Using the ADDIE Model of Instructional Design to Create Programming for Comprehensive ABA Treatment

LaMarca et al. (2024) mapped the ADDIE instructional-design cycle onto ABA program writing. ADDIE stands for Analyze, Design, Develop, Implement, Evaluate. The authors show how to run each phase when you build a full, multi-domain plan for a learner with autism.

They give checklists, sample forms, and a case walk-through. No new data were collected; the paper is a ready-to-use blueprint.

The blueprint lines up dozens of tiny decisions into five clear stages. You finish one stage before you move to the next, so nothing is skipped. The case shows how the cycle stops you from jumping straight to teaching before you finish assessment and task analysis.

Kodak et al. (2021) also gives a step-by-step guide, but for a different job: comparing two teaching tactics in a mini-experiment. Both papers hand you a workflow, yet ADDIE builds the whole program while Kodak helps you pick one procedure over another.

Blair et al. (2020) shows how to build cheap computer lessons. Their tutorial and ADDIE both use the Develop stage, but Blair zooms in on one tool (Google Slides with embedded quizzes) while ADDIE covers every domain of a child’s plan.

Neely et al. (2025) gives a relapse-prevention framework for severe problem behavior. ADDIE’s Evaluate stage can plug right into Neely’s early-warning checklist, so the two models stack instead of clash.

If you write comprehensive plans, ADDIE stops the scramble. You analyze the learner’s full skill set, design objectives that link, develop materials that match, implement with fidelity checks, and evaluate with preset review dates. The paper saves hours of re-planning and gives supervisors a common language for training new BCBAs.