Toward a further understanding of assent
Use the six-assent-consideration checklist to turn assent from a buzzword into a doable part of every session.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Morris et al. (2024) wrote a how-to paper, not an experiment.
They give BCBAs a six-item checklist for using assent every day.
The list starts with finding out if the client can say yes or no.
It ends with giving real choices and watching for withdrawal.
What they found
The paper turns assent from a buzzword into a clear routine.
Each step has a plain example you can copy in your next session.
How this fits with other research
Baumes et al. (2020) also hand BCBAs a checklist, but for telehealth ethics.
Both papers say: use a short list before you start a service.
Koegel et al. (2014) trained adults with ID to give informed consent.
Their skill-building angle matches Morris: teach clients how to say yes or no.
Williams et al. (2020) showed polite requests beat blunt commands.
That result backs Morris’ tip to phrase demands as fair choices.
Why it matters
You can print the six-step list and tape it to your clipboard.
Run the first step—check assent skills—while you do your intake.
Offer two real choices each session and watch for any turn-away.
In five extra minutes you meet the ethics code and give clients voice.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
Arranging assent opportunities is an increasingly common strategy for involving clients in therapeutic decisions within behavior analysis. Recent behavior-analytic articles have helped create a basic behavioral definition and conceptualization of assent, but much more guidance is needed for practitioners and researchers interested in embedding assent into their practices. The purpose of this article is to advance the conceptualization and understanding of assent and assent practices by refining previous definitions and conceptualizations of assent and providing six essential considerations for embedding assent into practice. The six considerations consist of determining the applicability and feasibility of assent, assessing assent-related skills, arranging assent procedures and teaching assent-related skills, arranging fair choices, selecting opportunities to assess assent, and informally assessing assent. Following the discussion of the considerations for assent practices, we issue a call for specific topics of research on assent.
Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 2024 · doi:10.1002/jaba.1063