Event Details

Ready to critically dive into the topic of behaviorism and explore alternatives? If so, join us for “Beyond Behaviorism,” a groundbreaking conference where we explore the controversy and alternatives to approaches rooted in behaviorism!

The live event is over, but the Beyond Behaviorism RePlay is now available for just $79.

Beyond Behaviorism: Virtual Conference

Behaviorism is a psychological approach that focuses on observable behaviors rather than internal mental states or consciousness. The science behind behaviorism was developed in the late 1800s and early 20th century. Much of the early research was based on work done with dogs, rats, and pigeons. Behaviorism postulates that behaviors are learned through interaction with the environment through a process called conditioning.

Behaviorism-based approaches are common in schools, from sticker and clip charts to many behavior programs and apps based on rewards and consequences. Even programs like Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports (PBIS) often rely on the idea of extrinsic motivators or rewards and consequences. Functional Behavioral Assessments (FBAs) and Behavior Intervention Plans (BIPs) are also often rooted in behaviorist principles. These approaches are not working.

Behaviorism’s emphasis on observable behaviors and external reinforcement is an oversimplification and ineffective in the long term. Human behavior is far more complex and involves brain structure and chemistry, hormones, neurobiology, evolutionary influences, epigenetics, developmental factors, and environmental factors. It is also influenced by our lived experiences and much more. While a common approach, behaviorism is failing many of our most vulnerable children.

“The underlying cause for behavior is biology; we are wired to survive.” – Dr. Stuart Shanker

We are excited to have you join us for this special event! Whoever the humans you work with and support, we will all benefit by moving beyond behaviorism to trauma-informed, neuroscience-aligned, neurodiversity-affirming, relationship-driven, and collaborative approaches.

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Event Details

Location: Virtual (Zoom)
Dates: Friday, May 9th and Wednesday, May 14th, 2025
Time: 9:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. (Eastern Time/United States)
Cost: $79 (includes 6 months of access to the recordings)

Schools and organizations, if you are interested in purchasing bulk tickets for the event, please reach out to info@endseclusion.org, and we will send you a link to the bulk order form.

The Beyond Behaviorism Conference will focus on understanding the controversy and exploring alternatives to approaches based on behaviorism. Here are some of the topics we will be addressing at the conference:

Learn More

Ready to learn more? Use the links below to learn about the presenters and sessions, become a sponsor or purchase a ticket.

• Special Guests Appearance
• Meet Our Speakers
• Learn About the Presentations
• Lived Experience Panel
• Meet Our Sponsors
• Door Prizes
• Purchase A Ticket

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Special Guest Appearances

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Speakers

We have an amazing lineup of speakers for the Beyond Behaviorism conference. The speakers were invited to present for the event based on their professional work and lived experience. Learn more about the speakers for the event below.

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Presentations

We have two amazing days of presentations and several bonus presentations that will be available on the event RePlay.

(Dys)Function of a Behavior: Re-Thinking Behavior Functions and Doing Better Than Behaviorism

This presentation will examine current approaches to behavior management and present a new way of understanding, reacting to, and improving behavior. Greg will re-frame what behavior is and provide a neurodiversity-affirming lens shift to truly understand why a behavior is occurring. Greg is certified in Sensory Integration and the creator of the Model of Child Engagement, a clinical framework to help professionals and parents focus on a child’s safety needs prior to addressing their regulation and sensory processing skills, with the goal of improving a child’s participation in daily activities.

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Before & Beyond ABA: How Learning Autism’s Past Can Help Us Forge a Better Way Forward

In this slide presentation & discussion, autism historian Anne Borden King describes society’s perceptions of autism before ABA was founded, how the ABA model shifted people’s understanding of autism, and how neuro-affirming approaches are upending the ABA model. We’re making more progress than we think–and there’s much to be learned from our past. Anne is the author of a new book, ABA: The Troubling History & Legacy of Today’s Most Popular Autism Treatment. In the book, Anne She outlines the current policy landscape for autism services as well as new directions in autism policy, research, and services that challenge the ABA model.

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Beyond Compliance: The Hidden Costs of Behavioral Control

Many “evidence-based” behavioral approaches—PBIS in schools, ABA for Autism, and Triple P for trauma-informed care—share a core assumption: behaviors are either compliant or non-compliant. Non-compliance is then categorized as “externalizing” or “internalizing” behavior, where often, the hidden cost is that vulnerable nervous systems are exacerbated into toxic stress patterns, among others. The NeuroRelational Framework challenges this assumption, identifying five implicit biases that contribute to toxic stress in children and parents. This framework offers alternative perspectives and practical tools to foster resilience. A one-page summary, The 5 Paradigm Shifts, is available within the NRF’s Free Starter Kit.

