Best Answer
As you are probably already aware, applied behavioral analysis (ABA) therapy as a treatment modality for people on the Autism spectrum is incredibly controversial. While ABA therapy was once seen as the ultimate treatment and the most successful means of helping people with Autism function in a neurotypical world, many adults with Autism report experiencing ABA therapy as a dehumanizing approach. The goal of ABA therapy is to make people with Autism appear “normal,” but there are very valid questions about whether this is ethical. For some people with Autism, the approach seems discriminatory and is as if they cannot simply be who they are, but have to pretend to be something else. For other people with Autism, it is credited as being the key to them going on to be successful and happy. You could approach an essay focusing entirely on the controversy about ABA therapy, looking at what ABA therapy is, or trying to provide an overview of the therapy and of why it is controversial.
I. Introduction
A. What is ABA therapy
B. Goals of ABA therapy
C. Efficacy
D. Appropriateness
E. Thesis statement
II. What is ABA therapy
A. Define ABA
B. Give examples of ABA therapy
1. Drills
2. Routines
III. Goals of ABA therapy
A. Improve communication
B. Improve social skills
C. Improve motor skills
D. Improve reasoning
IV. Efficacy
A. Considered the gold standard
B. Can teach speech
C. Can help reduce stimming behaviors
V. Appropriateness
A. Pros
1. Increases communication
2. Improves educational outcomes
3. Makes it more likely that children will accomplish life skills
B. Cons
1. Unpleasant and harsh at times
2. Conditioning treats children like animals
3. Expectation that kids with Autism behave “normally”
VI. Conclusion
A. Restate thesis
B. Define ABA
C. Goals of ABA
D. Outcomes of ABA
E. Controversy
