Parent training procedures: family collaboration as a prognostic factor facilitating the good results of an ABA treatment

Abstract

This work aims to highlight, from the perspective of Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA), the clinical significance of family involvement in working with autistic subjects. Family collaboration in the therapeutic intervention represents, in fact, a prognostic factor of the therapeutic outcome. Family involvement is  essential for behavior change. Full involvement makes parents more aware of the limitations, but also of the strengths of their children. This helps them make targeted decisions with a more forward-looking perspective on whether their children will become adults who will outlive them. The writer, carrying out a thorough examination of the scientific literature concerning parent training techniques, describes some of the most important parent training procedures deriving from Applied Behavior Analysis. They are aimed at the development of so-called pivotal skills. They are those main skills that form the basis for the acquisition of more complex skills. In the course of the work, the importance of carrying out a correct analysis of the needs of individuals with autism and their families is also highlighted.

Keywords: autism, prognosis, family