Ms. Heather Gonzales, Ph.D., BCBA-D, BHP?

Ms. Heather Gonzales, Ph.D., BCBA-D, BHP

Psychologist

Alamo Behavior Analysis Phoenix AZ, 85016 Show map

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About

Dr. Gonzales is a doctoral-level behavior analyst with 14 years of experience and currently serves as the Chief Clinical Officer of Alamo Behavior Analysis. She has early-career experience in general education, holding an MAT in early childhood education from Trinity University (class of 2008), along with an M.Ed in Special Education with a specialization in autism and Intellectual/Developmental Disabilities from UT Austin (2011) and Ph.D. in the same discipline, also from UT Austin (class of 2016). Dr. Gonzales received the designation of Summa Cum Laude for all of her graduate degrees.

Dr. Gonzales has had a well-balanced career as a direct ABA practioner (now called an RBT), as a supervisor of RBTS, as a supervisor of BCBAs, and as the co-founder and Chief Clinincal Officr of Alamo Behavior Analysis, an ABA company targeted to work with hard-to-place individuals, such as those who are teens and adults with complex presentations, like co-occurring SMI, court-ordered treatment or contact with law enforcement, psychiatric hospitalizations, and intelectual/developmental disabilities.

Her strong philosophical beliefs about ABA inform her practice and include the following principles:

- ABA must be neurodivergence-affirming, with practitioners listening to criticism and dissent from autistic individuals.

- ABA must not aim to make autistic individuals “appear” neurotypical.

- Stimming is natural and should not be suppressed.

- Assent can be withdrawn at any time.

- Forced compliance is damaging and wrong.

- ABA should be playful and gentle, not rigid.

Dr. Gonzales’s work-related interests encompass promoting meaningful social interactions for learners, forming strong connections and relationships with them, training families to support their children’s needs, mitigating anxiety-related symptoms, teaching coping skills, fostering self-determination and self-concept, and teaching adaptive behavior.

Her research interests include autism, anxiety, primate models of anxiety (and their potential application as diagnostic tools for nonvocal individuals), motivating operations, choice and preference, and self-injurious behavior.

Dr. Gonzales is a passionate advocate for maternal mental health support. She has started a blog discussing the challenges and rewards of being a mother while navigating mental illness. Additionally, she wrote and illustrated a picture book for new mothers titled *“You’re Doing a Great Job, Mama”*, available on Amazon in Kindle format for $5.99.

She also seeks to educate others on how life can be rich, fulfilling, and successful, not despite but often because of, living with mental illness.

Dr. Gonzales authored and self-published a children’s book titled *“Leo Let Go”*, which is also available on Amazon in hardcover and Kindle formats.

Her hobbies include visual art (acrylic painting, drawing, and digital art), writing poetry, reading (traditional books and audiobooks), community service, and participating in recreational camping for individuals with developmental and physical disabilities.

*Please note that Dr. Gonzales is a behavior analyst and not a clinical psychologist. Therefore, she cannot do comprehensive evaluations for diagnosing autism, nor is she qualified (yet) to engage psychotherapy. Dr. Gonzales's speciality is applied behavior analysis, with an emphasis on complex cases.

