What to look for in a child to determine a need for ABA

admin Applied Behavior Analysis, JMA Blog

Here are some of the behaviors that can be addressed through ABA therapy. If your child is using gestures or leading you around the house to show you what they want, as opposed to verbally engaging you, they may need help with the following behaviors:

  • Requesting items (manding)
  • Labeling items (tacting)
  • Responding to verbal requests and/or demands (listener responding)
  • Imitating motor movements (motor initiation)
  • Repeating words and phrases (echoics)
  • Completing strings of sentences (i.e. “Mary had a little ___”) (intraverbals)
  • Verbal initiation (getting a listener’s attention in an age reference manner)

Additional warning behaviors may include:

  • Failure to comply with requests from another person
  • Failure to acknowledge others when spoken to.
  • Failure to perceive social rules (i.e. waiting in line, when to enter a conversation,  etc.)
  • Failure to express emotions in an age-appropriate manner
  • Failure or refusal to establish and maintain eye-contact
  • Engaging in self-play when in a group of peers
  • Does not have many friends
  • Extensive knowledge and conversation on one topic or subject
  • Difficulty distinguishing between reality and fantasy
  • Eating a very small variety of foods
  • Only wearing certain clothing items or fabrics
  • Does not like to be touched
  • Staring off into space excessively
  • Spinning or twirling excessively
  • Repeating lines from movies or video games at inappropriate times
  • Exhibits problem behaviors when his or her schedule is altered
  • Exhibits problem behaviors when he or she has to make a transition
  • Engaging in any of the following behaviors to escape from completing a task:
  • Hitting
  • Kicking
  • Screaming
  • Whining
  • Self-injurious behavior (biting, kicking, pinching themselves)