses the principles of stimulus equivalence and derived relations to promote generative learning outcomes in many subject areas. The three talks in this symposium describe studies in which variables related to EBI and conceptual learning more broadly were investigated. The first study examined the effects of group-based EBI on children’s listener and speaker behavior related to six coin-related stimuli (e.g., coin's face, name, and value) using auditory-visual match-to-sample procedures. Results showed successful formation of coin equivalence classes. In the second study, the effects of the stimulus-pairing, yes-no (SPYN) procedure was compared to match-to-sample (MTS) to teach abstract stimuli equivalence classes with adults. Results showed no differential effects on class formation, but training time was significantly longer for participants exposed to SPYN. The third study investigated a type of conceptual learning related to categorizing novel stimuli based on the presence or absence of critical features. Results showed that the most robust conceptual learning was observed following practice with examples and nonexamples that lacked only one critical feature and contained few irrelevant features. Collectively, these studies further our understanding of procedures that can be used to successfully implement EBI specifically, and teach conceptual behavior more broadly.

Attendees should have basic understanding of stimulus classes, match to sample procedures, and emergent behavior.

The purpose of the present study was to compare the effectiveness and efficiency of match-to-sample (MTS) to the stimulus-pairing yes/no procedure (SPYN) to establish equivalence classes. During SPYN trials, two stimuli are presented during a trial. Stimulus pairs from the same class should occasion selection of the YES response option, while stimulus pairs from different classes should occasion selection of NO. A pretest-train-posttest sequence was used. During the pretest and posttest, both MTS and SPYN trials were used to assess all trained and derived relations. We also assessed the degree to which class-consistent responding would generalize to a card sorting task. During training of baseline relations, half of the participants were exposed only to MTS or only SPYN trials. Posttest results showed that the trial format used to train the baseline relations had no differential effects on class formation; however, participants exposed to MTS training mastered the baseline relations in fewer trials and required less time than those in the SPYN group. Implications of these results and suggestions for future studies are discussed.

Generative artificial intelligence (AI) tools, such as Chat GPT, are gaining popularity for their ability to generate human-like responses to requests. These chatbots use natural language processing and machine learning algorithms to produce these responses. This symposium will discuss two studies related to behavior analysis and AI. Study 1 evaluates ChatGPT’s performance on the 5th edition task list mock exam developed by Behavior Development Solutions (BDS). Results indicate that ChatGPT-3.5 scored 61% and ChatGPT-4.0 scored 89%. ChatGPT-4.0 performed best in experimental design (100%); measurement, data display, and interpretation (95%); ethics (94%; and behavior change procedures (94%). ChatGPT performed worst in selecting and implementing interventions (75%) and behavioral assessments (78%). In study 2, various generative AI chatbots performance was assessed across several PEAK Relational Training System programs. Preliminary results indicate that generative AI chatbots respond more accurately in the context of coordination in the equivalence modules (100% correct across 120 trials) but are less capable of accurate responding when provided with complex relations (i.e., opposition) in the PEAK transformation modules (35.83% across 120 trials). Implications, considerations and limitations for using generative AI in behavior analytical practice and research will be discussed.

Some background in relational frame theory and artificial intelligence technologies

Generative artificial intelligence (AI) built using Large Language Models (LLMs) has shown to be capable of augmenting the work and decisions of practitioners and researchers across various disciplines. One LLM, ChatGPT, is gaining public attention because its total capabilities, human-sounding linguistic performance, and widespread accessibility exceed competitor LLMs. In the current paper, we assessed the performance of two versions of ChatGPT on the Behavior Analyst Certification Board (BACB) 5th edition task list mock exam, developed by Behavior Development Solutions (BDS). Overall, ChatGPT-3.5 scored 61% and ChatGPT-4.0 scored 89%. ChatGPT-4.0 performed best in experimental design (100%); measurement, data display, and interpretation (95%); ethics (94%; and behavior change procedures (94%). ChatGPT-4.0 performed worst in selecting and implementing interventions (75%) and behavioral assessments (78%). Based on these results, we discuss the implications, considerations, and limitations that ChatGPT and other LLMs currently pose for behavior analysts working in behavior analytic education, practice, and research.

