Are all BCBAs robots, or just mine?

This piece by Leanne Page MEd, BCBA originally appeared on bsci21.org.

“We recently hired a behavior analyst to work with our 4 year old son. She seems like a robot! Are all BCBAs so ‘professional’ and focused on data? Should I find someone else who can be more relaxed and friendly? Does this person exist? What’s the deal with BCBAs?“

Well, is your behavior analyst Vicki from the 80s sitcom, ‘Small Wonder’? If yes, then she is a robot. If not, then let’s look at this a little more closely. You aren’t the first person to think a BCBA (Board Certified Behavior Analyst) is a little too professional and data obsessed.  And you likely won’t be the last.

Just so you know it’s not simply my own opinions here, I’ve sought some input from some stellar BCBAs I happen to know. 

Behavior analysts hold ourselves to a higher code of ethics than a lot of other professions. We follow the Behavior Analyst Certification Board Ethics Code.  It’s 24 pages long. We’re serious about ethics around here. There are multiple sections in this code regarding professional relationships and cautions us against multiple relationships, conflicts of interest, and exploitative relationships. What does this mean? That to some extent a BCBA HAS to be too professional.

Becoming besties with our clients isn’t allowed. That would become a conflict of interest and your new bestie would have to drop your services and refer you to someone else.

Another robotic attribute of BCBAs- we love data. We live for data. All programming should come directly from data. All discussions of your child’s progress should be based on data. I kind of sound like a robot just typing this. Data. Data. Data.

“The key for anyone new to ABA is to understand that it’s a science. All of our decision making is based on data collection, analyzing that data, and then using it to help us decide what steps to take next.” – Kristin Fida, BCBA.

“We count on data to indicate to us whether what we are doing is working or if we could be doing something differently to increase your child’s success. Data provides immediate feedback ensuring precious time is not wasted. While our obsession with data may seem excessive, we put our heart and soul in to what we do and with each individual data point we are assured that your child is successful and achieving their goals!” – Brittany Keener, BCBA.

And finally, BCBAs can be too professional and robotic by not using user-friendly language describing the principles of ABA. We can forget that not everyone uses words like antecedent, mand, tact, reinforcement contingency, and etcetera. Behavior analysts who throw around these big words and don’t take the time to make sure they make sense to you probably do sound like robots.

But even with all these reasons listing why BCBAs are kind of like robots- here’s the truth of the matter. We love our jobs. We love behavior analysis. We love our clients. We love to help others make progress toward goals, reduce problem behaviors, and teach new behaviors and skills.

We cry over setbacks and celebrate every small step of progress with our clients. We jump for joy when a client spontaneously engages in a behavior we’ve been working on for eons. We lay awake at night thinking about programming, about how to help our clients make progress faster. We worry about our clients, we care about our clients, we do everything we can to make effective behavior change in our clients’ lives.

We are not robots. As a group, that is. There may be a few behavior analysts out there who don’t feel this way. Find one of the many who do; they (we) are the majority.  Find the BCBA who lives for positive behavior change. Work with a team that plans for your child’s future, that helps your child be more independent, that uses your child’s interests to promote learning.  Be an active part of that team- communication and collaboration between you and the behavior analyst are the keys to serious progress!

Behavior analysts are not robots.  We may like data a lot (bordering on obsession), but we use it to help people in real ways.

“Essentially, don’t give up. Talk to your BCBA and communicate your concerns and ask about what approach she is using and why she feels it is an appropriate intervention. The data should show that your son is making progress in goals that you want to increase while decreasing any maladaptive behaviors.  Just like with teachers, BCBAs all have a different style. If the style is working, don’t change it right away! Communication and being open with your BCBA is best!”- Jessi French, BCBA

“Developing positive relationships coupled with data driven decision making for our interventions is a sure recipe for success and progress with any client.”- Kristin Fida, BCBA

Talk to your BCBA. Tell them your concerns, listen to their explanations for why programming is done a certain way. If they use jargon- tell them you aren’t familiar with all the ABA terms. The more collaboration between you and your BCBA- the better for your son!

Leanne Page, MEd, BCBA, is the author of Parenting with Science: Behavior Analysis Saves Mom’s Sanity. As a Behavior Analyst and a mom of two little girls, she wanted to share behavior analysis with a population who could really use it- parents!

Leanne’s writing can be found in Parenting with Science and Parenting with ABA as well as a few other sites. She is a monthly contributor to bSci21.com , guest host for the Dr. Kim Live show, and has contributed to other websites as well.

Leanne has worked with children with disabilities for over 10 years. She earned both her Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees from Texas A&M University.  She also completed ABA coursework through the University of North Texas before earning her BCBA certification in 2011. Leanne has worked as a special educator of both elementary and high school self-contained, inclusion, general education, and resource settings.

Leanne also has managed a center providing ABA services to children in 1:1 and small group settings. She has  extensive experience in school and teacher training, therapist training, parent training, and providing direct services to children and families in a center-based or in-home therapy setting.

Leanne is now located in Dallas, Texas and is available for: distance BCBA and BCaBA supervision, parent training, speaking opportunities, and consultation. She can be reached via Facebook or at Lpagebcba@gmail.com.