Ethics and Professional Conduct Flashcards

A BCBA is providing services to a client with severe self-injurious behavior. The client's parent requests that the BCBA use a punishment procedure that the BCBA believes is unnecessarily restrictive given the available evidence-based alternatives. The parent cites religious and cultural reasons for preferring this approach. What is the BCBA's most ethically appropriate course of action?

Answer: Refuse to implement the procedure, document the disagreement, present evidence-based alternatives, and if the impasse continues, consult with a supervisor and consider whether continued service is appropriate

The BACB Ethics Code requires BCBAs to recommend the least restrictive effective treatment and to use evidence-based practices. When a caregiver requests a more restrictive procedure than warranted, the BCBA must advocate for the client's wellbeing by presenting alternatives, documenting the disagreement, and escalating to supervision. If the conflict cannot be resolved, withdrawing from services (with proper transition planning) may be necessary. Silently implementing a procedure the BCBA opposes or deferring unconditionally to caregiver authority violates the BCBA's independent ethical obligations.

A BCBA discovers that a colleague, also a BCBA, has been falsifying data in session notes to meet productivity metrics set by their employer. The colleague confides this information privately and begs the BCBA not to report it, arguing that no clients have been harmed. Under the BACB Ethics Code, what should the BCBA do?

Answer: Attempt to resolve the issue informally first if appropriate, but report to the BACB if the matter is not resolved, as data falsification constitutes a serious ethics violation regardless of perceived harm

The BACB Ethics Code obligates certificants to report ethical violations that cannot be resolved informally. Data falsification is a serious violation that undermines the integrity of ABA services — the absence of immediately detectable harm does not negate the violation. While informal resolution may be attempted first when appropriate, falsifying clinical records is a substantive breach that warrants BACB reporting if not self-corrected. Keeping it confidential or limiting reporting to the employer fails to uphold the profession's integrity obligations.

A BCBA working in a school district is asked by the district's legal team to provide a client's full behavioral intervention records for use in a due process hearing. The client's parents have not been informed of this request and have not provided specific authorization for this disclosure. Which response best reflects the BCBA's ethical and legal obligations?

Answer: Consult with the district's legal counsel and the client's parents to determine what disclosures are legally permissible under IDEA/FERPA, obtain appropriate authorization where required, and provide only the minimum necessary information

This scenario involves the intersection of BACB ethics, FERPA, and IDEA. School records in due process hearings are governed by specific legal frameworks that may allow certain disclosures without individual authorization, but the BCBA must not simply comply with employer directives without understanding the legal scope. The ethically correct action is to consult legal counsel, work to inform and involve the parents, and disclose only the minimum necessary information consistent with applicable law. Providing records unilaterally or refusing categorically without legal analysis are both inappropriate responses.

A BCBA with expertise in verbal behavior is approached by a law firm to serve as an expert witness in a case involving a child with autism. During case preparation, the attorney asks the BCBA to review the data and provide testimony supporting a predetermined conclusion favorable to their client. The BCBA reviews the data and finds it actually supports the opposing conclusion. What is the most ethical course of action?

Answer: Provide testimony that reflects the honest interpretation of the data, regardless of which party it favors, and inform the attorney of the findings before agreeing to testify

Expert witnesses have a paramount obligation to provide truthful, objective testimony based on data — they are witnesses to the truth, not advocates for the hiring party. The BACB Ethics Code requires BCBAs to be truthful and to base professional judgments on data. If the data contradicts the attorney's preferred conclusion, the BCBA must disclose this honestly before agreeing to testify. Providing strategically framed testimony or seeking more data to achieve a desired outcome are forms of scientific dishonesty that violate professional ethics.

A BCBA is supervising a BCaBA whose performance has been consistently substandard despite multiple corrective feedback sessions. The BCBA has documented all supervisory interactions. The BCaBA is the sole ABA provider in a rural area serving six clients who would otherwise have no access to services. What ethical obligation governs the BCBA's supervisory decision?

Answer: Reduce the BCaBA's client load, intensify supervision, and set a defined remediation timeline with clear competency benchmarks — escalating to the BACB if competency standards cannot be met, while developing transition plans for affected clients

The BACB Ethics Code requires BCBAs to ensure that supervisees demonstrate adequate competency before working independently, and to take action when supervisees do not meet standards. The access-to-services consideration is real but does not permit indefinite tolerance of substandard practice — client welfare requires competent services, not just any services. The ethical path is intensive remediation with clear benchmarks, proactive transition planning for clients, and BACB reporting if minimum competency cannot be achieved. Transferring without disclosure would hide a material concern from the incoming supervisor.

A BCBA maintains a professional social media profile and occasionally posts about ABA topics. A former client's parent (services ended 18 months ago) sends a friend request on a personal social media platform and begins commenting publicly on the BCBA's professional posts with detailed personal disclosures about their child's treatment history. Which action most accurately reflects the BCBA's ethical obligations?

Answer: Decline the personal friend request, privately contact the parent to explain confidentiality concerns regarding their public disclosures, and review platform privacy settings — while recognizing that even post-termination social media relationships can compromise objectivity and confidentiality

Post-termination relationships carry ongoing ethical obligations. Even when the client voluntarily discloses information publicly, the BCBA has confidentiality duties and must avoid dual relationships that could compromise professional judgment about future services or referrals. Accepting personal social media connections with former clients' family members blurs professional boundaries. Simply deleting comments or blocking without explanation is not respectful or educational. The appropriate response is to decline the personal connection, privately explain the professional rationale, and guide the parent about the risks of sharing clinical information publicly.