Introduction
Why ABA?
Glossary challenged previous notions that people with autism could not be educated or that they could not lead meaningful and independent lives. The children who participated in early and intensive ABA programming learned many new skills and substantially reduced their problematic behavior. Some of these children learned so much that today it is hard to tell them apart from typically developing children. ABA programming for young children with autism. The results of these studies While there is still much to learn about how early behavioral intervention affects young children with autism, there are some powerful messages from the studies conducted so far (Green, 1996). Several state and federal agencies have heard these powerful messages and agree that there is solid evidence that early and intensive ABA intervention can produce comprehensive and meaningful improvements for a large proportion of children with autism (for example, Maine Administrators of Services
There are many autism treatments available, and most of them claim promising results. How do you know if these claims are true? Is there concrete evidence that the treatment works? Choosing the right treatment is in the best interest of your child and should be worth the commitment and resources. So the question is: why ABA? There are many anecdotes that appear to support numerous treatments. ABA stands out because its foundation is the collection and review of direct observational data. There have been hundreds of well-controlled studies published in the professional literature documenting ABA’s effectiveness with learners with autism (Matson et al., 1996). Most of these studies have focused on one or two specific behaviors that required intensive teaching or treatment. Some have focused on the learners’ behavior as well as the therapists’ and the parents’ behavior during academic and social interactions. Approximately ten studies have explored the long-term effects of intensive
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