Association for Behavior Analysis International

Telehealth technology is now becoming more frequently utilised by behaviour analysts working with families living in rural areas, who do not have access to local professionals trained in the science of behaviour analysis. Results from a systematic literature review we conducted indicated that although there is research to support the use of telehealth technologies, there is insufficient evidence on their effectiveness in teaching functional living skills and on training procedures that lead to high procedural fidelity. The present research aimed to investigate the impact of telehealth on the effectiveness of ABA-based interventions by assessing child outcomes, the fidelity of training procedures and changes in the professional’s skills. In our presentation, we will provide data collected through a multiple probe research design during our work using telehealth to train professionals working with children with autism on how to use behaviour analytic methods to teach them functional living skills. Evidence on social validity and feasibility will be discussed in the light of children’s outcomes and implementation fidelity.

Research has indicated that interventions based upon the principles of Applied Behaviour Analysis (ABA) are considered best Evidence Based Practice (EBP) in the treatment of Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD). Due to a shortage of sufficiently qualified professionals, and a lack of funding availability across Europe, alternative delivery models should be explored, one of which is telehealth. Telehealth utilises internet and telecommunications technology to provide remote training and supervision of ABA interventions. Results of a systematic review have indicated that although the use of telehealth is feasible, past research does have several methodological downfalls. The current applied research project has built upon the results of this review, creating a telehealth parent training package using didactic training and ongoing coaching to teach parents to implement incidental teaching strategies to promote communication. In our presentation we will discuss the development process of this package and will present data on its feasibility collected through a multiple probe across participants research design. We will also discuss barriers encountered, ways to increase parents’ fidelity of implementation and child communication outcomes.