Generative artificial intelligence (AI) tools, such as ChatGPT, function as a chatbot where users can enter queries and receive a response in real time. These tools utilize AI algorithms, such as deep learning, to process and generate natural language. Relational frame theory (RFT) provides an explanation of how humans acquire and produce complex language, through direct reinforcement and derived relational responding. The PEAK Relational Training System is a curriculum that has been used to teach derived relational responding. The purpose of this study was to evaluate if various chatbots could make derived relations between stimuli. Several programs from the equivalence and transformation modules of PEAK were selected to run with ChatGPT-4, Bing Chat, and Perplexity. The selected PEAK programs included topics such as math, grammar, science, perspective taking, and social skills. Preliminary results indicate that ChatGPT-4 is capable of deriving equivalence relations in the context of coordination (ChatGPT-4, 100% correct across 120 trials; Perplexity, 91.67%) and is less capable of deriving complex relations in the context of opposition (ChatGPT-4, 35.83% across 120 trials; Perplexity, 21.67%). Implications for how AI might be used to simulate human language learning will be discussed, as well as AI’s ability to engage in complex language

Applied behavior analysis has directed little empirical attention to the interrelated concepts of assent, countercontrol, and treatment refractory behavior. Despite recent conceptual discussions of assent (Morris, Detrick, & Peterson, 2021), countercontrol (Spencer, King, Martone, & Houlihan, 2022), and treatment refractory behavior (Blenkush, O’Neill, & O’Neill, 2023) the field has yet to develop standardized measures for any of these concepts. To that end, we developed and tested the validity of (1) the Behavioral Assent to Treatment Scale; (2) a treatment protocol for countercontrol in residential settings; (3) an operational definition of treatment refractory behavior to include associated variables; and (4) the Refractory Behavior Index assessment tool. Across presentations, we will discuss conceptual overlap between assent, countercontrol, and treatment refractory behavior with an emphasis on empirical evaluation and clinical case analysis. We conclude that science can, and should, guide us in our attempts at tackling complex treatment issues such as assent, countercontrol, and treatment refractory behavior.

Behavior analysts interested in the limitations associated with the standard of care in applied behavior analysis

Ethical guidelines of principles and standards of conduct for a profession are generally referred to as ethical codes. Ethical codes, are created unique to each profession to serve their practitioners and clients. This project examined the ethical codes of behavior analysts, occupational therapists, school psychologists, and speech-language pathologists and compared them to one another. This examination revealed that there are main topics included in most, or all, of the ethical codes along with resemblances and differences in each comparison. Eight main topics were identified: confidentiality, scope of practice, informed consent, welfare, honesty, rights, reporting, and equality. Many differences between the codes were also identified. These differences, subtle or major, could cause potential conflict or lend to more effective collaborating when differing professions interact and service clients. The hope is that this examination and comparison of ethics codes can help professionals be aware and respectful of the ethical principles and standards of all professions to best benefit all parties.

A capacity for arbitrarily applicable relational responding enables an individual to interact with complex and dynamic environments and has therefore attracted considerable attention from researchers and practitioners alike. The four papers in this symposium describe efforts to further develop both the basic science of relational responding and interventions designed to establish and refine repertoires of relational responding. Paper one describes randomized controlled trials examining the efficacy of a relational frame theory based applied behavior analysis intervention on learners’ overall abilities, such as intelligence, adaptive behavior skills, and autism symptom severity. Paper two details the co-emergence of verbal abilities and repertoires for relational responding in autistic learners. Paper three details the refinement of measures of various patterns of relational responding, and in doing so refines our understanding of the relationships between these patterns. Paper four presents new methods for investigating relational responding and transformations of functions. The work presented in this symposium blends basic and applied settings and involves a variety of populations. These works contribute to continuing the development of procedures for basic research and protocols designed to equip individuals with the behavioral repertoires required for effective patterns of exchange with their physical and social environments.

Prerequisites for this symposium include, but are not limited to, master’s level mastery of the application of behavior analysis.

