ABA Word of the Week: Generalization

What is Generalization?
The ability to demonstrate a skill with a variety of people, in a variety of environments, over time.

Training for Generalization

I) Train & Hope: The skill is taught without any specific modification made for generalization. For many typically learning students, this method may be sufficient.

II) Sequentially Modify: The skill is taught in a variety of setting, with a variety of people, over time. The same teaching strategies are used in all environments the skill is required. This requires high levels of involvement and time.

III) Use Natural Occurring & Maintaining Consequences: Try to incorporate naturally occurring consequences such as praise in the reinforcement. The more similar the teaching consequence is to the consequence in other environment, the more likely generalization will occur.

IV) Train Sufficient Exemplars: This involves looking at all variations of a skill and teaching “sameness” and “difference”. For example, when teaching the Dog, it is important to do many the variations of dogs (sameness) AND show dogs contrasted with other animals (difference).

V) Train Loosely: Instead of presenting materials the same way every time, very it from the beginning. For example, with receptive language skill, you can ask a child to Touch X, Show me X, Find the X, Where’s the X, etc.

VI) Use Indiscriminable Contingencies: When teaching, it is important to have a schedule of reinforcement and then to thin the schedule. However, you cannot completely remove the reinforcement. Instead, the mere presence of the reinforcement occasionally may be enough to maintain the skill over time.

VII) Program Common Stimuli: This involves teaching in one environment, but having similarities to other environment in which you want to see the skill. For example, when teaching raising your hand in class, set up a mini classroom with other desks (perhaps put pictures of people, or stuffed animals in them) to mimic the classroom experience.

VIII) Mediate Generalization & Train to Generalize: These two involve providing reinforcement when generalization is shown during teaching. Also, teaching the students to self-monitor there own generalization can be beneficial. For example, having as student keep track of how many times they raised their hand in the general education classroom after practicing hand raising in a resource classroom.*


*Adapted from Alberto & Troutman, Applied Behavior Analysis for Teachers, 7th Edition