If a skill does not generalize, it is not truly functional. As behavior analysts, our responsibility does not end when a learner reaches criterion in the clinic. It ends when that skill travels — to the home, the classroom, the community, and every setting where it matters.
Programming for and Assessing Generalization is a one-hour professional development course for BCBAs, RBTs, and Behavior Therapists working in ABA settings. Built on nearly 50 years of foundational research and updated for the current BACB Ethics Code and ACE Provider standards, this course is designed to change how you approach every program you design.
What you will learn:
In this course you will identify the eight evidence-based strategies for programming generalization from Stokes and Baer (1977), expanded by Stokes and Osnes (1989). You will learn how to define the instructional universe before teaching begins, choose exemplars that promote broad responding rather than narrow stimulus control, and use strategies including common stimuli, multiple exemplars, loose training, mediation, and natural maintaining contingencies. You will also learn how to assess generalization systematically throughout the teaching process, not just after mastery, and how to read generalization data to detect problems early. The course closes with a framework for identifying and correcting the three generalization error patterns described by Horner, Bellamy, and Colvin (1984), a clinical case scenario applying all major concepts, and a downloadable pre-program planning checklist.
Who this course is for:
BCBAs, BCaBAs, RBTs, and Behavior Therapists working in ABA settings. This course is appropriate for clinicians at all experience levels and is particularly valuable for those responsible for designing programs, supervising therapy teams, or training caregivers.
CEU Information:
This course is approved for 1.0 BACB CEU (Type 2 Learning). Two knowledge check quizzes are embedded throughout the course and must be completed and passed before the next section unlocks. Passive viewing alone does not qualify for credit. A certificate of completion is generated automatically upon passing both quizzes.
