Food selectivity is a common and persistent challenge among children with and without developmental disabilities. Despite its prevalence, there remains a significant gap in clinical resources and effective, accessible interventions. There is a particular need for strategies that promote flexible eating through positive reinforcement and can be implemented in real-world settings. To help address this gap, Gover and colleagues (2023) introduced an assessment and intervention process designed for young children with autism, which utilized differential reinforcement of gradual approximations toward consuming novel and nonpreferred foods. A central feature of this approach is its emphasis on autonomy, offering children meaningful choice-making opportunities—including the option to opt in or out of treatment phases—thereby supporting assent and engagement throughout the therapeutic process. In this presentation, I will review the original implementation of this intervention, share extensions to older individuals, and discuss practical considerations for applying the process in schools and home environments. Additionally, I will explore how trauma-informed care strategies can be integrated to enhance the safety and responsiveness of the approach. Implications for practitioners in applied settings and directions for future research will also be discussed.
Learning Objectives:
- An attendee will be able to describe a shaping process for increasing consumption of novel and nonpreferred foods.
- An attendee will be able to describe how to incorporate trauma-informed care commitments into their interventions for food selectivity. how to modify treatment procedures when working with individuals without strong language skills and with adolescents.
- An attendee will be able to describe actions they can take to ensure they are practicing within one's scope of competence when aiming to address food selectivity.
About the Presenter
Holly was well spoken, clear and concise with her design and very informative regarding the topic of discussion.
I really enjoyed this training. I have a lot of clients with food selectivity or aversions. Seeing their research in videos was really helpful for me to see how I myself can implement it.
Great information with how to use differential reinforcement to shape food exposure and actions in kids! I loved the high number of steps and customizability of the process. It was informative and something I can customize and use with my current clients.
This was an excellent approach shared. I strongly believe in individuals having some choice in their own treatment and this protocol does just that. I appreciate the opportunity to observe with clients and look forward to incorporating elements of flexibility into my future programming.
Wonderful training and definitely worth the price if it's financially difficult to access a full FTF consulting unit! The 4 rating for satisfaction is solely for the relatability to my clients. The question at the end addressing the implementation of this treatment is more of what I was hoping to find for clients who are level 3, non-speaking, early learners but are older in age would be more helpful as many of my clientele are not ready for choice-making to this level. This question/answer did help, would like more info and training for this!
This course was fantastic. The presenter did a great job making the presentation interesting and engaging and the overall content genuinely inspired me to rethink the amount of instructor "control" that I program for. I can honestly say that this course will have an impact on how I write treament protocols in the future,
This was one of the more helpful food selectivity trainings that I have ever taken. Thank you!
This was one of my favorite presentations. It was extremely engaging and had such creative ideas that I went to the center the next morning excited to share with my staff. The process seems so much more ethical than other food selectivity programs I have read about and I feel like my kiddos will enjoy this so much more.
Great informative course. Both for feeding in particular, but also a great example of how to use differntial reinforcement and shaping while prioritizng assent for any behavioral intervention.
I love the breakdown of returning to our ethnic code and discussing cultural values, as well as reviewing each intervention strategy to meet the client’s needs.
Course information
- Title: Inspiring Flexible Eating in Children with Food Selectivity
- Presenter: Holly C. Gover Ph.D., BCBA-D, LABA
- CEUs: 2 Learning - Ethics
- Duration: 1 hour and 40 minutes
- Customer Rating: (150)