There has been consistent interest in examining the overall impact of relational frame theory (RFT) based applied behavior analysis (ABA) intervention among autistic individuals. Among these topics, increasing attention has emerged in examining RFT’s impact on the learner’s overall abilities, such as intelligence and autism symptom severity. A series of three studies were conducted, each with increasing sample size, length of intervention and precision of experimental control. Study one included a 12-week single center preliminary randomized trial among RFT-based ABA, conventional ABA, and a convenience waitlist control with 31 autistic participants. Study two included 83 autistic participants and involved a multi-center parallel-group randomized controlled trial between RFT-based ABA and treatment-as-usual with increased treatment intensity and inclusion of more standardized or criterion-referenced assessments. In study three, a year-long multiple-center parallel-group randomized controlled trial was conducted, with weekly exposure of 60-90 min of ABA intervention. 50 Pre-K participants were randomly assigned to receive RFT-based ABA or treatment-as-usual, and measures were taken on their intelligence, adaptive behavior skills, and conventional behavior-analytic assessments. Overall results showed that RFT-based ABA was uniquely positioned to produce global-level changes. Implications for the practice of ABA will be discussed.

A conceptual link between relational frame theory and intelligent behavior has been discussed in the conceptual and empirical literature (Cassidy et al., 2010), where intelligent behavior is defined by its emergent and adaptive properties. Conceptualizations of relational framing that emphasize the relational field as comprising complex interdependent behavior networks may more closely approximate flexible intelligent behavior than traditional models. The presentation will discuss a series of studies that demonstrate the co-emergence of relational networks and verbal behaviors in autistic learners receiving behavior analytic services. The PEAK Comprehensive Assessment (PCA; Dixon, 2020) provides a measure of verbal operant learning and relational learning. Results from PCA outputs show the early emergence of elementary verbal operants with non-arbitrarily applicable relational responding and early forms of mutual entailment. Later skill development involves more complex forms of arbitrarily applicable relational responding, including combinatorial entailment of multiple frame families, and transformations of stimulus function. Interventions built from this relational learning model show the success of interventions adapted from PEAK at the subject-level across multiple levels and dimensions of relational responding (Barnes-Holmes et al., 2020). These results challenge traditional accounts of verbal behavior and expand on relational frame theory accounts of human learning and intelligence.

Behaviour analysts increasingly recognize the importance of relational responding skills in human language and cognition, and view relational responding as a generalized operant response class. Studies typically delineate different “relational responses” along descriptive lines: for instance, “same/opposite” responding, “before/after” responding, “you/me” responding, etc. In order for the field to advance, our understanding of relational responding should evolve such that relational operant(s) are delineated functionally, rather than topographically. As well as this, valid, reliable, and precise measures of individual-level relational abilities are required, but existing measures have not been subjected to rigorous testing in this regard. In this talk, I will describe a series of studies that on the one hand seek to provide such a functional understanding of relational responding, and on the other hand also attempt to improve upon the reliability, validity, and precision of extant relational responding assessments. Combining results from a range of studies primarily in typically-developed adults, results suggest that our understanding of the functional relationship between relational operants can be improved via experimental investigation, but that more rigorous and precise measurement procedures are firstly required to do so.

Relational responding is of psychological interest as a result of the transformations of stimulus functions that accompany relational responses. Recent research has developed a class of procedures specifically designed to investigate transformations of stimulus functions. This presentation will introduce this class of procedures, called function transformation tasks, and describe their core features and potential use cases. This talk will present data from a series of experiments each conducted with a sample of 20 verbally able human adults and in which two different function transformation tasks were employed. These experiments examined the establishment of contextual control over transformations of functions involving various kinds of stimulus properties across these two procedures. These experiments also examined the utility of these function transformation tasks in establishing novel relational mands (Murphy & Barnes-Holmes, 2009). The implications of function transformation tasks for future research on relational responding will be discussed, and some use cases for function transformation tasks in applied settings will be described.

Successful learners apply what they’ve learned to a variety of new contexts. This symposium will detail the role of instruction in initial learning and application towards an emerging technology of generalization. First, Vicci Tucci will describe how the Competent Learner Model uses explicit instruction to establish repertoires that allow students to successfully learn in a variety of typical instruction settings, leading to decreases in undesirable behaviors without explicit deceleration techniques. Second, Andrew Kieta will explain an emerging technology for generalization – or simple generative responding – used at Morningside Academy to ensure that skills, concepts, and principles learned in classroom settings are successfully applied in real-world contexts. Next, Nicole Erickson will explain how she used Morningside’s simple generative responding technology to design a year long project aimed at teaching students how to apply the foundational reading skills learned in the classroom to the unprompted reading of news articles outside of the school environment. Last, Adam Stretz will detail another implementation of Morningside’s simple generative responding technology. He taught middle school students how to write persuasive essay, then taught them how to use that repertoire in order to tackle real challenges in their lives, by identifying and persuading change agents in their communities.

