Compassionate ABA – A Full Day Conference
The Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) field and the neurodiverse community are deeply divided on the intervention and teaching strategies that have come out of the field over the past several decades. Many individuals with ASD and their families have found these interventions to be traumatic, often with lifelong repercussions. In many cases this division has led to verbal attacks and shaming with little resolution. The BACB® has updated its Ethics Code to foster more collaboration between the groups. To be a compassionate behavior analyst, one must be able to listen to the community they serve and make changes, while still providing clients with strategies for behavior change to improve quality of life. Compassionate ABA means looking at clients and their goals and developing programs that lead to progress without trauma while at the same time honoring their learning differences.
Participants will be able to:
- Identify differences in those with autism and how anxiety plays a part
- Define the changes in the Ethics Code that address client preference
- Identify the components of consent and assent of clients
- Identify ways in which trauma may be induced through the use of certain ABA strategies
- Define trauma informed therapy as it relates to Behavior Analysts and their Ethics Code
- List compassionate intervention strategies
Conference Fees:
$25 for current POAC Members
$35 for non Members
$50 BACB Learning ACE Event CEUS: 5 total CEUS (3 General and 2 Ethics)
Continental Breakfast and Sandwich Buffet Lunch Included in Fee
About The Presenter
Dr. Bobbie Gallagher, BCBA-D
Autism Center for Educational Services (“ACES”)
Dr. Gallagher is a BCBA-D with her PhD in Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) from The Chicago School of Professional Psychology (TCSPP). She is the owner of ACES and the author of “A Brick Wall: How a Boy with No Words Spoke to the World.” For more than 25 years Dr. Gallagher has worked in the field of ABA, speaking nationally to educate others on the needs of individuals with autism spectrum disorder, and for the last eight years with a focus in the area of sexuality. She completed a three-hour online training program for the Texas Statewide Leadership for Autism Training to assist in training teachers across the state of Texas on the sexual education needs of those with autism. Dr. Gallagher's focus on sexuality has lead to her work with those with autism who have been sexually assulted, requiring an understanding of how to prevent their future vulnerability, and how to teach them (through compassionate ABA) the skills they need going forward. She completed her certification courses at the Florida Institute of Technology, holds a Master’s in Special Education from New Jersey City University, and a BA in Communication Studies from Monmouth University. She is the mother of three and currently resides at the Jersey Shore with her husband and two adult children with autism.