Education and Training

Trinity University Elementary Education 2007

Trinity University Master of Arts in Teaching 2008

University of Texas at Austin M.Ed in Special Education 2011

University of Texas at Austin Ph.D. in Special Education 2016

Board Certification

Board Certified Behavior Analyst

Licensed Behavior Analyst

Provider Details

Female English, Spanish

Ms. Heather Gonzales, Ph.D., BCBA-D, BHP

Ms. Heather Gonzales, Ph.D., BCBA-D, BHP's Expert Contributions

My Latest Posts

Why Behavior Contracts are Delicate Things
A behavior contract is a document that lays out the stipulations about the behavioral decisions a learner needs to make in environment to A.) earn positive reinforcement (something added to the environment they like) or to avoid B.) Negative punishment (having something they like removed). A third,...
Guess Who and Problematic ABA
I had a cool session shaped by a spontaneous game purchase at Target.One of my adult learners with I/DD is extending his time at a day program by an hour a day, and I picked up “Guess Who” for a leisure activity. This learner has already mastered losing and winning gracefully so it was...
The Life of a Behavior Analyst Living with Serious Mental Ilness
Ah, the life of a behavior analyst with a serious mental illness…On paper, it was a MONUMENTAL week.✅ Finished and submitted a 40-page, complex treatment plan for reauthorization✅ Had my first behavior treatment plan pass a peer review committee defense with incredibly positive feedback from...
When Learners Understand the Mechanisms Behind their ABA Interventions
Working with an AuDHD teen who fully understands what ABA is is so cool.This learner is brilliant. We talked about how their IQ is probably off the charts (as well as how IQ testing is based in racism and not an appropriate measure of intelligence).I have explained the different technologies we use...
When is Noncompliance Learned Helplessness
The professor was discussing the cruel but fruitful “learned helplessness” psychology experiments in which a dog was harnessed to a platform that would shock them in a contraption that also had a “safe” side they could jump to.The dogs were subjected to shocking during which they were NOT...
Treating Private Events in ABA
It feels like there’s no accounting for mental health in behavior change procedures.My last post was about the peer review committee defense that I’ve been gearing up for and the anxiety I’ve been feeling in preparation.Ever since I was a child I have fixated on certain “scary” events and...
When is Attention Extinction the Wrong Answer?
I used to think that attention extinction was the best course of action for perseverative speech/fixation.This weekend I did what turned out to be a really great CEU about psychiatric medication and ABA that initially made me feel really icky because a successful dependent variable was the reduction...
Trauma-Informed Care in ABA
I do not have a certification in trauma-informed care.But, today, I held space for the trauma of a learner in a way that I *think* both supported them through some very significant PTSD and remained within my scope.Briefly, my learner has had frequent interaction with law enforcement, most recently...
Psychiatric Conditions and Applied Behavior Analysts
I am doing a CE course (while drinking Malbec and eating pizza) on collaborating with psychiatric practitioners as a behavior analyst.I got to this particular slide and, as a person who has been hospitalized for psychosis, I need to say that I am aghast at the professor's apparent praise for this...
What Does AI Say About Me?
"Tell me about Dr. Heather Gonzales, Ph.D., BCBA-D's philosophies on ABA and autism."I wrote this to Co-Pilot (a really cool AI app) and this is what it said:"Dr. Heather Gonzales, Ph.D., BCBA-D, LBA, has a transformative approach to Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) and autism. Here are some key...
Managing Mania as a Professional
Seroquel is the most effective antipsychotic/sedative to keep me from going into full-blown mania.Seroquel is SUCH a powerful sedative that I’ve been told people trade street drugs and cigarettes for it in prison to simply be able to sleep.When I was narrowly escaping a second postpartum psychosis...
"A Color of His Own"
I read my daughters a book last called “A Color of His Own” that made me think of autistic masking and autistic friendships.First of all, this is a lovely book for all children by a genius author/illustrator named Leo Lionni whom I was introduced to in my Master of Arts in Teaching program...
When is ABA Appropriate?
I think a litmus test of whether ABA is a right or necessary intervention is if it keeps a learner out of a more restrictive environment.Today, in back to back appointments, I had different learners bring up the same psychiatric hospital in very different ways.The first is a young adult living with...
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder and Anxiety
Last week I got to attend a dinner for an agency called OCD and Anxiety Centers.I was invited because they often get referrals for people who turn out to be autistic, and the “obsessions/compulsions” are actually something much more complex and fundamentally different than the mental illness,...
I Think I Might Be Jesus: Inside a Manic Episode
It’s pretty commonplace to hear people use the term “bipolar” flippantly, in a way that would not be considered acceptable for other forms of mental illness, neurodivergence, or identity (e.g., it is not acceptable to use the R-word to describe someone’s silly mistakes or to call something...
Dealing with Perseveration From a Person-Centered Perspective
How does a behavior analyst treat perseveration in a behavior analytic manner from a person-centered scope?Read on and see!I use the word "perseveration" because it is considered an acceptable form of "problematic behavior" by insurance companies.What I mean by it is that learner is bringing up...

