Applied Behaviour Analysis and Autism Ranking:

There is still a need for more research in some areas. For example,

Research is needed to evaluate the longer term effects of those interventions and techniques which incorporate the principles of ABA - most studies involve only relatively short follow-up periods
There is a need for more comparative studies of interventions and techniques vs. other high quality, autism specific pre-school programmes.
Although some randomized control trials have been conducted these are small in number and the quality of the alternative intervention has not necessarily been of a high standard.
Any new research will need more focus on fidelity (of both the ABA-based interventions and the comparison interventions). There is also a need to explore in much greater detail moderators and mediators of treatment effectiveness.
In particular, the characteristics of the individuals who do, and do not, respond to intervention require systematic investigation.
Any future research should also involve autistic people (including individuals who may be non-verbal) to review the efficacy and ethical basis of interventions based on applied behaviour analysis.

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