ABA España

This year we have engaged in various important activities for the field and the profession. As we get close to 40 BCBA and BCaBA certificants in the country with a certification lapse rate below 3.5%, the professional field in Spain seems to be finally gaining some traction. Most of these new professionals are former students of ABA España’s VCS which has been and continues to be a key resource allowing the steady albeit modest growth of the field in Spain and elsewhere—less than a third of certificants from our VCS are Spanish residents.

In an effort to expand training opportunities further for Spanish-speakers the year we have established a collaboration with Valentian International University (VIU) that will help students obtain a master’s degree in psychology or education before undertaking our VCS.

ABA España has also engaged in other key activities to support the field including in Spain. For example, we provided a grant to SAVEEC (Society for the Advancement of Behavioral Studies), which hosted a national conference in Madrid gathering most professionals in the field. We have also supported editorial efforts leading to the adaptation into Spanish of three new key behavior analysis handbooks: Miltenberger’s Behavior Modification (6th ed.), Copper Heron and Heward’s Applied Behavior Analysis (3rd ed.), and Bailey’s Research Methods in Applied Behavior Analysis (2nd ed.), all of which are expected to be published later this year.

In addition, ABA España has been the driving force in the process of establishing a consortium with the largest behavior analysis organizations in the country. This collaboration has been established with the purposes of supporting professional certification in Spain. As part of these efforts, we have conducted an ample survey to identify the needs and challenges of the field in Spain.

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Aaron Barsy

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