ASSESSMENTS USED BY BOARD CERTIFIED BEHAVIOR ANALYSTS FOR CHILDREN WITH AUTISM SPECTRUM DISORDER AND SOCIAL BEHAVIOR DEFICITS

Abstract

Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) have various functional deficits including deficits in communication and social skills, which are often target areas for intervention and assessed by professionals using various assessment tools. Decision making about assessment tool selection and utility for ASD was the focus of this study. Behavior Analysts were surveyed regarding their perceptions and use of various behavioral, social, and cognitive assessment tools. Application of the tools to scenarios of children with ASD of various ages was assessed. Results indicate the more familiar Board Certified Behavior Analysts (BCBAs) are with a tool, the higher the reported use of it. Similarly, familiarity rating was positively correlated with likelihood of use in clinical scenarios for the VB-MAPP but not for the ABLLS-R. Age of child, and years of experience a BCBA had were not significant predictors of use of assessment tools for skills development in ASD.