Professionals interested in behavioral education, direct instruction, Precision teaching/frequency building, Response to Intervention, communication, and designing for and teaching towards generalization. Audience should have a basic understanding of applied behavior analysis as applied to academic learning behavior.

The Competent Learner Model™ (CLM™) is a teacher friendly toolkit for the comprehensive transfer and utilization of the principles and procedures of Applied Behavior Analysis, Direct Instruction, and Precision Teaching. The intent behind the design of the CLM is to (1) get educators to master the implementation of ABA, DI, and PT best practices, and (2) motivate them to use these practices in their classroom to “Just Teach” and accelerate student learning versus just decreasing undesirable behavioral challenges. The CLM™ Curriculum develops the Competent Learner Repertoires, which allow learning to occur in everyday circumstances within and across school, home, and community settings. The CLM™ takes the approach to program for vital learning-to-learn competencies by teaching learners to become competent observers, listeners, talkers, problem solvers, participators, readers, and writers. The benefit of this approach for learners with significant learning and behavioral challenges, is that CLM™ uses explicit instruction designed to establish those repertoires that allow a learner to benefit from increasingly typical instructional procedures, presentations, groupings, and formats allowing them to thrive in inclusive educational environments.

Behavior analytic training programs of various levels and arrangements are engaging in continuous quality improvement through ABAI’s accreditation system. We invite you to learn about how exemplary training programs engage with the accreditation process to refine their programs and meet accreditation standards. The panelists’ programs represent a diverse range of accreditation experiences, including programs seeking accreditation or recognition, newly accredited or recognized programs, and established programs. This session is designed for program coordinators, faculty, and those interested in recognition and accreditation.

The audience should have basic knowledge about higher education, coursework requirements, and curriculum development, and a general interest in learning about accreditation.

Some skills can't be acquired by simply opening a textbook; often, they must be shared through the exchange of experiences and the lessons learned along the way! Challenging conversations are a pervasive aspect of the Applied Behavior Analysis field. Whether it's mediating staff relationships, engaging with critical payor sources, or supporting families receiving their child's first diagnosis, mastering the art of handling such discussions often requires years of experience. These encounters can impose significant stress, anxiety, and even burnout on professionals in our field. Our primary objective is to approach these challenging situations with a solution-focused mindset, integrating essential elements such as compassionate care, perspective-taking, and cultural sensitivity into our problem-solving strategies.In this panel, we will explore various challenging scenarios and conversations encountered by different types of ABA and autism practitioners. Our panelists will share the invaluable tools they've acquired through hard-earned experience. By attending this session, you'll be better equipped to tackle a diverse range of challenging situations and engage in these conversations with newfound confidence.

BCBAs within their first 5 years

This symposium will broadly explore the scope of behavior analysis and its flexibility of application. The symposium will address topics ranging from: behavior medicine, and the nature of the flexible unit, to merging neuroscientific and behavioral principles to improve stroke rehabilitative outcomes. The first presentation provides conceptual and empirical foundations in support of non-traditional areas of application of ABA, with a focus on the medical realm. The author will focus on how subthreshold operant relations (i.e., neuromuscular activity) promote the expansion and application of ABA to improve the quality of life of the people behavior science can serve. The second author expands upon the notion of neuromuscular activity as an operant. The author will present data from a basic translation study focusing on the different operant dimensions in neuromuscular responses. In the final part of the symposium, we shift our attention to stroke rehabilitation. Here, we explore how behaviorists can integrate neuroscientific principles with behavioral principles to enhance post-stroke recovery. This symposium aims to provide a sampling of diverse and non-traditional applications of behavior science.

Having a basic understanding of behavior principles is sufficient for this symposium.

