When a parent who has been referred to us for therapy many times they’re experiencing behavior issues with their child. The child is either getting in trouble at school, they’re having difficulty with them at home, or they have received an autism diagnosis; and someone has recommended behavioral therapy, which is also called Applied Behavior Analysis or ABA.

I’m Vicky Poston Roy, speech-language pathologist and co-owner of Dynamic Therapy Specialists in Baton Rouge, LA. At our clinic, we do not provide ABA because we follow a more developmental approach to intervention, where we look at remediation versus compensation. Keep reading to learn how and why we take this approach.

The Difference Between a Behavioral Approach and a Developmental Approach

From a behavioral standpoint, if a child is hitting, biting, or screaming, the goal is usually to stop or replace that behavior. It might not be that there’s behavior things going on, but let’s say there’s a learning challenge. If a child isn’t learning their letters or numbers, a behavioral approach would try to train those skills directly. The child has a behavior that we don’t like, so we want to replace or eliminate that behavior.

From a developmental standpoint, what I would be looking at is more, why are we seeing this? Why is the child not learning their letters? What is going on that is creating this negative behavior? Developmentally, we take more of a bottom-up approach, instead of trying to train the behavior away. 

What Do We Look for with a Bottom-Up Approach?

We’re going to take a look down the developmental path back up as far as we can to see if there are earlier systems that need to come online, that need to organize in order for later development to happen. We want to take a look at:

• How are the tactile, vestibular, auditory, etc., systems working?
• How is the brain processing that sensory information?
• Is the behavior the problem, or is it a protection and survival response?

If we’re seeing meltdowns, a behavioral approach might involve putting in place consequences, positive reinforcement, or rewards. And that’s not wrong. It’s not about “either you do this or you don’t.” It’s about also asking: while we’re using some behavior modifications, are we also looking at the systems that could be feeding into this emotional dysregulation?

An Example: Think About Your Own Body

One way I explain this is by having parents think about their own bodies. Even if you’re not delayed in your development, what has to happen in your body for you to have a meltdown?

Hopefully as an adult, you’re not hitting your friend, but have you ever wanted to? Have you ever gotten mad enough that you clenched your teeth or your fist? Shaken the steering wheel? Screamed out loud? Wanted to hit something—not because you don’t know better, but because your system is that overwhelmed?

What did it take in order for that to happen? Typically, it has to do with your system getting overwhelmed. You probably noticed in those moments that you were hotter than normal, or that you were hungry. You were getting sick or recovering from being sick. And in those moments, you might find that you’re more likely to dysregulate or emotionally meltdown because your system is tired.

Why We Don’t Offer ABA at DTS

So, when people ask why we don’t do ABA here at the clinic, the main reason is that other people in our community are already doing ABA. What we offer is supplementary, it’s a different approach to the same problem. Our OTs, SLPs, audiologists, and entire team are looking at the systems that aren’t typically addressed from a behavioral standpoint. We’re asking:

• What can we do with the tactile system?
• What can we do with the auditory system?
• What can we do with the visual system?
• What can we do with the vestibular and proprioceptive systems?

We’re looking at what we can do to support a more regulated system so that you don’t see the same kinds of negative behaviors or learning difficulties.

We Look at Your Child’s Developmental Foundation to Support Long-Term Growth

In some instances, a child truly has something going on that is causing the learning issue or behavior. They may have a true learning disorder. But in many cases, it’s because their brain is busy doing something else. It’s operating in a protection and survival framework.

They’re in fight-or-flight. They’re perceiving more danger or stress, or a need to protect themselves; and that keeps them from being successful in their environment. So we ask: what can we do from the bottom up to support emotional dysregulation while also setting up some behavioral techniques like positive reinforcement or consequences as needed?

It’s about building the foundation, supporting the system, and helping it regulate itself so the child can function better long term.

Reach Out to Dynamic Therapy Specialists for More Information

At Dynamic Therapy Specialists, we look beyond behavior to understand why it’s happening so we can support your child from the bottom up. If your child is experiencing behavior challenges and you’re not sure what the next step should be, we’re here to help. Call us at (225) 767-5032 to schedule an evaluation today.