What is Advocacy? Advocacy means supporting and enabling another person to meet their needs, especially when they may be particularly vulnerable. Children with special needs fall under this category. With autism affecting 1 in every 50 children in Canada, the …
What is a token system? A token system or token economy is a method of positive reinforcement where an individual receives tokens for completing tasks or engaging in desired behaviors (Ayllon & Azrin, 1968). Token systems can be used to …
What is reinforcement? Reinforcement is something that happens after a behaviour, that increases the future occurrence of the behaviour. In short, reinforcement strengthens behaviour! For example… When Harry says “cookie,” his Mom gives him a delicious cookie to eat. …
What is task analysis? Task analysis involves breaking complex tasks into simpler steps. This can be done by observing someone complete a task, consulting experts, or performing the skill yourself and documenting each step. It is important to consider the …
Applied Behaviour Analysis (ABA) is a scientific field of study that focuses on behaviour, specifically the principles of learning socially significant behaviour. ABA-based interventions are extremely helpful for children with autism or other related disabilities. Rather than changing the individual’s …
Mary Beth Walsh is an advocate of applied behavior analysis (ABA.) Walsh, whose son Ben has autism, delivered a presentation at the 2011 Innovations in Autism Treatment and Applied Behavior Analysis conference. In it, she argued that sometimes science isn’t …