Nathan Call, PhD, BCBA-D | Enhancing the Social Validity of Treatments for Severe Problem Behavior

Nathan Call, PhD, BCBA-D

Applied Behavior Analysts have a well-developed repertoire of assessments, measures, and treatment procedures for reducing severe problem behaviors. Much of this methodology can be traced back to the advent of systematic functional analysis (FA; Iwata, Dorsey, Slifer, Bauman, & Richman). Since that seminal paper much of the research on the assessment and treatment of problem behavior has focused on refining these techniques to increase precision and effectiveness. However, there have been accusations that the feasibility and social validity of such interventions were secondary concerns. This talk will present some of the current directions in the field that address this claim. In particular, some of the current practices in the clinics and services of the Severe Behavior Programs at the Marcus Autism Center will be presented.