Applied behavior analysts leverage the scientific foundation of behavior analysis to improve the quality of life of those they serve. Historically, the scope of its application has largely focused on responses above the observable threshold. The application of the applied behavior analysis (ABA) has demonstrated particular success in the areas of autism and neurodevelopmental disabilities. The success applied behaviorists have experienced should not be conflated with the scope of its application. Rather, the success should stand as an exemplar of the power of establishing and applying a sophisticated understanding of operant dynamics. The utility of arranging operant dynamics to promote behavior change has been demonstrated when working with observable responses. However, the opportunity to improve the quality of life is not limited to responses traditionally considered observable. This presentation has three aims. First, highlight nontraditional areas of application. Particular emphasis will be placed on the medical realm where the target response is one that falls below the observable threshold, neuromuscular activity. Second, discuss the flexible nature of the operant and potential gaps in our understanding. Finally, suggest how behaviorists can engage in research and practice designed to expand our understanding of such operants and promote additional areas of application.

Early use of the muscles involved in knee flexion and contraction is associated with improved rehabilitation outcomes following a total knee replacement. Timing of muscle activation in the Vastus Medialis Oblique (VMO) plays an important role in activities such as standing and walking. While there are benefits to using monitoring via Surface Electromyography and contingent feedback to increase peak amplitudes, we are not aware of empirical work investigating specific monitoring and feedback strategies focused on altering the characteristics of the waveform, such as the attack slope which would be interpreted as a change in timing of the response. Using healthy volunteers, we compared the speed at which maximal responding occurs between 3 distinct criteria conditions in which the participant has a given amount of time following the beginning of a muscle contraction to reach peak amplitude: three seconds, two seconds, and 1.25 seconds. These data suggest that the addition of a limited hold component when added to the contingency, may improve the response timing of the VMO.

In this presentation, we will explore how behaviorists can harmonize neuroscientific principles and tactics with behavioral principles in the frame of stroke rehabilitation, a major cause of disability. We will discuss how behavioral principles applied to stroke rehabilitation may be augmented by or applied in coordination with physiological or brain-stimulation-based strategies. We will present the translational results of a study utilizing one such example in which we manipulated the dopaminergic system, a neuromodulatory system that facilitates the (re)organization of neural systems crucial for functional behavior patterns, in tandem with rehabilitation to augment post-stroke recovery outcomes a translational rodent model. We will discuss the implications and new potentials of this approach, which utilizes brain stimulation rather than pharmaceutical intervention and, therefore, brings behavioral timing to the foreground of physiological interventions. We will then discuss these results in the wider context of rehabilitation research and the need to improve behavioral and physiological approaches to rehabilitation in a broader scope.

Traditionally, multidisciplinary work between behavior analysis and varying fields has been limited due to the fundamental features of our science. Behavior analytic principles, methodologies, and interventions are traditionally developed to accommodate the individual, which means topics that involve large group analysis and intervention are rarely addressed. An example of this is the minimal amount of research that has been done in the broad area of public health, as the domain that addresses the population's health as a whole. Drs. Traci Cihon's, Jay Shulz's, and Crystal Slanzi's works in the area of public health highlight the contribution of Behavior Analysis that, however, needs to be expanded and strengthened. This panel will discuss our role as behavior analysts in public health spaces, where behavior analytic principles, methodologies, and interventions can be adapted and modified to successfully integrate the large population health systems already in place. Ideally, by attending this professional development series, there will be the opportunity to further your knowledge of research and career opportunities available to behavior analysts outside of traditional basic and applied spaces, as well as explore what it looks like to attempt to penetrate a field that may challenge our ways of perceiving scientific endeavors.

The panel discussion will encourage audience to participate in an active discussion on how our science of behavior and its practice can evolve to induce the well-being of individual organisms, organizations, cultures, and societies, interdependently. This panel, initiated by the Evolutionary Science Special Interest Group, will explore how and why evolutionary theory can help our field analyze the reciprocal complexities of human behavior and cultural phenomena from a natural science perspective. We will also explore how such analyses and nurturing cultural designing will induce more humane behavior of individuals and more socially responsible actions in organizations. Finally, we aim to discuss how such evolutionary and cultural engineering can help advance, disseminate, and integrate the science of behavior analysis across diverse disciplines, and foster collaborations that can ameliorate current societal and global threats. We invite all who are dedicated to advancing the science of behavior at any level of their careers and education.

Behavior analysts from various backgrounds and different areas of expertise at any level of learning and self-evolution.