Professional practice of behavior analysis

The professional practice of behavior analysis is one domain of behavior analysis: the others being behaviorism, experimental analysis of behavior and applied behavior analysis. The professional practice of behavior analysis is the delivery of interventions to consumers that are guided by the principles of behaviorism and the research of both the experimental analysis of behavior and applied behavior analysis. Professional practice seeks maximum precision to change behavior most effectively in specific instances. Behavior analysts are mental health professionals and, in some states, may hold a license, certificate or registration as a behavior analyst. In other states, there are no laws governing their practice and, as such, the practice may be prohibited as falling under the practice definition of other mental health professionals. This is rapidly changing as Behavior Analysts are becoming more and more common.

The professional practice of behavior analysis is a hybrid discipline with specific influences coming from counseling, psychology, education, special education, communication disorders, physical therapy and criminal justice. As a discipline it has its own conferences, organizations, certification processes and awards.

The Behavior Analysis Certification Board (BACB) defines behavior analysis as:

The field of behavior analysis grew out of the scientific study of principles of learning and behavior. It has two main branches: experimental and applied behavior analysis. The experimental analysis of behavior (EAB) is the basic science of this field and has over many decades accumulated a substantial and well-respected research literature. This literature provides the scientific foundation for applied behavior analysis (ABA), which is both an applied science that develops methods of changing behavior and a profession that provides services to meet diverse behavioral needs. Briefly, professionals in applied behavior analysis engage in the specific and comprehensive use of principles of learning, including operant and respondent learning, in order to address behavioral needs of widely varying individuals in diverse settings. Examples of these applications include: building the skills and achievements of children in school settings; enhancing the development, abilities, and choices of children and adults with different kinds of disabilities; and augmenting the performance and satisfaction of employees in organizations and businesses.

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