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The Use of Evaluation in Treatment Programs for Children with Autism

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Abstract

Program evaluation is the use of planned activities to monitor process, outcomes, and impact of a health program or intervention. The application of program evaluation to behavioral analytic treatment programs for children with autism is a useful and necessary activity to inform practitioners and other stakeholders of the efficacy of these programs and to promote adherence to best-practice treatments. A brief survey of behavioral providers in California and Texas and search of the behavioral literature suggest that the practice of program evaluation is underutilized among providers of behavioral services. Current organizational practices primarily involve reporting on individualized consumer goals. The purpose of this paper is to provide an introduction to evaluation processes and procedures to promote the implementation of some or all of these components. Areas discussed include defining the population served and program stakeholders, describing the program and intervention, selecting evaluation goals and objectives, ethical considerations, and reporting.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Ed Support Services, 1942 Embarcadero, Oakland, CA, 94606, USA

    Kristin L. Miller

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  1. Kristin L. Miller
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Correspondence to Kristin L. Miller.

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All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki Declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

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Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

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Miller, K.L. The Use of Evaluation in Treatment Programs for Children with Autism. Behav Analysis Practice 10, 35–44 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40617-016-0130-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40617-016-0130-3

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