Beyond Compliance: Cultivating Willing Participation in Learners

In the world of applied behavior analysis (ABA), it’s tempting to rely on compliance as the benchmark for success. A child follows an instruction. A teen completes a task. A behavior decreases. On paper, the data may look promising — but compliance alone doesn’t tell the whole story.

While compliance may yield short-term gains, it doesn’t always reflect meaningful learning, autonomy, or lasting change. In fact, rigid compliance without willingness can erode relationships, dignity, and motivation. 

Honest disagreement is more valuable than dishonest submission.

The deeper goal in ABA — and in parenting, teaching, or supporting anyone — is willing participation. When learners engage because they want to, not just because they’re told to, we move toward true empowerment. That’s where growth, joy, and independence live.

Motivation Matters

In behavior analysis, we often talk about reinforcement, stimulus control, or response effort — but underneath it all is motivation. Why does the learner engage? Are they choosing to? Do they understand the purpose? Are they enjoying it?

External motivators — "do this to get a token" or "to avoid a demand" — can make participation look successful, but it may not last (Kohn, 2018). Internal motivators — curiosity, interest, connection — create more sustainable behavior change (Kohn, 2018).

This concept aligns with the idea of assent-based practice, increasingly recognized in ethical ABA. Assent is more than consent; it’s about ongoing, observable signs that a learner is engaged and willing.

Assent Isn’t Optional

Even non-vocal learners communicate assent: Do they approach or avoid? Engage or withdraw?

Too often, practitioners celebrate compliance even when learners show distress. But as Koegel et al. (2012) emphasized, “child-initiated interactions and motivation” dramatically improve outcomes. Similarly, Breaux and Smith (2023) advanced the idea of assent-based practice in ABA, outlining proactive strategies for obtaining, monitoring, and honoring assent throughout teaching. Their work suggests that honoring assent improves therapeutic rapport, reduces escape-maintained behavior, and promotes more ethical service delivery.

Assent-based care invites practitioners to listen with their eyes — and to teach in ways that learners want to participate in.

Pathological Demand Avoidance: A Call for Flexibility

This is especially critical when supporting individuals with Pathological Demand Avoidance — a profile associated with autism that involves high anxiety and extreme resistance to demands, even those they might want to do.

Traditional compliance-based approaches often escalate distress for individuals with Pathological Demand Avoidance. According to Christie et al. (2011) and O'Nions et al. (2014), individuals with Pathological Demand Avoidance benefit from low-demand environments, collaborative goal setting, and autonomy-supportive practices. In other words, the very things that promote assent-based care are also protective against escalation and shutdown in Pathological Demand Avoidance.

Understanding profiles like Pathological Demand Avoidance reminds us: When we prioritize connection over control, learning becomes not just possible, but powerful.

Pixar University… and Playdough?

You might not think an animation studio has much to teach us about ABA, but hear this: at Pixar, every employee — from animators to janitors — can attend creative workshops like improv, drawing, or storytelling. None of it is required. Yet participation is high.

Why? Because Pixar understands that creativity thrives on choice, curiosity, and culture. People aren’t told to grow — they’re invited to. That invitation builds trust and engagement.

In a therapy setting, this could look like a child eagerly joining a session because their love of dinosaurs is part of it. Or a parent offers a choice between games teaching the same skill. It’s still structured and goal-oriented — but grounded in willingness.

What Unlocks Willingness?

To move beyond compliance, we need to create conditions that increase the likelihood of voluntary participation. Three core ingredients:

• Autonomy: Give learners choices — about activities, breaks, tools, and pacing. Research consistently shows choice-making is associated with increased task engagement and reduced challenging behavior (Romaniuk et al., 2002).
• Relevance: Connect skills to things that actually matter to the learner. Why does this skill matter to them, not just to us?
• Connection: Foster trust. Learning should be social and relational, not mechanical. When learners feel safe and respected, they engage more.

A Tale of Two Sessions

Let’s compare two approaches to teaching hand washing:

1. Compliance-Based: A child is told to wash hands before snack. They resist. The RBT uses physical prompts, then delivers a reinforcer. The task is completed — but with visible stress and little generalization.
2. Willing Participation: The child is offered a choice: soap scent or towel color. The adult joins in (“I’m washing too”), and a silly song matches the steps. The child starts washing independently over time — not just because they have to, but because it feels good, predictable, and shared.

The same skill. Two radically different experiences.

Examples from the Real World

• Toilet Training: A child resists toileting. Instead of doubling down on prompts, the team incorporates the child’s interests — cars and songs — into a visual routine. With predictability and fun, the child begins initiating.
• Teen Goal Setting: A teen in a transition program isn’t motivated by generic job tasks. The team ties time tracking and budgeting to a personal goal: saving for a gaming system. Engagement increases, because the work now means something.
• Caregiver Coaching: Rather than rigid workshops, a BCBA offers collaborative coaching based on caregiver priorities. The result? Greater engagement, lower resistance, and stronger generalization.

Leadership in Behavior Change

Whether you’re a parent, RBT, BCBA, or executive, you're leading someone’s learning. But leadership isn’t about control — it’s about creating conditions where others thrive.

Model flexibility. Celebrate small wins. Listen to behavior as communication. When we respect autonomy, we build trust. And from trust, we get real participation.

Try This

• Offer meaningful choices — not just in activities, but in pace, tools, and environment.
• Make learning visible — use visuals, shared reflection, or simple progress trackers.
• Invest in rapport — pair, connect, engage.
• Model curiosity — let learners see you explore, fail, and grow.
• Ask: “Is this working for them?” and be willing to pivot.

Final Thoughts: From Mandates to Meaning

In ABA, we often walk the line between structure and flexibility. But the goal isn’t just behavior — it’s autonomy, dignity, and joy.

That requires more than compliance. It requires culture. Connection. And the courage to ask not just “Did they do it?” — but “Did they choose to?”

Because behavior change that is chosen, not coerced, is the kind that lasts.

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References

Breaux, C. A., & Smith, K. (2023). Assent in applied behaviour analysis and positive behaviour support: ethical considerations and practical recommendations. International Journal of Developmental Disabilities, 69(1), 111–121. https://doi.org/10.1080/20473869.2022.2144969

Christie, P., Duncan, M., Fidler, R., & Healy, Z. (2011). Understanding Pathological Demand Avoidance Syndrome in children: A guide for parents, teachers and other professionals. Jessica Kingsley Publishers

Koegel, L. K., Singh, A. K., Koegel, R. L. (2012). Improving motivation for academics in children with autism. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders. 40, 1057–1066. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-010-0962-6 

Kohn, A. (2018). Punished by rewards: The trouble with gold-stars, incentive plans, A’s, praise, and other bribes. HarperOne. 

O'Nions, E., Viding, E., Greven, C. U., Ronald, A., & Happe, F. (2014). Pathological demand avoidance: Exploring the behavioural profile. Autism, 18(5), 538–544. https://doi.org/10.1177/1362361313481861 

Romaniuk, C., Miltenberger, R., Conyers, C., Jenner, N., Jurgens, M., & Ringenberg, C. (2002). The influence of activity choice on problem behaviors maintained by escape versus attention. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 35, 349–362. https://doi.org/10.1901/jaba.2002.35-349

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