Association for Behavior Analysis International

Evidence-Based Practice is a movement in many fields of human services. Although influential in areas such as medicine and clinical psychology, its impact in applied behavior analysis has been relatively limited. This symposium examines the current status of evidence-based practice in applied behavior analysis through three papers. In the first, Fuqua and Sanburg report the results of a survey of practitioner understanding and training need relating to evidence based practice. In the second paper, Smith and Iadarola report the results of applying criteria for evidence-based practice to ABA and non-aba therapies for autism. They highlight some of the issues that arise as AAB interacts with methodologies in which randomized controlled trials predominate. Finally, Sturmey, Madharova and Maffei-Almadovar report the results of two systematic reviews and meta-analyses of caregiver training procedures. The implications of these studies for are discussed related to the use of randomized controlled trials, small N experimental designs, treatment integrity and the meaning of effect size metrics.

Evidence-based practice (EBP) in behavior analysis involves a multi-component process that includes: a) identification of evidence-based behavioral interventions (EBBIs); b) selecting or modifying EBBIs based on the unique features of the client, context or therapist skills; c) implementing the EBBIs, often as modified to match unique client or context features, with high fidelity; d) continuous evaluation of clinical progress and e) modifying EBBIs based on continuous evaluation of treatment success and failure. Although the evidence-based practice model is compatible with behavior analysis training and BACB ethical guidelines, little is know about the degree to which behavior analysis practitioners implement all steps of the EBP process. We report the results of a survey of three groups of behavior analysis practitioners, Board Certified Behavior Analysts, Board Certified Associate Behavior Analysts and Registered Behavioral Technicians, regarding their understanding and implementation of the essential components of EBP in Behavior Analysis. We also report on the training and resource needs for survey respondents who aspire to adopt the EBP model in their behavior analysis practice.

Using criteria established by a journal of the American Psychological Association (Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology), we (Smith & Iadarola, submitted) reviewed the literature on early intervention for children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). We designated one applied behavior analytic (ABA) intervention as well-established (early intensive behavioral intervention such as the UCLA/Lovaas Model), one as probably efficacious (augmentative and alternative communication such as the Picture Exchange Communication System), and two as possibly efficacious (ABA classrooms such as Learning Experiences . . . An Alternative Program and incidental teaching models such as Pivotal Response Treatment). We also found empirical support for several interventions that originated outside of ABA. However, two of the journal’s requirements for classifying an intervention as “well established” or “probably efficacious” are controversial in ABA research: (1) studies with group designs and (2) standardized manuals for the intervention. Alternative review systems that allow single-subject research to support a “well established” classification may depict the evidence base for some ABA interventions as stronger than it appears in our review, but requirements for group studies and manuals have some merit: Group studies test interventions on a large scale, and manuals enable replication by independent researchers and providers.