Association for Behavior Analysis International

According to the National Child Traumatic Stress Network, individuals with a developmental disability are over four times as likely to be victims of crime and 2-to-10 times more likely to be abused or neglected. Therefore, it is likely that behavior analysts working with this population will encounter clients who have experienced trauma; especially children. Exposure to trauma can impact treatment implementation and outcomes. Therefore, it is important to understand the role of these experiences when treating a child who has been exposed to a traumatic event. The purpose of this two-paper symposium is to encourage increased awareness of the impact of childhood traumatic stress within the field of behavior analysis, and encourage conversations about this topic in research and practice. This will be accomplished by first presenting data on training opportunities available childhood traumatic stress within ABAI- accredited programs. Second, an in depth description of a successful collaboration between a Board Certified Behavior Analyst and Psychologist with specialty in Trauma will be provided. Specifically, we will describe ways in which trauma-related issues were addressed in the treatment of a child with autism spectrum disorder whose family had experienced a traumatic event.

The National Child Traumatic Stress Network (NCTSN) has recently directed efforts to increase the presence of experts from allied fields within the network. Behavior analysts are among those practitioners being sought out for membership, especially those with knowledge of autism and developmental disabilities. Children with autism have at least as high risk as others for experiencing trauma and are at a heightened risk for peer victimization (Hoover, 2015). The aim of this descriptive presentation is to encourage important conversations within the field of behavior analysis about childhood traumatic stress. It is crucial that we begin to identify gaps in training and literature, and ways to address those gaps. While not focused on child treatment outcomes specifically, this presentation will describe ways traumatic events were addressed in the treatment of a young child with autism, facilitated by coordination of two types of treatment: (a) ABA programming primarily targeting skill development with parent and provider-implemented intervention and (b) family therapy by a psychologist with both developmental disabilities and trauma treatment training. We will discuss general issues in the coordination, and specific strategies employed for helping the child through experiences such as a parent's cancer treatment.

According to the National Child Traumatic Stress Network, individuals with a developmental disability are over four times as likely to be victims of crime and 2-to-10 times more likely to be abused or neglected. Therefore, it is likely that behavior analysts working with this population will encounter clients who have experienced trauma; especially children. Exposure to trauma is an important consideration during the assessment process, and can also have an impact on treatment implementation and outcomes. Therefore, it is important to understand the role of these experiences when treating a child who has been exposed to a traumatic event. The purpose of this paper will be to discuss the ways that trauma may influence behavior analytic practice and the need for training opportunities that specifically identify the role that trauma may play within the behavioral contingency.