Autism Partnership’s team of psychologists and consultants travel
all over the world to provide didactic and hands-on training to
professionals and parents.
Hand-outs are available for most presentations and a password is
usually required.
Navigating the world of autism treatment can be perplexing and
overwhelming. Autism Partnership is dedicated to promoting
evidence based procedures through research that focuses on
developing quality treatment for individuals with Autism Spectrum
Disorder. Currently, the research department is conducting a
range of studies to evaluate and develop effective means of
teaching social skills to children of all ages, evaluate the use
of group teaching, gain a better understanding of treatments that
lead to greater skill acquisition, evaluate ways to better
support parents and train staff, and look at a wide range of
strategies related to applied behavior analysis and autism
treatment.
For more information about our research and how you can
participate in a current or future Autism Partnership Study
please contact Justin Leaf, Ph.D. at Jblautpar@aol.com
Dr. Justin Leaf is the Director of Research for the Autism Partnership Foundation. Justin received his master’s degree in Applied Behavioral Science and his doctorate degree in Behavioral Psychology in the Department of Applied Behavioral Science at the University of Kansas. Justin worked directly under the mentorship of Dr. James Sherman and Dr. Jan Sheldon. Justin has over ten years of clinical and research experience working with children, adolescents, and adults with autism and other developmental disabilities.
Authors: Dotson, Wesley H.; Leaf, Justin B.;
Sheldon, Jan B.; Sherman, James A. Source: Research in Autism Spectrum Disorders,
v4 n2 p199-209 Apr-Jun 2010
The purpose of this book is to provide an overview of the Autism Partnership Method for designing and conducting behaviorally based social skills groups for individuals diagnosed with Autism SpectrumDisorder.
The book is divided into three sections: 1) Introductory Information, 2) Running Behaviorally Based Social Skills Groups, and 3) Curriculum. Within the first section the reader will find overviews ofApplied Behavior Analysis, social behavior, Autism Spectrum Disorder, the Autism Partnership Method,and research evaluating the use of social skills groups. The second section provides the reader with direction in developing, running, and evaluating their own social skills group. Finally, section three provides an extensive curriculum, with detailed programs and goals, for running a behaviorally based social skills group.
“I cannot imagine that any practice would want to run social skills programming without the benefit of this amazing book. It is extraordinarily comprehensive and sophisticated, yet written in a language that is easy to read and understand. It contains a wealth of practical materials, as well as the philosophical underpinnings for how to use them and why. I love the real-world examples of intervention that is overly protocol-driven. Leaf and company challenge all levels of ABA practitioner to ask “what’s the point?” of any given exercise and “what are we trying to accomplish?” Autism families should hope that their loved ones have the benefit of social skills programming informed by this book.”
Lorri Shealy Unumb, J.D. CEO, The Council of Autism Service Providers
“This new book from Autism Partnership offers an excellent blending of theoretical, research-based and practical advice for designing important lessons within group contexts for individuals with ASD aimed at promoting and expanding social skills. The book provides a consistent model coupled with explicit lesson recommendations dealing with a broad array of social skills that are of particular relevance to school-aged learners.”
This new book, written by Ronald Leaf, Ph.D, Justin B. Leaf, Ph.D, and John McEachin, Ph.D provides insight into the past, present and potential future of behavior analysis treatment in autism. Written in the spirit of progress and flexibility, Clinical Judgement presents a thoughtful and encouraging history of those who paved the way in pioneering Applied Behavior Analysis and explains how and why the field was able to develop as it did. Part 2 then goes on to examines possible regressions in the field, despite its foundations of progress and innovation, while Part 3 emphasizes the importance of clinical judgement in practice, both today and in the future. Both inspiring and controversial, Clinical Judgement is a fascinating and enjoyable read for any ABA practitioner.
A comprehensive guide for any parent or professional working with Autistic children, A Work In Progress is an absolute must-have. Parents of newly diagnosed children and professionals looking for a concrete curriculum will find this book to be an invaluable resource. The two-part manual presents ABA-based behavioral intervention strategies along with a detailed curriculum that contains 54 clear, step-by-step exercises.
The first half of the book, entitled Behavioral Strategies For Teaching Improving Behavior of Autistic Children, gives parents practical, how-to information on setting up an ABA program and dealing with difficult behaviors. Topics covered include: teaching formats; stages of therapy; evaluation; reinforcement; working with older children; disruptive behaviors; behavior problems; self-stimulatory behaviors; sleep problems; toilet training; eating problems; as well as play and social skills. The second part of the book is a detailed curriculum titled Autism Partnership Curriculum for Discrete Trial Teaching with Autistic Children.
Payment for Publications should be made Payable to Autism Partnership.
Autism Partnership is pleased to introduce the first in a series of training videos offering newly developed programs supported by a compilation of detailed video demonstrations of actual treatment sessions. Multiple examples are provided by Autism Partnership’s unparalleled Treatment Analysts illustrating the progression of programming at various stages of skill development. Each chapter includes a written section that describes programs in detail accompanied by a video companion.
In 1999 we published, A Work in Progress, a manual containing strategies and programs that we had developed over that past 20 years. It is now 2012 and we have (finally!) made some more progress. Our approach and programming efforts have continued to evolve over the last 13 years. We have continued to try to blend a natural, child-friendly approach to teaching while remaining determinedly systematic. We have developed new approaches to solving challenging behavior problems as well as teaching communication, social and recreational skills. A Work in Progress received positive reviews from parents and professionals alike. However, we would often hear, “If we could just see the programs in action, that would be even more helpful!” We have taken the feedback and developed A Work in Progress Companion Series which combines written booklets on various teaching strategies along with actual demonstrations of our work with students on DVD. We have selected a few of our favorite programs which illustrate the use of behavior methods to teach a variety of skills to students of all ages.
We hope that parents and teachers will find this series a helpful companion and extension to A Work in Progress. We are also excited to announce that all of our proceeds from A Work in Progress Companion Series will go directly to the Autism Partnership Family Foundation! This Foundation was developed for three purposes: to provide services to families with limited resources; to fund research that will investigate new strategies and programs that truly make a difference in the lives of children and families; and to disseminate information about evidence-based treatment and provide resources for training parents and professionals
Payment for Publications should be made Payable to Autism Partnership
This is one of our most-used strategies for teaching students foundational as well as advanced social skills. Essentially, the strategy teaches students to understand the difference between behaviors that are socially appropriate (cool) and those that are inappropriate (not cool). In later stages they go on to actually practice the appropriate form of the behavior and receive feedback on their efforts. Research confirms our clinical experience that Cool versus Not Cool is effective in teaching social skills and enabling students to monitor their own behavior
Payment for Publications should be made Payable to Autism Partnership.
