Bruce M. Gale, Ph.D. - Learning, Understanding, Negotiating, Communicating, and Helping

Individuals with HFA, AS and related challenges often require treatment to help their social functioning, but just as frequently resist or avoid such intervention. Individual therapy is less than ideal, since an adult, a few to several times the age of the client, makes for a poor role model. This presentation will describe the LUNCH Groups program, where over 90% of students have reported they enjoy participating and three quarters of parents report meaningful improvement in child behavior. We will review the simple yet effective initial assessment process and cover program highlights, such as computer animation projects, three types of raffles that improve behavior, parent support components, behavior generalization, plus focus on eating and manners. The program's five core elements include: 1) Executive Functioning; 2) Pragmatic Social Skills; 3) Pragmatic Language Skills; 4) Academic Readiness; and 5) Environmental Awareness. Videos and case examples will supplement lecture material to illustrate these principles in practice.

Bruce M. Gale, PhD is a clinical psychologist who began working in autism in the mid-1970's. After graduating UCLA, he completed graduate training at Florida State University (1985) and was honored to present his research on self-injurious behavior at the First National Conference of Powerful Data-Based Systems for Treating Autism in 1980. He completed his internship and advanced fellowship at Boston Children's Hospital and was appointed as a Fellow in Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School from 1982-84. As former Chief Psychologist at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, Dr. Gale implemented no-cost assessment programs to identify individuals with developmental disorders who had been misdiagnosed with mental illness. Since the mid-90's, he has developed and conducted treatment programs employing technology to increase motivation and improve treatment outcome. His project for the past several years with children and teens has been LUNCH Groups, a multi-modal (FUN!) treatment program. Dr. Gale frequently conducts independent evaluations with students, has served as an expert witness in numerous cases, and offers CE courses as an APA-approved provider, both online and in person. Dr. Gale's work using technology in autism was highlighted in the film documentary, "Normal People Scare Me." His company, BehaviorTech Solutions, Inc has developed online multi-rater behavior assessment and treatment tools to help teams quickly identify areas of priority and determine progress, plus help individuals with special needs improve coping and resilience. He consults to programs through the California Department of Education, is division technology chair for the California Psychological Association, and teaches Abnormal Psychology at American Jewish University.

Category:

Education

Tags:

• Learning
• Understanding
• Negotiating
• Communicating
• Helping
• HFA
• AS
• bruce
• gale

[zinco77]

I go to a group that Bruce leads in LA. Im an aspie, and his program really helped me with my social life. I am an alumni of this program and he really is a great guy.