I’m continuing my discussion with Emily Wilson on the importance of assent in education. We last left off talking about my plans to rebrand Step Seven as a troubleshooting step. In other words, show your child that not following your most important instructions will not usually result in the same levels of reinforcement. All non-participation will be analyzed and problem solved, but it will also be respected. When we look at Step Seven as a troubleshooting step, it helps you consider all of your options of ways to respond when the first six steps haven’t resulted in the assent you were hoping for.

Emily provides a ton of great resources and influential people to follow to learn more about maintaining healthy boundaries and assent. More and more people are starting to bring this topic mainstream, which is great to see. We also discuss the state of the field of ABA and how to handle criticism and make improvements. Emily believes that one of the most beneficial things we can do for behavior analysts right now is to create analysts who can dissect composite skill sets in such a way that shaping is comfortable for the learner. We chat about how this perspective can be implemented, especially for kids outside of the autism spectrum and any diagnosis.

What’s Inside:

• More on using Step 7 as a troubleshooting step.
• Emily’s recommended names to follow to learn more about boundaries and assent. 
• Why behavioral principles are for every parent and child, independent of diagnosis.

Mentioned In This Episode:
Just 7 Steps YouTube
Just7Steps.com