ABA Terminology for Effective Practice

Dr. Melissa Mackal is the Managing Director and Owner of Global Behavioral Health. She holds a master’s degree in clinical psychology and doctorate in Instructional Systems and Learning Technologies as well as being board certified in behavior analysis. She began her behavior analysis journey in the early 1990’s working in New Jersey and in conjunction with local schools catering specifically to children with autism. She continued her career in Florida as a certified behavior analyst in both the private and public sectors. It is there where she completed her doctorate at Florida State University under the tutelage of Dr. Walt Wager and other esteemed faculty within the ISD program and School of Education. She has over 15 years of instructional design experience, having designed and developed training and performance solutions in a wide array of domains: behavioral and clinical care, corporate, non-profits, industry, and military.

Robert Wallander received his Bachelor of Science in psychology from at Drake University under Scott Wood, his Masters in ABA from Western Michigan University under Jack Michael and his Ph.D. in psychology at The Florida State University under Jon Bailey. Dr. Wallander has been in continuous applied practice for 30 years following his receipt of a Master’s Degree and Florida Certification in 1993. Now a BCBA-D and Licensed Behavior Analyst, Dr. Wallander is has practiced in residential, school and community settings, teaching behavioral analysis and conducting research on behavior analytic topics range from complex verbal relations, functional assessment procedures, and technical aspects of evidence-based therapies. Dr. Wallander’s interest in the topic of how terminology affects clinical quality and effectiveness when a student of Dr. Jack Michael’s at Western Michigan University. Arguments made for mastering technical language for the purpose of improving ABA’s ability to be socially valid were learned there and continue to the present in which Dr Wallander teaches both precise terminology and illustrates how this is connected to and delivery of socially valid outcomes. Currently, Dr. Wallander has focused his research into the advanced verbal behavior of experts who examine graphed or otherwise summarized data and generate clinical recommendations. Specifically, he has incorporated the “think aloud” methodology and protocol analysis to study these phenomena for the purpose of standardizing and improving clinical decision making for all practitioners. To facilitate the study and reporting of his findings, he founded The Principal Research Group, a collective brings of scientists, authors, and practitioners who examine expertise in clinical thinking.