Association for Behavior Analysis International

Educators often need specialized training to manage intensive challenging behaviors, such as self-injury or aggression, in students with disabilities. However, opportunities for hands-on experience under expert supervision are limited. Virtual reality (VR) simulations offer a promising alternative for safe, risk-free training, though they typically require staff to manage the simulation and assess trainees, limiting accessibility. Integrating artificial intelligence (AI) into VR training could automate both content delivery and performance assessment. This study examined the effectiveness of an automated VR training system designed to teach functional communication training (FCT), a complex intervention for challenging behavior. Using a waitlisted randomized controlled trial, 49 teacher candidates in a classroom management course were randomly assigned to either a VR intervention group (lecture, modeling, and VR) or a control group (lecture and modeling only). Participants completed pre-, post-, and maintenance tests on FCT application over three weeks. Results showed those in the VR group demonstrated significantly better implementation of FCT steps in post-test (d = 2.45) and maintenance phases (d = 1.58) compared to the control group. However, self-reported knowledge, confidence, and usefulness were similar across groups (p = .318, p = .459, p = .643, respectively). Overall, participants responded positively to the VR experience, highlighting its potential for professional development in higher education.

In this poster, the Project MABAS (Enhancing the Promotion of Mental Health Wellbeing of Children and Youth in High-Need Schools through Preparing School-Based Behavior Analysts and Social Workers) team, which includes faculty from the Applied Behavior Analysis and Social Work programs, will provide an overview of Project MABAS. It will highlight the various activities Project MABAS is completing to prepare students enrolled in the program (i.e., scholars) to effectively work in interdisciplinary teams to improve outcomes for children and youth experiencing behavioral or mental health challenges. The poster will include an overview of the conceptual framework of the Project MABAS and the project’s target competencies for the scholars, which are developed through a variety of activities including each program’s required coursework, additional graduate courses in Children’s Mental Health, additional trainings (e.g., culturally and linguistically inclusive mental health services), fieldwork-based assignments, portfolio development, participation in conferences, and coordinated fieldwork. Furthermore, the poster will include data from a sample shared case study ABA and Social Work scholars completed in collaboration during their coordinated internship in a local high-need school.

Individualized behavioral interventions are effective in decreasing challenging behavior; however, behavioral practitioners must be trained on these interventions and prepared for the challenges that come with implementing interventions across settings. Such training is often conducted in-person with a trainer role-playing as the client. In-person training barriers include unrealistic role plays and reactivity to being observed. Our team developed a virtual reality (VR) training on core behavioral intervention skills. In this study, we trained four research assistants (RAs) to conduct role plays simulating child behavior while 15 first-year M.A. students of applied behavior analysis (ABA) were asked to respond as the practitioner. After completing baseline role plays in four contexts (prompting, differential reinforcement, functional communication training, schedule thinning), participants completed VR training on these four skills, and completed the same role plays. We evaluated RA procedural fidelity during role plays, accuracy of RA self-monitoring of skill implementation, and participant error patterns pre- and post-VR training. Results indicated overall procedural fidelity and accurate self-monitoring >80%, with more RA deviations from role play scripts following participant implementation errors. Participants’ correct skill implementation increased after VR training, with more errors of commission than omission and more errors following challenging behavior than correct or non-responses.

Latino families often have difficulty accessing services due to the lack of providers trained in culturally responsive practices such as providing services in Spanish. This study evaluates the effectiveness of behavioral skills training (BST) in teaching practitioners in behavior analysis to work with an interpreter. A nonconcurrent multiple baseline design across participants was used to evaluate the effectiveness of using BST to teach applied behavior analysis (ABA) graduate students to work with an interpreter during parent training with Spanish speaking families with limited English proficiency (LEP). To assess the effectiveness of BST, pre- and post-BST data were recorded on each of the graduate student participants’ performance. The results indicated that BST was an effective teaching procedure. Social validity surveys collected from the graduate student participants and the parents receiving the parent training suggest that the procedures used were acceptable. Parents also reported that their child’s communication improved and/or increased throughout the current study. Suggestions for future research and implications for practice are discussed.

Brief experimental analysis (BEA) is a useful framework for practitioners to correctly match interventions to individual students. Within the academic intervention space, BEAs are particularly useful to investigate skill versus performance needs – and potentially the combination of intervention components. This systematic review evaluated the use of BEAs to identify effective math interventions designed to promote fluent responding. Our systematic review identified nine studies that used BEAs to enhance the fluent responding of children in school-based settings (i.e., K-12). Results suggest BEAs can be a useful framework to identify effective interventions – yet this may not always match with student preference. In addition, results suggest the methodological approach to testing interventions varied across studies. We will engage in a discussion on how to increase the internal validity of BEAs when testing interventions within the domain of mathematics. In addition, we will discuss how to incorporate social validity within the BEA framework to provide further perspective on intervention selection.

In this study, the effects of two versions of the Good Behavior Game (GBG) on student disruptive behavior and academic engagement were assessed and compared. In the GBG-reminder version, teachers provided reminders of appropriate behavior following rule-breaking behavior and teams with reminders within criteria won the game. In the GBG-token version, teachers provided tokens for rule-following and teams earning tokens above criteria won the game. Participants were four teachers teaching 1st and 2nd grade in public schools in Iceland, and those 12 students in two 30-student classrooms indicated by teachers as showing the most problematic behavior. Following an initial baseline, the two versions of the GBG and a baseline condition were alternated across sessions in a multielement design. Both versions of the GBG had positive effects on target behavior, with academic engagement increasing by 47-49% on average and disruptive behavior decreasing by 74-84%, with more reductions observed with the GBG-reminder version. GBG-token was preferred by 50% of teachers and 75% of students. Findings indicate that both GBG versions can improve student behavior and academic engagement, allowing teachers to choose either version based on their preferences or that of their students.