When our Cleveland ABA therapists structure our behavior therapy sessions, we know that each one may look a bit different depending on the child’s skills and goals. But one thing that’s the same across the board is the main end goal: Fostering the skills necessary for the child to achieve independence. That means that when we’re designing our programs, we aim for the promotion of generalization.

Simply put, generalization is when learning goes from the narrow parameters of a clinic or classroom to much broader ones – essentially being able to apply those skills in real-world settings.

Often when any of us learn a new skill, we do so under a certain set of conditions. These can include things like the person teaching you, the tools you’re using, and the environment where learning takes place. But life is a constant stream of new experiences and situations. To adapt, we need to be able to apply what we’ve learned in unfamiliar situations with new people and different conditions than we’re used to. We may need to learn how to tweak our approach slightly if we want to succeed in certain conditions.

As Cleveland ABA therapists, we want our patients to be able to use what they’re learning in a clinical setting and apply it to real life situations – which more often than not are very different from the circumstances under which they originally learned.

Generalization is when a person can either perform a skill under varying conditions (stimulus generalization), the ability to apply a skill in a different way (response generalization), and continuing to use that skill over time (maintenance).

Many of us take for granted the ability to generalize skills. You learned fractions and decimals in a fourth grade classroom with a single teacher while using your spiral notebooks and No. 2 pencils. But you then learned – probably effortlessly – to apply those skills in the real world, in a setting where you were not with your teacher, in your classroom, with your notebook and No. 2 pencil.

But for people on the autism spectrum, generalization can be tough and may take more practice. Our Cleveland ABA therapists provide opportunities for them to practice. We also introduce variations incrementally, switching up the environments, people, and materials available to the child while we’re working on a skill. We want to help them apply what they’re learning in a clinical setting to the “real world.” Ultimately, this improves their level of independence and flexibility.

Cleveland ABA Therapists’ Techniques for Teaching Generalization

We can start a plan for generalizing a skill almost as soon as we introduce that skill.

For instance, if we know a certain setting was successful in teaching a student one skill, we may implement that same teaching program but in a different setting. So let’s say we’ve been successful in teaching a student to count 1 to 10 in the clinic. We may try continuing to practice that skill they’ve mastered, but in a totally different environment.

Another method would be altering instructions slightly. So let’s say a student does very well in correctly identifying a certain item when we say, “Show me the _.” We would then start switching up the instruction, and instead of “show me the” we would say, “point to the _” or “where is the _?” We might also change the materials we’re using, though we generally start off only altering one variable at a time.

When we know a child has mastered a certain skill, we may start pulling back on our social or tangible reinforcements. For example, we may have given a great deal of positive praise as a reinforcer of expected behaviors and responses before, but then we start to make those less frequent and predictable. In doing so, we increase the chances the child will be able to perform that skill in a real-world setting – where they aren’t likely to receive any praise from others.

Another approach our Cleveland ABA therapists use is to teach the skill in the natural setting where it’s probably going to be used most often. We also follow the student’s motivations and incorporate their interests whenever possible.

Therapy & Wellness Connection – your connection to a life without limitations – provides ABA therapy to children in Akron, Cleveland, Brecksville-Broadview Heights and surrounding communities. We also offer summer camp, day programs, education services, vocational counseling and more. Call us at (330) 748-4807 or send us an email.

Additional Resources:

Training and generalization of affective behavior displayed by youth with autism. Fall 1996, J. Applied Behavioral Analysis

More Blog Entries:

Top Akron ABA Therapy Strategies, Oct. 27, 2022, Therapy and Wellness Connection Cleveland ABA Therapy Blog