The perceptions of Educators of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders towards Applied Behavior Analysis

Abstract

Evidence-based practices show that they provide an improvement in the skills for a large number of children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Many of evidence-based practices are based on applied behavior analysis (ABA). Educators' having professional competencies in the field of ABA is an important factor to attain positive results from the trainings that employ ABA-based methods. The analysis of educators' experiences concerning ABA particularly through qualitative studies can reveal the current situation of these educators regarding ABA. In this way, relevant precautions can be taken for educators based on their needs and competencies in the field of ABA. This study examined the ABA experiences of educators that offer ABA-based education to individuals with ASD from a qualitative research perspective. Phenomenological design was used, and the data were collected from 10 educators via metaphors. The results of the descriptive analysis indicate that the participants expressed ABA via various metaphors (boomerang, plant, closed sugar box, cotton field detective, a unique medicine, Aristoteles, a multi-layered cake, progress, cake) that can be described under the categories of ABA objectives and ABA characteristics. The participants' perceptions of ABA were consistent with the literature highlighting ABA objectives and characteristics. The results were discussed based on the related literature, and recommendations were made for practices and future studies.