Guidelines for the Accreditation of Graduate Programs in Behavior Analysis
ABA International Accreditation of Doctoral-Level Programs
The minimum standards for the accreditation of doctoral-level programs include a) an educational program that includes the master's-level requirements from the prior section; b) an educational program with instruction in behavior-analytic approaches to one or more specialized areas of the non-human and/or human basic research literature, research methods, and the applied behavioral literature; and c) a dissertation whose questions and methods are based on a behavior-analytic approach to problems and issues. The prior section on the master's level-program should be filled out, and the answers in the two sections should be coordinated to appropriately convey the characteristics of the program. The doctoral-level requirements should be construed as requirements in addition to, or beyond, those of the master's-level programs. Brief narrative statements may be included to explain course sequences, how the content of courses goes beyond that of the courses listed in the prior section, etc. If no formal master's-level program is involved in the doctoral program, please provide comprehensive answers to the questions, listing all relevant courses instead of just advanced courses. Please include also information relevant to a course in conceptual issues. For the courses data, include the semester/quarter the course were taught, credit hours, the instructor(s), the enrollment, and whether the course was required or an elective. Also, please include a syllabus for the last time each course was taught, with reading lists as appropriate.
- List for the last 5 years the advanced course(s) in one or more specialized areas of the non-human and/or human basic research literature.
- List for the last 5 years the advanced course(s) in research methods.
- List for the last 5 years the advanced course(s) in one or more specialized areas of the applied behavioral literature. Possible emphases include such topics as behavior therapy, behavioral teaching, behavioral programming for the developmentally disabled, applied behavior analysis, and behavioral medicine.
- List for the last 5 years the practica/internships related to this program. Data may be provided in narrative format describing how much training is involved, at what kind of sites, the nature of the supervision, etc.
- Do not count a course as satisfying more than one requirement in a given semester. Do not count independent research, independent study, or thesis/dissertation research credits. If specific courses are not taught according to these requirements, provide a justification for how the unique style of the program is nevertheless consistent with accreditation requirements. If additional courses are required beyond the minimal specified here, whether didactic, practica, or research, please list and indicate the contribution of these courses to the overall program. Also, please indicate what percent of the total credit hours for a degree are represented by the program in behavior analysis.
- Have available for inspection by a site visitor the last 10 dissertations that are based on a behavior-analytic approach to problems or methods. Fill out the summary form regarding these dissertations and return it with the rest of the information. Note that the dissertations themselves do not need to be reproduced and mailed to the Accreditation Board, but only made available to the site visitor during the visit. However, the summary form should be filled out and returned with the other material.