Chapter 1 ACCEPTANCE AND COMMITMENT TRAINING
ACTing to Support Compassion-Focused Applied Behavior Analysis
Abstract
The world is changing rapidly, global culture is in flux, and yet centuries-old inequities persist. The field of applied behavior analysis (ABA) is situated squarely within the purpose of serving humanity. This is evident to us, as the vast majority of researchers and practitioners in ABA have dedicated our careers to helping empower families living with autism and other developmental disabilities. While this dedication to serving humanity seems obvious to us in the field of ABA, it seems it has not been entirely obvious to others that we lead with our hearts. What’s more, there is a growing yearning inside the field of ABA to connect with other humans in more complete and fundamental ways. In this chapter, we will make the case for embracing compassion in the field of ABA and discuss ways to use Acceptance and Commitment Training (ACT) to empower us to live compassion in our daily research and practice.
About
Jonathan Tarbox
phd
Dr. Jonathan Tarbox is the Program Director of the Master of Science in Applied Behavior Analysis program at the University of Southern California, as well as Director of Research at FirstSteps for Kids. Dr. Tarbox is the past Editor-in-Chief of the journal Behavior Analysis in Practice, a Board Member of the ABA Task Force to Eradicate Social Injustice, and a member of the Advisory Board of the Women in Behavior Analysis (WIBA) conference. He has published five books on applied behavior analysis and autism treatment, is the Series Editor of the Elsevier book series Critical Specialties in Treating Autism and Other Behavioral Challenges, and an author of over 90 peer-reviewed journal articles and chapters in scientific texts. His research focuses on behavioral interventions for teaching complex skills to individuals with autism, Acceptance and Commitment Training (ACT), and applications of applied behavior analysis to issues of diversity and social justice.
Kristine Rodriguez
Kristine leads the training, research, and clinical development initiatives at ALP. She has worked in the field of ABA since 2006, with experience focusing on development of clinical staff training, research protocols, school district consultation, and caregiver coaching. She holds a master’s degree in exceptional student education from the University of West Florida and is a Board Certified Behavior Analyst. Kristine is passionate about making evidence-based, compassion-focused practices available to underserved populations, as well as mentoring clinicians in the design of programs that foster improved autonomy and quality of life. Her focus at ALP has included: clinical training and competencies, outcomes research, and values-driven interventions. Kristine recently co-authored a manuscript proposing a model for cultural responsiveness training for Behavior Analysts (currently under editorial review). Kristine presents at multiple conferences annually, has served as a guest peer-reviewer for Behavior Analysis in Practice, and participates in a global workgroup in pursuit of clinical outcomes measurement for autism services.
Keywords
acceptance and commitment training
compassion
empathy
perspective taking
deictic relational framing
relational frame theory RFT
augmentals
verbally-mediated motivating operations
values
acceptance
defusion
Thanks Mind
Or Not
present moment attention
self as context
ACT Matrix
“I have to”
“I am”
committed actions