Protective equipment occupies a uniquely sensitive position in applied behavior analysis practice. When challenging behavior poses imminent risk of serious injury or death to the individual or others, protective equipment — including helmets, arm splints, padded gloves, face shields, and other devices — may be considered as a safety measure.
Provider: BehaviorLive — via BABAT
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Join Free →Carefully executed behavioral assessment and intervention can result in decreases in challenging behavior in a wide range of populations. In some extreme cases, however, challenging behavior can pose imminent risk of injury, including death, to the individual or associated people. In these cases, the use of protective equipment can be an option to ensure safety for all in the environment. When exploring the use of protective equipment as an option for safety there are a range of ethical and social practices that need to be considered prior to implementation. The workshop will review and discuss the ethical and socially relevant considerations that should be reviewed prior to the decision to implement protective equipment. It will outline the behavior analytic steps that need to be completed prior to implementation of protective equipment. A protocol that will guide practitioners through the evaluation process will be introduced and reviewed. The protocol involves assessing function, consideration of less restrictive procedures, and characteristics of situations that lead a clinician to conclude that protective equipment is the only viable option, that it is unethical to not utilize it. In addition, discussion and suggestions on how to best introduce protective equipment to parents / guardians in a compassionate and supportive manner, and how to thoughtfully discuss the rational and implementation will be addressed. Lastly, there will be a discussion surrounding methods to fade protective equipment, as well as the ethics surrounding the fading. Supplemental protocols that can be paired with protective equipment implementation that can increase the success of the intervention will be presented as well as data from individual cases that support the use of protective equipment will be displayed to reinforce the use and process. Social validity reports directly from individuals, their families, and staff on the use of protective equipment in their lives will be shared.
| Certification Body | Credits | Type |
|---|---|---|
| BACB® | 1.5 | Ethics |
| COA | 1.5 | — |
Serra Langone holds a master’s degree in Applied Behavior Analysis and is a Board Certified Behavior Analyst. In addition, she has a master’s degree in Severe Special Education and professional licensure as a special education teacher in the state of Massachusetts. Serra joined May Institute in 1999 to work in adult services in Western Massachusetts while completing undergraduate studies at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. Since then, she has held a number of positions within May Center Schools, in both Norwood (formerly Brockton) and Wilmington, including Behavior Specialist, Assistant Residential Director, and Clinical Director. In 2022, Serra returned to the Norwood leadership team as the Clinical Director at the May Center School for Brain Injury and Neurobehavioral Disorders.
Dig into the research behind this topic — plain-English summaries written for BCBAs.
280 research articles with practitioner takeaways
279 research articles with practitioner takeaways
258 research articles with practitioner takeaways
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All behavior-analytic intervention is individualized. The information on this page is for educational purposes and does not constitute clinical advice. Treatment decisions should be informed by the best available published research, individualized assessment, and obtained with the informed consent of the client or their legal guardian. Behavior analysts are responsible for practicing within the boundaries of their competence and adhering to the BACB Ethics Code for Behavior Analysts.