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Becoming a Trauma Informed Restorative Educator

Welcome to the journey of becoming a trauma-informed restorative educator—a continuous process of learning and unlearning. As research evolves, we must integrate new insights into trauma, stress, and brain development to better support students. This workshop explores the personal, professional, and social justice aspects of this journey. We’ll examine neuroscience, behaviorism, self-determination theory, and the impact of trauma in classrooms. Through interactive activities, we’ll practice restorative strategies like circles, affective language, and co-regulation. Participants will leave with practical tools to create more supportive, trauma-informed learning environments.

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Teaching Neurodivergent Students: No Reinforcements Required!

Most classrooms have a behavior-based reinforcement system in place to guide classroom management. Reinforcements are typically used to teach new skills, increase appropriate behaviors, and increase on-task behavior. Unfortunately, over time, reinforcements often fail when the reinforcer is no longer motivating to the student. Eventually, it becomes necessary to fade out external reinforcements once the student masters the target behavior. However, I would like to reconsider the necessity of reinforcements. Are they necessary? Do we need to offer reinforcements when teaching new skills? I believe that the answer is “no,” and I plan to teach you how.

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Why Behaviorism Fails PDAers and What to Do Instead

PDA (Pathological Demand Avoidance/Pervasive Drive for Autonomy) is a neurodivergent profile rapidly gaining attention. Learning about what supports work for PDA individuals helps us create an approach or mindset that helps support anyone with a sensitive or reactive nervous system. It also helps us understand why a behavioral approach is unhelpful and even harmful for so many of us. Learning about PDA leads to a better understanding of autism and human behavior. It can make us more effective in supporting, providing therapy to, and educating neurodivergent individuals. Diane coauthored the book Navigating PDA in America with Ruth Fiddler.

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The Limitations of Behaviorist Reasoning

This presentation takes a deep dive into what’s missing from behaviorism. Behaviorism is based on the idea that all human behavior can be explained by externally observable factors. The rationale for this relies on faulty assumptions about people’s internal experiences. Choices happen internally, and a lot of behavior isn’t even a choice. Despite the limited applicability, behaviorism is often presented as the solution to a wide range of challenges. In this session, Ande will talk about what can and cannot be learned from behavioral observation, as well as the reasoning errors that lead to the overuse of behaviorist ideas.

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The Illusion of Autistic Inclusion in Trauma-Informed Care: Breaking the Cycle of Behaviorism

Trauma-informed does not include Autistic Trauma. As Autistic individuals, we are often understood solely as having a disorder rather than a whole person. This outdated perspective has created a cycle of unintentional harm, unattuned caregiving, and barriers to healthy development. When the focus remains on changing Autistic behavior, authentic behavior is targeted, fawning is rewarded, and masking is measured as progress. This session addresses the gaps in trauma-informed care by providing an understanding of Autistic trauma and recognizing how these adaptations are misunderstood. Participants can start making intentional changes in their approaches and implement restorative practices toward equitable inclusion.

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Guiding Practice at the Intersection of Neurodiversity Justice and Cognitive Science

In the 30 years since the Neurodiversity Movement began, the Autistic community’s push to lead the conversation on autism has allowed us to steer research, policy, and therapeutic practice. While there is a growing awareness of neurodiversity-affirming education, there are no models to implement in education programs for neurodivergent students. This session will describe how the Divergent Minds framework can be applied through a Universal Design for Learning lens to support students. Building on advances in research and therapeutic practice, this framework shifts the focus from behavior to adaptive environments to support neurodivergent cognitive traits and reduce distress.

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Breaking the Shame Cycle: Advocating for Neurodivergent Learners Beyond Clip Charts and Rewards

Shame-based behavior management tools like clip charts, color-coded systems, and extrinsic rewards not only harm the mental health of neurodivergent learners but also imply that their behaviors stem from ill intent rather than unmet needs. Breaking the Shame Cycle: Advocating for Neurodivergent Learners Beyond Clip Charts and Rewards explores how these traditional approaches contribute to anxiety, masking, and low self-esteem. This webinar will equip parents, educators, and advocates with neuroaffirming strategies that support regulation, autonomy, and authentic learning. Join us to learn how to replace shame with empowerment and advocate for truly supportive educational practices.

