BCAT Ethical and Professional Practices 5 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A BCAT technician works with a client whose family holds cultural beliefs that conflict with some ABA strategies. The ethical approach is to:
- Prioritize ABA protocols over cultural considerations at all times
- Ignore the conflict and implement the plan as written
- Collaborate with the BCBA to adapt strategies that respect cultural values while maintaining clinical effectiveness (Correct answer)
- Ask the family to adopt practices consistent with ABA before continuing services
Correct answer: Collaborate with the BCBA to adapt strategies that respect cultural values while maintaining clinical effectiveness
Culturally sensitive practice requires working with supervisors to honor family values without sacrificing the effectiveness of the behavior plan.
Question 2: Which of the following is the most appropriate use of a behavior technician's session notes?
- Sharing them with other clients' families to explain what good progress looks like
- Posting anonymized summaries to a professional online forum for feedback
- Using them to track client progress and inform BCBA supervision decisions (Correct answer)
- Storing them only in personal files separate from the agency's system
Correct answer: Using them to track client progress and inform BCBA supervision decisions
Session notes exist to document progress, guide clinical decision-making, and support supervision — they are not for external sharing or personal storage.
Question 3: A technician is asked to implement a new procedure between supervision sessions without having received training on it. The technician should:
- Implement it carefully while researching best practices online
- Delay implementation and contact the supervising BCBA to request training or clarification first (Correct answer)
- Ask a peer technician to demonstrate the procedure before attempting it
- Implement it once and report the outcomes at the next supervision meeting
Correct answer: Delay implementation and contact the supervising BCBA to request training or clarification first
Implementing untrained procedures poses risk to clients; technicians must seek guidance from their BCBA before proceeding.
Question 4: A BCAT technician disagrees with a directive from their employer that they believe is unethical. The most appropriate first step is to:
- Comply immediately to maintain employment
- Refuse the directive and file a complaint with the certification board
- Raise the concern directly and professionally with the supervisor or ethics officer (Correct answer)
- Discuss the issue with the client's family to gain support
Correct answer: Raise the concern directly and professionally with the supervisor or ethics officer
Ethical concerns about employer directives should first be addressed through internal professional channels before escalating externally.
Question 5: Which best describes the role of a BCBA in relation to a BCAT technician regarding ethics?
- The BCBA assumes all ethical responsibility, relieving the technician of accountability
- The BCBA supervises the technician but both share responsibility for ethical practice (Correct answer)
- The technician sets ethical standards and the BCBA enforces them
- Ethics apply only to the BCBA and not to paraprofessionals
Correct answer: The BCBA supervises the technician but both share responsibility for ethical practice
Both the supervising BCBA and the technician are responsible for ethical conduct; supervision does not transfer the technician's personal ethical obligations.
Question 6: A client's behavior plan includes a preference assessment component. This best reflects which ethical principle?
- Non-maleficence
- Veracity
- Autonomy and client-centered practice (Correct answer)
- Justice
Correct answer: Autonomy and client-centered practice
Preference assessments give clients a voice in selecting reinforcers, reflecting respect for their autonomy and individual preferences.
Question 7: When a BCAT technician receives clinical supervision, the primary purpose of that supervision is to:
- Evaluate the technician's performance for annual salary reviews
- Ensure the technician implements interventions competently and ethically to benefit the client (Correct answer)
- Train the technician to eventually become an independent BCBA
- Allow the BCBA to observe session data without interacting with the technician
Correct answer: Ensure the technician implements interventions competently and ethically to benefit the client
Clinical supervision exists to protect client welfare by ensuring that technicians apply interventions accurately, safely, and ethically.
BCAT Ethical and Professional Practices 5
A BCAT technician works with a client whose family holds cultural beliefs that conflict with some ABA strategies.
The ethical approach is to: