ABA Inside Track

Enjoy a short preview of our latest full-length Book Club episode.  Want to hear the whole thing and get 2.0 CEs for FREE? Subscribe to our Patreon today at the premium $10+ levels for that plus other bonuses!
I don't want to sound like an old grump here, but kids these days with their devices and social medias are in trouble. What's that, you say? There's a whole book that not only agrees with that sentiment, but also has data to prove that the worsening outcomes of the world's youth are likely causal to the rise of social media and constant access to phones? Yes, it's Jonathan Haidt's "The Anxious Generation" and for our Spring Book Club, we've read it and are ready to discuss these eye-opening findings at with our regular crew. Fortunately, there's a lot more here than just evidence of the decline of play-based childhoods since the '80s and the significant rise of depression and anxiety in young adults since the 2010s. We've also got some ideas (some from the book and some from us) as to what we can do to turn this trend around. Rob and Diana put their youngest kid into a tall tower. That's not recommended by Haidt, but one can never be too careful!
The full episode is available for 2.0 LEARNING CEUs.
Patrons at the $10 and up level, as part of your subscription, you'll be able to earn these CEs for no charge! Subscribe to our Patreon today!
Content discussed in this episode:
Haidt, J., (2024). The anxious generation: How the great rewiring of childhood is causing an epidemic of mental illness. Penguin Press.

To celebrate our 10-year podcast anniversary, we take a look back to the days before Rob, Diana, and Jackie talked about ABA over the airwaves and just talked about songs with Rob's first ever podcast "They're Playing Our Song". Each Friday we'll be highlighting the trio's first ever podcasts recorded. Look how far they've come!
Originally Posted: 7/29/2015
This week, Rob takes center stage to talk with Diana about his favorite song, "Tonight, Tonight" by The Smashing Pumpkins.
FUN FACT: The microphone used to record this episode is the same one Rob and Diana still use when the crew does remote recordings. You'd never guess it given the horrible audio quality of this episode. Thank goodness for our editor, Dan!

When food and toys just aren't cutting it for your learning needs, here comes awesomely fun social interactions. But which to choose? Wiggle arms? Tickles? There's got to be a better way! This week friend of the show, Dr. Casey Clay, returns to run down options for using social interaction preference assessments. We'll dive into the development process of some of these tools, look at if types of interactions can be categorized by type, and determine if anyone on the show would work for hugs.
This episode is available for 1.0 LEARNING CEU.
Articles discussed this episode:
Clay, C.J., Samaha, A.L., Bloom, S.E., Bogoev, B.K., & Boyle, M.A. (2013). Assessing preference for social interactions. Research in Developmental Disabilities, 34, 362-371. doi: 10.1016/j.ridd.2012.07.028
Morris, S.L. & Vollmer, T.R. (2020). A comparison of methods for assessing preference for social interactions. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 53, 918-937. doi: 10.1002/jaba.692
Clay, C.J., Samaha, A.L., & Kogoev, B.K. (2018). Assessing preference for and reinforcing efficacy of components of social interactions in individuals with autism spectrum disorder. Learning and Motivation, 62, 4-14. doi: 10.1016/j.lmot.2017.03.008
 
If you're interested in ordering CEs for listening to this episode, click here to go to the store page. You'll need to enter your name, BCBA #, the two episode secret code words, and answers to the knowledge check questions to complete the purchase. Email us at [email protected] for further assistance.

To celebrate our 10-year podcast anniversary, we take a look back to the days before Rob, Diana, and Jackie talked about ABA over the airwaves and just talked about songs with Rob's first ever podcast "They're Playing Our Song". Each Friday we'll be highlighting the trio's first ever podcasts recorded. Look how far they've come!
Originally Posted: 7/22/2015
Rob and Diana talk about Diana's favorite song, "Round Here" by Counting Crows.
FUN FACT: The original recording studio was a coffee table next to Rob and Diana's couch.

As the insurance landscape for ABA services continues to open up new avenues for families to search for the best evidence-based treatments (way to go MA!), BCBAs may find themselves unwittingly practicing outside of their scope of competence. Case in point: Working with clients with Down syndrome. So, rather than fall back on the "behavior analytic principles are true for all organisms" excuse, why not dive into the research on ABA and Down syndrome by listening to this week's episode. And, if that's not enough for you, how about hearing directly from Dr. Kathleen Feeley who has been supporting learners with Down syndrome with ABA methods for years. Nothing feels better than building one's competence in a new area!
This episode is available for 1.0 DUAL-DIAGNOSIS (QABA)/1.0 LEARNING (BACB) CEU.
Articles discussed this episode:
Feeley, K.M. & Jones, E.A. (2006). Addressing challenging behaviour in children with Down syndrome: The use of applied behaviour analysis for assessment and intervention. Down Syndrome Research and Practice, 11, 64-77. doi: 10.3104/perspectives.316
Feeley, K. & Jones, E. (2008). Strategies to address challenging behaviour in young children with Down syndrome. Down Syndrome Research and Practice, 12, 153-163. doi: 10.3104/case-studies.2008
Feeley, K.M., Jones, E.A., Blackburn, C., & Bauer, S. (2011). Advancing imitation and requesting skills in toddlers with Down syndrome. Research in Developmental Disabilities, 32, 2415-2430. doi: 10.1016/j.ridd.2011.07.018
If you're interested in ordering CEs for listening to this episode, click here to go to the store page. You'll need to enter your name, BCBA #, the two episode secret code words, and answers to the knowledge check questions to complete the purchase. Email us at [email protected] for further assistance.