Ethical and Professional Conduct Flashcards

A BCBA supervising a RBT discovers that the RBT has been posting anonymously in an online ABA forum, sharing detailed session descriptions that, while not including the client's name, include enough specific behavioral and demographic details that a community member could potentially identify the family. The RBT argues the posts are anonymous and therefore acceptable. What is the most ethically appropriate response?

Answer: Instruct the RBT to immediately cease posting and document the incident as a supervision concern, explaining that de-identification requires more than omitting a name when unique details remain identifiable

The BACB Ethics Code requires practitioners to protect client confidentiality beyond simply omitting names. If the combination of details is sufficient to identify an individual, the information is not adequately de-identified. The supervising BCBA must address this proactively as a supervision issue without waiting for demonstrated harm, and HIPAA's safe harbor standard requires removal of 18 specific identifiers, not just names.

A BCBA is contracted by a school district to provide ABA services. The district's special education coordinator instructs the BCBA to write behavioral goals into IEPs for students the BCBA has never assessed, in order to justify existing aide placements before a funding deadline. The coordinator assures the BCBA this is 'standard practice.' What should the BCBA do?

Answer: Refuse to write the goals, document the request, and explain that writing assessment-based clinical documents without conducting an assessment violates professional ethics regardless of organizational custom

The BACB Ethics Code prohibits misrepresentation and requires that clinical recommendations be based on actual assessment data. Writing IEP goals for unevaluated students constitutes misrepresentation of professional work regardless of an employer's instruction or claimed common practice. The BCBA must refuse, document the pressure, and if the employer retaliates, may need to consider whistleblower protections or reporting to the BACB.

During a supervision session, a BCBA-supervised RBT discloses that their spouse, who is not in any professional relationship with the client, has begun accepting small gifts (homemade baked goods) from the client's grateful parents after occasionally helping transport the child to sessions. Under BACB ethics, what is the most accurate assessment?

Answer: This creates a dual relationship risk that the BCBA must address with the RBT, as the RBT's household member engaging in an ongoing exchange relationship with the client's family can compromise the therapeutic relationship and the RBT's objectivity

BACB ethics require practitioners to avoid dual relationships and conflicts of interest that could compromise objectivity or the therapeutic relationship. Although the spouse is not credentialed, the ongoing gifting relationship between the client's family and the RBT's household creates an entanglement that can affect the RBT's professional judgment. The BCBA must address this with the RBT and establish clear boundaries, regardless of whether the spouse holds a credential.

A BCBA working in a private clinic has been treating a 10-year-old client with ABA for 18 months. The parents request that the BCBA write a letter to the family court system supporting their custody position, stating that the other parent's 'chaotic home environment' is harmful to the client's behavioral progress. The BCBA has never observed the other parent's home. What is the ethically correct course of action?

Answer: Write a factual letter describing the client's behavioral progress in the clinic setting only, without characterizing either parent's home environment, and decline to make custody recommendations outside the BCBA's scope of observation

A BCBA may provide factual information within their direct scope of observation (clinical sessions) but must not offer professional opinions about settings or circumstances they have not observed or assessed. Making characterizations about a home environment the BCBA has never evaluated constitutes going beyond the data and could constitute misrepresentation. The ethical response is to document only what was directly observed clinically and decline to characterize unobserved environments, regardless of parental consent.

A BCBA receives a referral for a new adult client with intellectual disability and severe self-injurious behavior (SIB). The referring agency is pressuring the BCBA to begin a behavior reduction plan using a Level 1 restrictive procedure immediately because staff injuries are escalating. The BCBA has not yet completed a functional behavior assessment. Which action most accurately reflects ethical practice?

Answer: Implement the least restrictive response protocol for the acute SIB while clearly communicating to the agency that a function-based behavior intervention plan cannot be ethically developed without completing a functional assessment first

BACB ethics require that behavior reduction plans, particularly those involving restrictive procedures, be grounded in functional assessment data. However, the BCBA also has an obligation to client and staff safety. The ethical path is to use the least restrictive emergency safety protocols for acute incidents while refusing to develop a formal behavior intervention plan without an FBA, and clearly communicating this to the agency. Documenting that an agency directed non-evidence-based practice does not absolve the practitioner of ethical responsibility.

A BCBA is asked by a colleague to co-author a published case study. When reviewing the manuscript draft, the BCBA notices that the outcome data has been selectively reported — only the weeks showing the largest treatment gains are graphed, and several weeks with no progress or regression are omitted without any explanation. The colleague says the omitted data was due to 'protocol inconsistency' and doesn't need to be disclosed. What should the BCBA do?

Answer: Request that all data be included in the report with appropriate notation of protocol inconsistency weeks, and decline to be listed as a co-author unless the manuscript accurately represents the complete data

The BACB Ethics Code prohibits data fabrication, falsification, and selective reporting that misrepresents outcomes. Omitting regression or no-progress data without disclosure constitutes selective reporting — a form of research misconduct — regardless of the stated rationale. A co-author who knowingly allows misrepresented data to be published shares ethical responsibility. The BCBA must require complete and accurate data representation as a condition of co-authorship. Direct resolution is typically the required first step before escalating to the BACB.