Promoting Desired Lifestyles Among Adults with Severe Autism and Intellectual Disabilities - Chapter 1: Overview of promoting desired lifestyles among adults with severe autism and intellectual disabilities

This chapter discusses the importance of promoting desired lifestyles among adults with severe autism and intellectual disabilities, and how the operations of many adult service agencies fail to promote individually desired lifestyles. A summary is then presented of selected areas of behavior analysis research that have developed strategies for identifying and promoting important features of desired lifestyles among this population. Next, an explanation is provided regarding how of application of those strategies is frequently lacking in adult service agencies, due in part to the more emphasized application of behavior analysis (ABA) with children with autism. In many ways, the latter emphasis has overshadowed contributions of behavior analysis in adult service delivery. An overview of the book's content is subsequently provided, including the focus on person-centered applications of behavior analysis to promote desired lifestyles, what is meant by severe autism and intellectual disabilities, the intended audience, and organization of chapter contents.