Addressing Cultural Barriers in Applied Behaviour Analysis

Archive article restored from the original text, first published 2012-09-15. Its terminology, statistics and clinical guidance are historical and have not been revalidated as current guidance.

Culture is defined as the way of life of a particular society or group of people, including patterns of thoughts, beliefs, behavior, customs, traditions, rituals, dress, language and arts, music and literature (Webster’s New Encyclopaedia, 1992). From a behavioral perspective, culture is the full range of learned human behavior patterns. Considering this definition, Applied Behavior Analysis in itself has it’s own culture. Behavior analysts have their own beliefs, customs, thoughts, practices and even their own language sometimes called “behavior talk”, which in itself makes behavior analysis unique as a stand alone practice.

In the past decade, health professionals have made an increasing effort to understand the role of culture in counselling practice, however minimal research has been conducted specifically on role of culture in practicing behavior analysis. The research on individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorders in developing nations such as Jamaica, are even fewer.
Behavior analytic principles and interventions originated in the United States and are therefore best applied to Westernized cultures. However applying behavior analysis with a Western perspective is not applicable to families in developing countries. Therefore it is important that behavior analyst find a way to create ABA programs that are culturally sensitive and relevant to meet the needs of other cultures.

It is imperative that practitioners in the field address these issues as autism diagnoses are growing at an alarming rate. The Center for Disease and Control and Prevention (CDC) states that about 1 in 88 children has been identified with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Correction added October 2026: Historical prevalence figure retained from the original article; it is superseded and is not a current estimate. In 2022, CDC’s ADDM Network identified ASD in about 1 in 31 eight-year-olds across 16 U.S. communities. These surveillance sites do not necessarily represent all U.S. children. CDC ADDM Network fact sheet. With this rapid rate of increase, the health and support services available in developing countries are having a tremendously hard time keeping up. Jamaica suffers from a lack of resources, funding and professionals who are properly trained. The few professionals who actually are trained and skilled in their areas of expertise are overwhelmed with their caseloads and cannot afford to lower their prices.

So this poses the question, how do behavior analysts worldwide meet the pressing needs of developing countries that are struggling to support their population? How can behavior analysts become culturally sensitive towards clients who have different beliefs and attitudes than them outside of the United States? Also are there any reasonable, effective and affordable solutions to these issues? The answers to these questions are convoluted and complex, however it is imperative that answers are found as there are several obstacles not only in in the diagnosis and treatment of ASD in developing countries. As independent practitioners, behavior analysts must make frequent decisions that affect many lives. The core principles of behavior analysis serve as a guide that practitioners use as they work to promote effective interventions across a broad spectrum of cultural practices. However, the core scientific principles cannot stand alone to be a sufficient guide when making decisions about multicultural cases as these can have potentially conflicting outcomes.

References
Kaplan, D. (n.d.). A new focus on cultural sensitivity - Counseling Today. Counseling Today » A Publication of the American Counseling Association. Retrieved September 12, 2012, from http://ct.counseling.org/2006/06/ct-online-ethics-update-7/
Lumpur, K., & Jalal, F. H. (2008). Cultural Issues in Counseling: An International Perspective. Counseling, Psychotherapy, Health, 4(1), 24-34.
Ruiz, M. R., & Roche, B. (2007). Values and the Scientific Culture of Behavior Analysis. Behavior Analysis in Practice, 30(1), 1–16.