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Reset & Return: A Regulating, Relational Space for Learning

In this presentation, Meg will share the work she has done to facilitate a Reset and Return room at an urban elementary school in Wichita, Kansas. The Reset & Return Room serves as a proactive approach to student regulation and skill development, reducing classroom disruptions and improving student engagement. By implementing structured guidelines, scheduled breaks, alternative workspaces, and targeted interventions, schools can foster a more inclusive and supportive learning environment for all students. This approach can help create neuro-informed spaces that promote students’ and staff’s success and well-being. This session will outline the framework and provide resources.

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Healing Responses to Hard Behaviors

In this trauma-informed and sensory-wise talk, you will learn how to calm children and grow their social-emotional skills by meeting children’s immediate nervous system needs, building children’s resilience while keeping them out of toxic stress, developing their ability to reflect on their needs and those of others to solve problems in more harmonious ways, and managing both children’s and your own intense emotions while engaging with the rest of the class or family. This work is based on the NeuroRelational Framework, an equitable approach to reducing stress, building resilience, and teaching social-emotional skills.

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The Dark Side of Rewards

“The Dark Side of Rewards” explores the unintended consequences of using incentives in educational settings. This session will delve into how rewards can decrease intrinsic motivation, increase anxiety and shame, promote a fixed mindset, and mask authentic behavior in students. We’ll examine research showing that rewards often treat symptoms rather than root causes, potentially exacerbating underlying behavioral concerns. While rewards may seem like an effective way to motivate students in the short-term, they can have unintended consequences that outweigh their benefits. Join us to challenge traditional reward-based systems and discover more effective approaches to promote long-term student success and well-being.

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What the Allostasis is Going On?

According to Dr. Stuart Shanker, allostasis refers to the adaptive adjustment of a system’s activity, such as the stress response system or the self-regulation system, to meet the demands of a specific context. This presentation will describe the neurological etiology of stress responses of children who are pathologically labeled by adults. Teresa will share her personal experience of how operant condition systems cannot address medical conditions and how such approaches fail children. In this session, we will discuss how learning is a natural state of curiosity that occurs when all body systems are in allostasis.

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Positive Behaviour Supports Are Compliance-Based

Students most at risk of being harmed by Positive Behavioural Interventions and Supports (PBIS) and similar behaviourism-based programming are already vulnerable and marginalized: Students in the ethnic minority, students living in poverty, disabled students, and students who are neurodivergent. While these programs purport to reduce concerning, disruptive, and unsafe behaviour in schools, their claims of being proven effective in peer-reviewed studies are highly problematic, in particular due to their narrow definitions of “success”. I will deconstruct the weak evidence used to market PBIS and similar programs and discuss the risks of these programs being widely implemented in public schools.

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Integrating Neurodiversity and Trauma-Informed Practices in Special Education

This session explores the importance of recognizing and supporting neurodiverse students through trauma-informed approaches. By understanding the unique needs of autistic and other neurodivergent learners, educators can create inclusive, supportive environments that prioritize emotional safety, self-regulation, and meaningful learning experiences. Strategies for minimizing trauma triggers, fostering student autonomy, and implementing individualized supports will be discussed, ensuring that special education practices align with both neurodiversity-affirming and trauma-sensitive frameworks.

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A Parent’s Journey: From ABA to a Better Way

When I think back to about five years ago now, around the time that I first learned of my daughter’s traumatic seclusion incident at school from another parent, I was in a state of shock. After running into one frustrating and upsetting experience after another with the school and district, and even in reviewing provincial education policies, the only thing that I could think to do was to search the issue of seclusion and restraint online. This is when I found the Alliance Against Seclusion and Restraint. In this session, I’ll share my journey as a parent from ABA and behaviorism to finding a better way.

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Lived Experience Panel Discussion

As part of the event we will highlight the voice of lived experience as it relates to Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA). Panel members will share their lived experience with ABA

We thank Jennifer, Melinda, and Damon for their willingness to share their lived experience. The voice of lived experience is critical to understanding the impact of approaches rooted in behaviorism.

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Meet Our Sponsors

We are thrilled to have a number of amazing sponsors who are supporting this event and the work of the Alliance Against Seclusion and Restraint.

Silver Sponsors

Gold Sponsors

Platinum Sponsors

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Door Prizes

We have a number of amazing door prizes. These door prizes have been donated by a number of amazing individuals and organizations, including:

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Scholarships

Through the support of our sponsors we were able to offer 20 full scholarship opportunities. The application period ended on May 7th at 11:59 p.m.

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Get Your Ticket Today!

Are you excited and ready to join us for this amazing two day virtual conference? What are you waiting for, it’s time to order your tickets.