The Ethical Considerations of Assent in the Development of Instructional Motivation – Group

Behavior analytic intervention programs frequently include the use of forced prompting to earn compliance with demands and reduce escape maintained challenging behavior. This approach is “effective” but raises ethical concerns relating to providing the least restrictive and most humane intervention that maintains the assent of the learner throughout the learning process. The purpose of this panel is to explore ethical considerations regarding the use of forced prompting and other extinction procedures by drawing from the Behavior Analyst Certification Board’s Ethical and Professional Compliance Code (2014), Van Houten et al. (1988), and Pritchett et al. (2020). Each panelist will explore how which aspects of the 7 Steps to Earning Instructional Control addresses these ethical considerations and share what modifications they have made to their own practices to ensure they are maintaining assent with learners in delivering behavior analytic services and developing a strong teaching relationship focused on instructional motivation.

Learning Objectives

At the conclusion of this presentation, participants will be able to:

• Identify at least 1 benefit to using advancements in functional analysis technologies
• Explain at least 1 ethical consideration regarding extinction
• Describe the importance of maintaining analysis in developing behavior intervention plans
• Describe at least 1 general guideline to follow when addressing challenging behavior
• Describe the importance of maintaining learner assent during the intervention process