is the acronym of Applied Behavior Analysis and is the applied science that derives from Behavior Analysis.

This area aims at applying data derived from the analysis of behavior to understand and improve the relationships between certain behaviours and external conditions. It has several functions including that of describing the interactions that occur between organism and environment, explain how these interactions occur, predict the characteristics and the probability of future occurrence, influence the shape, frequency and function etc.

A key feature of ABA is to be evidence-based.

The attention of the ABA is directed to socially significant behaviours such as:

❖      School skills

❖      Social skills

❖      Communicative skills

❖      Adaptive skills

This makes it suitable to be applied to any area of intervention and not only as commonly (and incorrectly) is expected, only autism. It arises, as an application of the behavioral analysis principles and therefore can be applied to various fields.

It is widely adopted and applied in the context of disability in general and autism in particular for scientific and methodological rigor that characterize it, but NOT created to autism.

In summary, it is a term that refers to the application of the information obtained by a careful examination (analysis) of what a person says or does (behavior) in a given situation or set of circumstances.

The learning theory has shown that a person's behavior is largely determined by various factors (called antecedents) involved in the situation he is in, and the results (called "consequences") for his behavior in previous occasions.

Knowing and understanding what these antecedents and consequences are, it can adopt strategies to modify them and then modify the behavior of the person.