Association for Behavior Analysis International

Webinar Series: Building a Bridge at the Cliff: Research Supporting Adults w/ASD, July 2025

Abstract:

When young adults w/ASD complete secondary education, they are faced with the service “cliff” in which they lose access to a multitude of supports. This loss of support is reflected in the lack of research addressing the unique support needs of adults w/ASD. Decades of research has supported the efficacy of ABA-based interventions to treat the symptoms related to ASD (e.g., language, social skills, problem behaviors). Despite the wide-scale recognition, questions remain about the efficacy of ABA-based interventions with adults with ASD because most of the research has been conducted with younger learners. Adults with ASD present unique challenges given their physical size, different treatment goals, and long reinforcement history. Research focused on adults will provide additional evidenced-based interventions, which may provide data to provide more support for this population. This presentation will include examples of clinical research with adults with ASD in employment and college settings.

Instruction Level: Intermediate

Learning Objectives:

1. Identify the need for additional research on supports for adults w/ASD
2. Identify research supporting adults in acquiring employment
3. Identify research supporting adults in maintaining employment

Date: July 15, 2025

Time: 11:00 AM EST