Matt Woodard, M.Ed, BCBA

Founder/Director, BASICS NW LLC

&

Shannon Keller, M.Ed.

Clinical Supervisor, BASICS NW LLC

Teaching Appropriate

Social BehaviorTHROUGH APPLIED BEHAVIOR

ANALYSIS (ABA)

What is appropriate social behavior?

• Social Significance

• Family

• Community

• Culture

What is appropriate social behavior?

• Contextual Significance

• School

• Church

• Stores, restaurants, malls, etc.

What is appropriate social behavior?

• Personal Significance

• Acquisition of needs

• Able to make contact with naturally-occurring reinforcement

• Achieving independence and self-sufficiency

Why is appropriate social behavior important?

Appropriate social behavior allows for…

• Making contact with reinforcement within the natural environment within the community framework

• Access/Inclusion across home, school, and community contexts (including vocational)

How do we teach appropriate social behavior?

Instruction…

• Explicit Instruction

• Modeling

• Practice (Overcorrection, also known as Positive Practice)

• Application in natural settings

*Positive reinforcement is used in all phases to shape approximations toward the terminal objective

How do we teach appropriate social behavior?

Generalization…

• Family

• Other providers

• Community Members

How do we teach appropriate social behavior?

Maintenance…

• Identify natural reinforcement contingencies

• Collaboration with community agencies and supports to ensure reinforcement contingencies will be available

Systems of Instruction

• Social Scale

• Social Pragmatics Checklist (MindWing Concepts, Inc.)

• Social Behavior Mapping

*All systems utilize differential reinforcement to shape appropriate social

behavior

The Social Scale

The Social Scale

The Social Scale

The Social Scale

The Social Scale

The Social Pragmatics Checklist

The Social Pragmatics Checklist

Social Behavior Mapping

Discussion Time

•Questions and comments about teaching appropriate social behavior

• Specific scenarios – Feedback