Promoting Desired Lifestyles Among Adults with Severe Autism and Intellectual Disabilities

Association of American Publishers (AAP) PROSE Award Winner in Clinical Psychology and Psychiatry, 2024 The degree to which adults with severe autism and intellectual disabilities experiences desired lifestyles often is heavily dependent on supports and services provided by human service agencies. Promoting Desired Lifestyles Among Adults With Severe Autism and Intellectual Disabilities: Person-Centered Applications of Behavior Analysis describes how desired of individual adults can be accurately identified and supports and services provided in accordance with those desires. Focusing on person-centered applications of behavior analysis, procedures are presented for human service staff to develop good relationships with individuals, provide routine choice opportunities and ensure access to preferences, teach individuals to exert control over their daily lifestyles, overcome challenging behavior in acceptable ways, and treat individuals with dignity. The goal is to ensure individuals achieve lifestyles they personally desire and experience day-to-day happiness.

Dennis H. Reid is the founder and director of the Carolina Behavior Analysis and Support Center. His company has more than 25 years of experience providing assisted employment to persons with severe disabilities. Dr. Dennis Reid has more than 45 years of experience working with individuals with severe intellectual and developmental disabilities, including autism, in educational, residential, vocational, and community support settings. He has provided advice to human services organizations in most US states, as well as Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. He has written or co-written 15 books and more than 140 peer-reviewed journal articles and book chapters on applied behavior analysis. He earned the American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities International Research Award in 2006 and Fellowship membership in the Association for Behavior Analysis International in 2007.

Section I: Introduction To Promoting Desired Lifestyles 1. Overview of Promoting Desired Lifestyles Among Adults with Severe Autism and Intellectual Disabilities 2. The Critical Roles of Behavior Analysis and Person-Centeredness 3. Laying the Foundation I: Evidence-Based Identification of Individual Desires 4. Laying the Foundation II: Identifying Valid Indices of Happiness Section II: Promoting Day-to-Day Happiness 5. Actively Promoting Good Relationships 6. Providing Choice Opportunities 7. Ensuring Access to Preferences 8. Making Undesirable Situations More Desirable Section III: Special Considerations in Promoting Desired Lifestyles 9. The Qualified Role of Teaching 10. Person-Centeredness, Behavior Analysis, and Treating Challenging Behavior 11. Training, Supervising, and Motivating Front-Line Staff 12. Treating with Dignity Section IV: Selected Readings