SBIR/STTR Award attributes
Experiad will develop a new type of parent engagement platform, called Goalspace, which will facilitate parent- assisted Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA). Goalspace has the potential to have a major impact on autism treatment worldwide by increasing the amount of parent engagement in ABA therapy. Demand for ABA services far exceeds capacity. Parent-assisted ABA is a key evidence-based component of ABA. While they cannot be expected to replace professionals in delivering treatment, parents can be directed by the child’s Behavior Analyst to provide additional opportunities outside of the therapy sessions to collect behavior data and practice skills being acquired. However, parent-assisted ABA is challenging to achieve in high fidelity. Research shows that even with significant training, parents frequently digress from protocol, and paper forms are not completed in a timely fashion. Current electronic ABA data collection systems hold promise but are designed for professional Behavior Technicians and are not suited for use by non-professionals. Parents require inherently different user interfaces and engagement models than professionals. Goalspace represents a new type of engagement platform that will allow Behavior Analysts to efficiently support these divergent types of users, while still providing full control over the intervention protocols, content, and workflow. Goalspace will automatically generate parent-facing versions of programs designed for Behavior Technicians, converting complex instruments and protocols into streamlined versions suitable for parents, and deliver alert-driven guided intervention protocols to parents’ mobile phones.This Fast-Track SBIR will result in a new type of software system, called Goalspace, which will enable Behavior Analysts (BAs) to better incorporate parents and other caregivers into Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA), which is the primary behavioral intervention for children with autism. Goalspace will address critical shortfalls in current practice, and has the potential to have a major impact on autism treatment worldwide by increasing the amount of parent engagement in ABA therapy.
