ABA Therapy: Final Essay

Brittany Dyer RHE 309K

Is ABA Therapy the best option for children with autism?

ABA (applied behavioral analysis) therapy is one of the most widely known and practiced method of therapy for children with autism. However, it is also one of the most controversial of methods. ABA therapy is a method of therapy that uses a basic rewards/consequences system in regards to simple tasks they ask the child to complete. It is believed that the children learn from this and can eventually complete simple tasks related to language, social skills, or behavior. The therapy recommends children participate in 40 hours of therapy a week in order to achieve the best results.

ABA therapy is believed to be the most successful form of therapy for children with autism. It is even said that “Many children who undergo intensive ABA therapy starting near the time of initial diagnosis often make significant enough improvement that they are able to enter into a standard classroom and perform on par with their peers” (A Father’s Perspective). There is also statistical evidence that demonstrates the majority of children improving after going through ABA therapy. ABA is specifically used for children on the autism spectrum. However, that’s exactly what it is-a spectrum. This means that no child has the same symptoms, behaviors or level of functioning. ABA therapy implies that “one therapy fits all” when clearly one method will not work for every child on the spectrum. This obviously flawed logic also leaves room for severe set backs for children who can already complete simple tasks and high functioning. Ultimately, the decision is the parents’ and therapists’ decision to make but I feel that other forms of therapies, perhaps integrated with one another to better suit the individual, such as sensory integration, the listening program and ‘The Fast ForWord Program” are all great alternatives.

Although ABA therapy may prove successful for some or most children with autism, they fail to mention that some children who go through ABA therapy suffer and lose skills that they once possessed. Some children who are verbal stop speaking or even become robotic, due to the repetitive and simple system that ABA therapy implements. For example, ABA programs may use “errorless learning”, which means they

“…use prompts for every trial, so the child is always correct and always reinforced by praise or a toy… the child will not be told "no" for mistakes but rather will be guided to the correct response every time. The prompts will be gradually reduced…so the child will learn the correct response on his own” (Autismweb).

This method demonstrates how a routine memorization could satisfy the requirements of an ABA therapist and inhibit real social interaction. Without the tools to apply in real-life situations, the children become robotic beings that simply regurgitate phrases or imitate actions so that they can receive a reward, rather than actually learning. In one parent’s personal blog, she makes a plea to others that ABA therapy is not for everyone-in fact it changed her once extroverted and verbal son into a mechanical being that was far more anxious to speak and spontaneously act than before (King). ABA also insists that in order to be effective, it is best for the child to attend therapy 40 hours a week. This is not only an outrageously demanding amount of time but also a huge commitment of time and money for the family. By stating that children are sure to improve by attending ABA therapy for 40 hours a week is also flawed because naturally, a child attending any kind of therapy for that amount of time per week will most likely show improvement because it is so intensive.

In my own opinion, ABA therapy is far too generalized and not specific enough for children who are on the spectrum. In my own experience working with children who are diagnosed with autism, no two children are alike-in behavior, in language, or in personality. Some children are non-verbal or have behavioral issues that make it more challenging for them to participate in therapy, while others are very high functioning and need minimal amounts of therapy. I find it difficult to imagine using the same method for clients that have such a huge range of functioning and abilities. For this reason, I believe that therapy methods that are more individualized and personal would be more successful than ABA therapy. I also believe that ABA therapy does not help kids improve their behavior and social skills, only regulates it in a uniform, robotic manner. When discussing the topic with a colleague in an interview, she reported the following story:

When working as an ABA therapist, I worked with a little girl who typically had her appointment early in the morning. Every day, she was asked to greet a fellow therapist and myself with the saying “Good morning, Miss -----“. If she did this successfully, she would be rewarded with a point for her rewards board. One day, her parent had to reschedule the appointment for that evening. When the little girl walked in, she greeted me with “Good morning, Miss -----“. Even though this was obviously not socially acceptable, she had completed the task and we still had to reward her (Anaya).

This is the perfect example of how ABA therapy can transform a child from a functioning, thinking human being into a robotic form of one. This child is simply “going through the motions” in order to obtain a reward instead of learning new things and being able to apply them in social situations. I feel that in other types of therapy, rewards can be used but not as the central part of therapy. This takes away from the ultimate goals of therapy and fails to actually teach the skills to the child. In regards to the rewards and consequences system, it really doesn’t differ from everyday parenting as much as one would think. When a parent says, “Clean your room or you can’t go out with your friends”, there is an obvious consequence and reward balance present. When a therapist says “Complete this task or you will not get a gold star for today”, there is an obvious consequence and reward balance present. So what’s the difference? In my opinion, there is none. This is something that ABA takes pride in for being so groundbreaking and successful, yet I see no distinguishable difference from average parenting and borderline bribery. I feel that children only try to complete that one task in order to obtain a reward and don’t try to do anything more. This is stifling their learning and growth and really displaying a negative side to ABA therapy.

Works Cited

"Should Parents provide ABA therapy?." Autism...A Father's Perspective. N.p., 21 001 2011. Web. 28 Nov. 2011. .

"Autism Teaching Methods: Applied Behavior Analysis and Verbal Behavior ." Parent's Guide to Autism Spectrum Disorders. (2011): n. page. Print. .

Anaya, Jissel. Personal Interview. 15 011 2011.