What does BST stand for? Behavioral Skills Training in ABA

BST stands for Behavioral Skills Training in ABA. Behavioral Skills Training is an evidence-based practice training method that involves 4 distinct phases for competency-based learning.

Behavioral skills training is often used to within staff or stakeholder training, particularly for teaching new procedures that have many different steps. However, BST can also be used to teach just about any skill- academic, daily living, social, or otherwise! 

What are the four phases of Behavioral Skills Training (BST)?

The four phases of BST are:

• Instruction
• Modeling
• Rehearsal 
• Feedback

What is the instruction phase in behavioral skills training (BST)?

"Instruction" is the first phase of BST. During the instruction phase, the instructor typically describes the skill that will be addressed during BST. Often, instructors will provide rationale for why the skill is important or relevant to bigger-picture goals. 

In some cases, instructors may have visuals available, like a PowerPoint presentation or a visual task analysis outlining the skill. They may also provide the learner with a fidelity check.

For example, during the instruction phase of teaching someone how to deliver reinforcement immediately after the behavior occurs, you might take some time to discuss what immediate reinforcer deliver is, why it's important, and how to do it. 

⭐ Tip:  Pause before moving on to the modeling phase to check for understanding and ask if the learner has any questions. 

What is the modeling phase in behavioral skills training (BST)?

During the "modeling" phase, the instructor actually performs the behavior. It's one thing to hear someone describe a skill or behavior, it's another to see someone actually do it.

For example, during the modeling phase, an instructor would physically demonstrate how to deliver reinforcement immediately with an example or real client. Some skills, like learning how to write an operational definition can be modeled without another person. 

⭐ Tip:  Pause to at key points to describe what is being done and why (but only if it's appropriate!) 

What is the rehearsal phase in behavioral skills training (BST)?

During the "rehearsal" or "practice" phase, it's time for the learner to try to perform the skill. 

For example, during this phase, the learner would actually take a turn practicing immediately delivering reinforcement to a client. This client could be the actual client or a role play. 

What is the feedback phase in behavioral skills training (BST)?

During the feedback phase, the instructor provides constructive and positive feedback to the learner. Ideally, instructors should deliver 3-4 positive praise statements for each corrective statement. Often, instructors will use a fidelity checklist of all of the steps of the skill to provide feedback. 

Remember to incorporate best practices for feedback. For example, feedback should ideally be states as a "to-do" action item rather than a "don't do".

Instead of saying "don't wait so long to deliver the reinforcer", you might say "remember to deliver the reinforcer within 3 seconds so the learner makes a connection between the reinforcer and the behavior you want to see more of". 

⭐ Another tip: Try having the learner first self-reflect and identify what they feel went well and what they might do differently next time. Often, learners will already begin to self-identify areas they might need to improve on. 

What makes BST "Competency-Based"?

In training, "competency-based" refers to the practice of continuing training until trainees competently demonstrate the skills of concern (i.e., meet established mastery criteria).

In this case, you would continue to practice and provide feedback until the learner performs the skill to mastery. This could be done within the same session or across multiple different sessions. 

Important Things to Remember About BST

1. Clearly define the behavior: Create a task analysis of steps of the procedure to be taught. This can be used within didactic instruction, for the learner to self-evaluate, and for the instructor to provide structured feedback.
2. Behavioral Skills Training: Involves instruction, modeling, rehearsal, and feedback.
3. Competency-Based Training: BST is competency-based, meaning it is repeated until mastery is achieved.
   
4. Use across behaviors and populations: While BST is often associated with staff training, it can be used for many different skills and many different populations (e.g. with your clients themselves!) 

References

Parsons, M. B., Rollyson, J. H., & Reid, D. H. (2012). Evidence-based staff training: a guide for practitioners. Behavior analysis in practice, 5(2), 2–11. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03391819