ABA Inside Track - Episode 323

"Hello, Grab Bag, My Old Friend (Fall 2025 Grab Bag)"

Release Date: October 8, 2025
Hosts: Robert Perry Crews (Rob), Diana Perry Cruz (Diana), Jackie McDonald (Jackie)
Episode Type: Grab Bag – Three unrelated articles, each chosen by a co-host

Episode Overview

In this Fall 2025 "Grab Bag" episode, the hosts review three recent research articles in applied behavior analysis (ABA), each focused on a distinct topic. The "grab bag" format lets them discuss interesting new studies that don't fit into a single theme or series. This episode provides listeners with accessible breakdowns of:

• Virtual training for leading meetings
• Cultural competency coursework evaluation
• Preference assessment interpretation for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities

The tone is informal and engaging, with the hosts sharing personal anecdotes, critical insights, and their signature humor.

Key Articles and Discussion Points

1. The Effects of Group Virtual Training and Self-Monitoring on Leading a Meeting

Authors: Blackman, de Janaro, Reed, Gunter, and Brerin
Journal: Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 2025
Presenter: Rob
Segment Start: [03:51]

Main Points

• Rationale: Meetings are ubiquitous but widely viewed as unproductive; managing them well is a frequently neglected skill in ABA supervisory practice.
• On average, managers lead 3 meetings daily; CEOs up to 37 per week (05:19).
• Virtual meetings are now entrenched in workplaces, especially post-COVID, but may be more prone to distractions and poor engagement.

Study Outline

• Experiment 1:

  • 6 supervisors (2 from behavioral healthcare, 4 from school districts) led Zoom meetings following a standardized, role-play script with common meeting challenges (e.g., off-task behavior, technology glitches).
  • Virtual group training included a PowerPoint based on LeBlanc & Nosik (2019), rationale for meeting steps, video models, and guided notes.
  • Those not meeting performance criterion received a self-monitoring checklist and coaching.

• Results:

  • Baseline: Supervisors demonstrated only ~50% meeting fidelity.
  • After training: Increased to ~79%.
  • With self-monitoring: All remaining participants exceeded 80% fidelity.
  • Social validity (attendee surveys): Mixed—some thought meetings improved; others noticed little change.

• Experiment 2:

  • Streamlined the package (training + self-monitoring together), with similar improvements (to ~88% accuracy) and rapid acquisition (2-3 sessions).
  • Added external rater to assess whether improvements were socially significant—responses again were mixed.

Insights & Limitations

• Virtual training plus self-monitoring can effectively improve meeting leadership skills, but it’s unclear if these directly translate to improved meeting satisfaction or productivity.
• Rob:

  "It does appear that you can teach new leaders to run more effective meetings... [but] does it actually do anything to run a good meeting? Do you increase productivity... or just make people less miserable?" ([21:53])

Notable Quote

• Rob:

  "Most people think these are a giant waste of time... And the US alone spends anywhere from 70 to 283 billion dollars on meetings..." ([06:09])

2. Curriculum-Based Evaluation of Cultural Competency Coursework in an Online Applied Behavior Analysis Graduate Program

Authors: Petrone, Napolitano, Miles, and Shanahan
Journal: Behavior Analysis in Practice, 2025
Presenter: Jackie
Segment Start: [25:21]

Main Points

• Background: Cultural responsiveness and humility are increasingly recognized as critical for effective ABA practice.
• Culture is multifaceted—all individuals belong to multiple, overlapping cultures; practitioners must cultivate cultural humility, recognizing their own limitations and committing to ongoing learning.

Study Outline

• Retrospective evaluation in an online ABA graduate program.

• Compared student performance on culturally relevant tasks (interview questions during FBA case studies) based on:

  1. Whether they'd previously completed a dedicated cultural competency course, vs.
  2. Whether they'd participated in a "booster" embedded module as part of the Functional Behavior Assessment (FBA) course.

• Participants: 77 students (mostly white and female).

• Comparison groups:

  • 43 students without prior cultural competency coursework
  • 34 students with prior coursework

Results

• After "booster" module: Students with prior coursework performed better in identifying and addressing culturally relevant variables (67% improved).
• Earlier (week 2) case study: No significant difference between those with or without the prior course.
• Implication: Embedding repeated, contextually relevant lessons on cultural competence—rather than one-off, standalone courses—may result in more robust practitioner skills.

