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Written by: Kimberly Marshall, PhD, BCBA-D University of Oregon Editor’s Note: The original version of this article was published in the Association for Behavior Analysis International (ABAI) Something Interesting Blog and can be found here. If you are or have been a practitioner in ABA, you have likely experienced a situation similar to the following: A…
Written by: Kassidy Ashbeck, MS, Elizabeth Hardesty, MA, BCBA, and Thomas Zane, PhD, BCBA-D Department of Applied Behavioral Science, University of Kansas An increasingly popular treatment used to promote physical, occupational, and speech-language goals is hippotherapy, a therapeutic approach that utilizes the multidimensional movement of a horse to achieve functional outcomes (American Hippotherapy Association, n.d.,).…
Sarah E. Frampton, PhD, BCBA-D, LBA(NE) University of Nebraska David Celiberti, PhD, BCBA-D Association for Science in Autism Treatment For restaurants, retail stores, and products, quality ratings are often an important consideration when making a purchase. Although research studies do not come with star ratings in a review section, they too can be evaluated for…
Sarah E. Frampton, PhD, BCBA-D, LBA(NE) University of Nebraska Omaha, Omaha, NE, United States We began this series on external validity with a scenario in which an administrator hears about a new and innovative treatment approach at a conference. The presenters at the conference shared some compelling data supporting the efficacy of the approach. The…
Emily K. Sullivan, PhD, BCBA-D, LBA (NE, NY) University of Rochester Medical Center When reading research articles, it’s easy to focus on whether the treatment in the study “worked.” However, just because research shows that a treatment was effective, it does not mean that a “control, copy, paste” approach in practice would produce the same…
Whitney Trapp, MS, BCBA, LBA (NE) University of Nebraska Medical Center, Munroe-Meyer Institute Research has a direct influence on our daily lives. For instance, when you enter your vehicle, you (hopefully) secure your seatbelt before operating the vehicle. A few decades ago, this was not possible because seatbelts were not a vehicle manufacturing requirement in…
Rebecca J. Barall, MEd, CBIS, BCBA, LBA (NE, IA) University of Nebraska Medical Center, Munroe-Meyer Institute You’ve just read about a promising new intervention for individuals with autism. It’s published in a reputable journal, shows strong results, and seems like it could help someone with autism you care about. But there’s one crucial issue to…
Sarah Connolly, PhD, BCBA-D, ABPP University of Nebraska Medical Center, Munroe-Meyer Institute In the vignette included below, imagine the journey of a parent who is absorbing the news that their child has just been diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). In an instant, their world shifts—and so does the flood of information that follows. Vignette:…
Sarah Frampton, PhD, BCBA-D, LBA (NE) University of Nebraska Omaha As we have reviewed in our ongoing series on internal validity, researchers make efforts to ensure their studies are carefully designed and rigorously implemented (Frampton, 2024a). Researchers work to avoid threats to their study that may be introduced through faulty measurement tactics (i.e., instrumentation; Jackson…
Reviewed by Reva Mathieu-Sher, EdD, BCBA Duquesne University David Celiberti, PhD, BCBA-D Association for Science in Autism Treatment This review was written in response to the documentary film, Tell Them You Love Me, (August-Perna, 2023). The documentary tells the story of Derrick, a non-vocal Black man with intellectual disability and cerebral palsy. His story is…
Shayanne Stenroos and Sara Kupzyk, PhD, LP, BCBA-D University of Nebraska Omaha Have you ever read about a study and wondered if an intervention described in the study made a difference in the outcomes? In this article, we will use an example to describe important factors to consider when assessing internal validity when reviewing studies…