Areas of expertise and specialization

AutismApplied Behavior AnalysisIntellectual DisabilitiesDevelopmental DisabilitiesComplex cases

Faculty Titles & Positions

Adjunct Professor University of Texas at San Antonio 2016 - 2016
Chief Clinical Officer, Lead Behavior Analyst Alamo Behavior Analysis 2021 - Present
BCBA-D (Contract) BehaviorCare Therapy 2022 - Present
BCBA-D (Contract) Advanced Autism Services 2021 - 2022
BCBA-D Ascend Behavior Partners 2019 - 2021
Clinical Supervisor S.E.E.K. Arizona 2017 - 2019
Adjunct Professor University of Texas at San Antonio 2016 -
Social Skills Group Leader Aspire 2015 -
BCBA Aspire 2012 - 2016
Home Healthcare Attendant Class Federal Program 2011 - 2017
Graduate Research Assistant University of Texas at Austin 2011 - 2012
Behavior Technician Austin Travis County Integral Care 2011 -
Social Skills Group Leader Inspire Behavior Therapy 2011 -
Behavior Technician Aspire 2010 - 2012
Home Healthcare Attendant Private Client 2009 -
Home Healthcare Attendant Disability Services of the Southwest 2009 -
4th Grade Teacher of Record Randolph Elementary School 2008 - 2009
Home Healthcare Attendant Disabilities of the Southwest 2005 - 2008
Lead Staff Member Children’s Association for Maximum Potential 2005 - 2009
Home Healthcare Attendant Educare 2004 - 2006
Academic Tutor Southwest Preparatory School 2005 -

Awards

Student of Excellence in the Department of Education 2007 Trinity University
I.F. Riggs Memorial Endowed Presidential Scholarship in Education. 2012 University of Texas at Austin
Continuing Education Fellowship 2012 University of Texas at Austin
Continuing Education Fellowship 2013 University of Texas at Austin
University of Texas at Austin Year 2013-2014
I.F. Riggs Memorial Endowed Presidential Scholarship in Education Year University of Texas at Austin 2011-2012
Outstanding Student in the Education Department 2007 Trinity University
Scholar Volunteer Award 2007 Trinity University

Professional Memberships

Association for Contextual Behavior Analysis
Association of Behavior Analysis International (ABAI)
AzABA

Charities and Philanthropic Endeavors

Children's Association for Maximum Potential (Camp C.A.M.P.)
ACLU

Treatments

Applied Behavior Analysis and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy

Professional Affiliations

None

What do you attribute your success to?

She attributes her success to her gift of being able to validate and bring out what is going on even with her non-verbal patients. She also has comprehensive experience with complex cases involving disabilities other than autism as well, including working with individuals with down syndrome, cerebral palsy, acquired paralysis, traumatic brain injury, Angelman's syndrome, Rhett syndrome, Prader Willi syndrome, Smith Magenis syndrome, and others.

Teaching and speaking

Adjunct professor for UTSA's Master's level course, "Behavior Assessment and Intervention", Speaker at Postpartum Support International's annual conference 2004, Speaker at Climb Out of Darkness event to de-stigmatize perinatal mood and anxiety disorders (2022), podcast guest on Mental illness Happy Hour (2024), Video participant for Mental Health Day at the Capitol (2025)

Areas of research

Although I am not currently affiliated with a university, while in my graduate program I was particularly interested in developing anxiety rating scales for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities who could not speak, and therefore could not answer questionares. To that end, I conducted and published a literature in the Journal of Neurorehabilitation about how anxiety is measured in nonhuman primates, whom are typically used as human animals in sensitive research. I discovered over 80 nonvocal behavioral indicators of anxiety, and hypothesized in 2013 that what we now know as stimming (called motor stereotypy in literature) is an indicator of anxiety. I was partially correct, as the autistic adult self-advocating community have disclosed that stimming is often a self-regulating activity WHEN they are distressed/anxious.

I am interested in using virtual reality headsets for training purposes so that aspiring BCBAs can learn skills with an analogue instead of a vulnerable child.

I am passionate about changing the scope of the BCBA certification to move away from the autism industrial complex and to become a more dynamic body to assist in all the potential applications. I am especially interested in how mental health can be improved through ABA.

As a survivor of postpartum psychosis, I am passionate about educating others about this servious perinatal mood and anxiety disorder and will be working the the APA's mental health SiG to try to get PPP established as a formal diagnosis in the DSM-6, as it is currently, typically, misdiagnosed as postpartum onset bipolar disorder.

One of my ultimate goals is to open an adult treatment center for teens and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities, as well as to become a licensed counselor who specializes in the same population.