There is a lot of technical terminology when it comes to ABA therapy that may leave you constantly asking, “what does that mean?” as you browse through a new study or report. This short ABA glossary below is meant to help you understand some of those concepts.
However, at Aqua ABA we are happy to answer all of your doubts. You are always welcome to contact us to ask any questions.
Not one of our clients yet? Schedule your FREE consultation now.
ABC’s of Behavior– Also known as the Three Term Contingency is a tool used to determine the function of a behavior when designing an intervention. The A is for antecedent, the B is the actual behavior, and C is the consequence.
BCBA or BCBA-D/BCaBA– This is the board certification required for a person to become a Behavior Analyst. Becoming certified is a long process that takes much dedication, focus, and graduate level coursework. BCBAs and BCaBAs typically supervise direct staff (known as behavior technicians) and design the intervention and treatment plan.
Chaining – Used to teach multi-step skills (for instance, brushing your teeth)
Discrete Trial Teaching (DTT)- One of the teaching strategies used in ABA. Highly preferred reinforcers are used to increase the probability of correct responding.
Discriminative stimulus (SD) – This can be a demand, question, or directive given to obtain a specific response, or a naturally occurring signal that reinforcement is available. For example, if you are waiting for an important text about a job opportunity then every time your phone rings it becomes a potential SD of reinforcement (the job opportunity).
Echoic- This is a Verbal Behavior term. An echoic is being able to vocally imitate upon request.
Echolalia– “Echoing” or imitating what is heard, can be immediate or delayed.
Elopement– Elopement is wandering, or running away, either alone or without caregiver knowledge.
Generalization- A new behavior or skill that occurs in the presence of a new person, place or stimulus not previously present when the skill was taught.
IEP– Stands for Individual Education Plan. It’s a legal document describing the individualized curriculum that children, adolescents, or adults (usually up to 22) have if they are in special education.
Intraverbal- They are building blocks to conversation skills as it’s the ability to discuss, describe, or answer a question about something that isn’t physically present. Like if someone asks you “How did you study for the test we had yesterday?”.
Mand- It is basically a “demand”. This is being able to request something that one wants or needs. For example, you are thirsty and you see a glass of water so you ask your husband to hand you the cup.
Pairing- This is the act of an instructor bonding with a learner to become a reinforcer for that learner. This can take anywhere from 20 minutes to 20 days. Pairing is a continuous activity; a few minutes of the beginning of every therapy session should be spent pairing with the learner to increase instructional control.
Reinforcer– Something used to motivate a learner to complete a task, or engage in a behavior. The reinforcer can be tangible (toy), social (praise), physical (hugs, kisses), etc. To be considered a reinforcer the likelihood of future occurrence of the target behavior must increase. Remember that bribery (which isn’t effective) is given before the behavior occurs, reinforcement is given after the behavior occurs.
Satiation – When a reinforcer loses it’s effectiveness due to overuse.
Tact- This is being able to label or describe an item with stimuli being present. For example, a learner can tactfully label the color of a block if the block is present.
VB-MAPP Assessment- An assessment and curriculum tool created by Dr. Sundberg. This tool focuses on verbal/language assessment to get a complete snapshot of verbal abilities, strengths, and deficits. Domains include manding, intraverbals, echoics, etc.
If you have any questions or would like to schedule a FREE consultation with one of our specialists, please click the button below.
English 
Español 