Insights & Recommendations

• Consider integrating cultural responsiveness topics throughout the curriculum, rather than solely as a distinct class.
• Reflects ongoing debate over whether cultural humility should be considered an additional "dimension" of ABA practice.

Notable Quotes

• Jackie:

  "We all know... cultural responsiveness is now hopefully becoming more prevalent in our field... And cultural awareness is really understanding your own culture and seeking to understand others’ culture." ([25:29])

• Diana:

  "Results suggest embedding recurring themes throughout coursework may be beneficial… It also might not need to be a standalone component." ([36:26])

3. Do Persons with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Prefer to Save the Best for Last in an MSWO? A Preliminary Investigation

Authors: Castillo, Frank, Crawford, Liesfeld, Doane, Newcomb, Roker, and Barrero
Journal: Behavioral Interventions, 2022
Presenter: Diana
Segment Start: [38:01]

Main Points

• Background: In MSWO (Multiple Stimulus Without Replacement) preference assessments, practitioners usually assume the first choice is the strongest reinforcer. But for some, the last choice might actually be "saving the best for last."
• This phenomenon could compromise the accuracy of preference assessments and subsequent treatment plans.

Study Outline

• Participants: 4 children (ages 9–15) with autism or developmental disabilities.
• Procedure:
  • First, a "delay sensitivity" test: would participants prefer to get a preferred item now or wait? (All chose "now.")
  • Next, MSWO preference assessments with both edible and leisure items.
  • Then, a reinforcer assessment using a progressive ratio (PR) task—comparing motivation (break point) for the highest- vs. lowest-ranked item from the preference assessment.

Results

• For three participants, the highest-ranked (first-picked) item was also the strongest reinforcer.
• For one participant (Jackson), the item picked last generated the most responding ("saved the best for last").
• This matches the rates found in prior studies (20–25% of participants).

Insights & Practical Implications

• For some individuals, conventional MSWO rankings are misleading—practitioners should be alert to "save the best for last" strategies.
• Potential solution: Make preference assessment reinforcement schedules more like their real-world contingencies.

Notable Quotes

• Diana:

  "I think about this because that’s the kind of person I am—I would definitely save the best for last... but I had never thought—how would you determine if that were the case?" ([38:28])

• Jackie:

  "I never thought about it because I never save the best for last." ([49:52])

Notable Moments & Quotes

• Rob’s musical Grab Bag intro:

  "Hello, grab bag, my old friend / It’s time for research to be read again." ([01:09])

• (On meetings):

  "In a different survey, half the people just complained about how they don’t like meetings. And the US alone spends anywhere from 70 to 283 billion dollars on meetings..." ([06:09])

• Jackie’s "eighth dimension" anecdote:

  "[About cultural humility becoming the eighth dimension of ABA:] It was like someone was listening to us—the next day, a paper appeared." ([27:54])

• Extended digression on the best chip-dip pairings, inspired by the study snack menu ([46:24]–[47:13])

Thematic Wrap-Up

Dissemination Station ([50:37])

• Rob notes that each article is an example of research opening up new questions rather than solving them—much like the show Lost.

  "It's like an episode of Lost. You know, it's asking more questions than it actually answers." ([51:44])

• Each article presents a promising intervention or insight but also highlights the need for continued research:

  • Virtual training can improve meeting skills—but do better meetings improve anything meaningful?
  • Cultural humility training is beneficial—but how should it be taught and reinforced long-term?
  • Preference assessments can be misleading for some individuals—how can assessments be made more accurate?

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [00:47] — Definition and background of the Grab Bag episode
• [03:51] — Article 1: Group Virtual Training and Self-Monitoring for Leading Meetings
• [25:21] — Article 2: Curriculum-Based Evaluation of Cultural Competency Coursework
• [38:01] — Article 3: Saving the Best for Last in Preference Assessments
• [50:37] — Dissemination Station and Host Wrap-Up

For Further Reference

• All discussed articles are available through links at abainsidetrack.com.
• Listeners seeking CEUs can visit the website and enter secret code words provided during the podcast.
• Episode maintains the light, playful tone typical of ABA Inside Track, with candid discussion, practical takeaways, and a strong sense of ongoing inquiry.

End of Summary