Comprehensive Individualized Curriculum and Instructional Design

Hayes, 2012; Wolf, 1978). Behavior analysts approach problems of social significance from a scientific perspective. It is not a matter of nature versus nurture but a matter of nature and nurture working together to produce observable changes in behavior (Skinner, 1974). This focus on social relevance, or social validity, to the individual marks a division in the field of behaviorism from a strictly experimental or basic research to an applied research. Baer, Wolfe, and Risley (1968) clarified this distinction in the seminal article “Some Current Dimensions of Applied Behavior Analysis,” published in the first issue of the Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis , which describes ABA and outlines the future applications of its characteristics. These seven characteristics include: applied, behavioral, analytic, conceptual, technological, effective, and generalizable. When using ABA, one incorporates these components within a process to teach and evaluate effects of the approach. For example, one starts with 1) choosing a socially relevant behavior, 2) measuring the behavior, 3) using data to determine which treatment to use, 4) using data to implement procedures, and 5) using data to evaluate effects of the treatment (Cooper, Heron, & Heward, 2007). The characteristics of ABA will be described within this 5-step model to show how the fundamental characteristics are interwoven with data to make a good ABA program. Select a Socially Relevant Behavior ABA is applied , meaning that the targeted behavior is of social importance to the individual, rather than its importance to theory (Baer et al., 1968). The proposed behavior change is meaningful to the client and all those who may be affected by the intervention (i.e., parents, siblings, staff). For each targeted problematic behavior, a desired behavior is also identified, optimally a behavior that is incompatible with the 44