What is autism?

Autism is a developmental disorder characterised by problems with social interactions, communication and repetitive and sometimes challenging behaviours. But more broadly, autism has been defined as a "genetically influenced, environmentally triggered disease of the brain and body, and is treatable".

What is Applied Behaviour Analysis?

The science of Applied Behaviour Analysis is often referred to as ABA. Technically, it is defined as: "... the science in which procedures derived from the principles of behaviour are systematically applied to improve socially significant behaviour to a meaningful degree and to demonstrate experimentally that the procedures employed were responsible for the improvement in behaviour".

More simply, ABA makes meaningful changes in people's lives through the use of procedures that have been demonstrated to work. The goal of an ABA teaching environment is to build socially significant behaviours in a meaningful way and to a meaningful degree. Generalisation, spontaneity and fun are essential components of successful intervention. Other definitions offer similar explanations.