STEAM: A Values-Aligned Approach to Implementing Boundaries

1.5 General CEUs

Course Abstract: Boundary-related escalation, behavior occurring following denial, delay, or removal of reinforcement, is a common and clinically significant challenge in applied behavior analysis. Supervisory survey data suggest that the majority of clinicians encounter high-intensity behavior when setting limits, indicating a systemic treatment integrity concern. From a behavioral perspective, inconsistent boundary implementation may establish intermittent reinforcement histories that increase resistance to change and exacerbate extinction-related escalation, consistent with applied findings on behavioral momentum and extinction processes (Nevin et al., 1990; Lerman & Iwata, 1996). Such patterns may also contribute to coercive interaction cycles and collateral effects consistent with Sidman’s (1989) analysis of aversive control systems.

This presentation introduces STEAM (Set, Tact, Empathize, Allow, Move On), a structured boundary protocol designed to preserve extinction integrity while mitigating coercive drift and emotional withdrawal. STEAM operationalizes consistent discriminative stimuli, programmed withholding of reinforcement for escalation, and systematic reinforcement of recovery responses. The approach integrates coercion theory, applied extinction research, and contemporary work on psychological flexibility (Hayes et al., 2012; Kashdan & Rottenberg, 2010), conceptualizing boundary moments as opportunities to shape tolerance repertoires and reduce avoidance-maintained responding.

Participants will analyze boundary escalation through a functional lens, differentiate extinction from emotional disengagement, and examine how predictable, regulated limit-setting may influence behavioral persistence and recovery. This session reframes boundary delivery as a high-value instructional context for building flexibility while maintaining procedural rigor and minimizing coercive contingencies.

Learning Objectives:

• Identify what a boundary is and be able to define the steps to setting a boundary compassionately
• Identify the necessary clinical and developmental supports to include boundaries in a treatment package.
• Assess the social validity and acceptability of implementing boundaries from a staff perspective, including its impact on staff-client relationships and alignment with trauma-informed care principles

Presenter Bio:
Hillary Laney, MA, BCBA, LBA has worked in the field of applied behavior analysis since 2009, building a career centered on clinical practices that protect client dignity, autonomy, and emotional safety. Her focus on boundaries — how they are taught, honored, and embedded into everyday treatment — has shaped both her own clinical work and the organizations she has helped lead.

Hillary developed the STEAM protocol, a structured approach to implementing boundaries within ABA care, during her time at Centria Autism. Since then, she and her team have coached clinicians on STEAM across a nationwide organization, embedding it so thoroughly into the company’s culture and treatment model that it has become common clinical language. What began as a protocol is now a shared framework for how boundaries show up in clinical practice.