Ethics Code Presentation

Hello, and welcome to this presentation about the Ethics Code in relation to supervising others. I will use real-life scenarios and how we, as professionals, are expected to act in such scenarios.

My name is Juliet Anozie, and I am a Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA). I have worked for several years in different sectors, including an inpatient unit for adults and elementary school, and now I am privileged to work with adolescents diagnosed with autism at a small ABA clinic. I will take you through the code of ethics that governs the work of BCBAs. In every profession, there are ethical codes or principles that guide the work of professionals. This field is not an exception. The ethics code for behaviour analysts guides the work of behaviour analysts and every individual under the jurisdiction of the Behavior Analyst Certification Board. All these persons use this code to evaluate their behaviours when working with colleagues and clients, assess compliance and non-compliance, and determine how it is applicable in our field of work. We shall focus on how supervisors are expected to conduct themselves with the role of supervision in accordance with this code.

There are four key principles based on which behaviour analysts are expected to embody as they serve in their profession (BACB, 2023). They need to use these principles to apply and interpret the standards stipulated in the code of ethics. First, behaviour analysts are expected to work towards benefiting others and not do harm. They can do this by protecting the rights and welfare of clients and actively identifying possible factors that can result in a conflict of interest, among others. Second, they are expected to treat people with respect, dignity, and compassion, for example, by respecting clients’ confidentiality and privacy. Third, behaviour analysts are expected to behave with integrity. They can do this by being accountable for their actions and work and behaving in a trustworthy and honest way (BACB, 2023). The last principle is ensuring their competence. This entails things like sticking to the scope of practice and remaining up to date in best practices and knowledge, among others.

In the scenario, the behaviour analyst is assumed to be competent within their expertise as they are hired as a board-certified professional who would supervise supervisees based on their scope of competence. Therefore, this scenario adheres to code 4.02, supervisory competence. However, it also violates the code by asking students to conduct supervision and bill insurance. In this case, students are not well trained to supervise others or certified by the board to take that role; thus, they act outside their scope of competence. Code 4.03 is also violated. The code stipulates taking a reasonable number of supervisees for effective training and supervision. However, in the scenario, 20 supervisees seem to be too much volume for one supervisor. This may have contributed to the compromise of care that furthered clients’ behaviours. According to code 4.09, tasks should be delegated to competent supervisees/trainees; in this case, the students selected have not even graduated from school. Code 4.10 is also violated since the CEO does not take time to evaluate the impact of supervisory work as the code stipulates. The CEO does not evaluate what exactly caused the poor quality of care and increased undesired behaviours in clients. Rather, the CEO makes more recommendations that violate code 5.01 and the principle of working with integrity. According to the principle of working to benefit others, the employees and the CEO are expected to consider the rights of clients first, as well as stakeholders, supervisees, and trainees, as indicated in code 5.01. However, the CEO prioritizes saving time and money at the cost of the client’s well-being and the well-being of other parties mentioned. This automatically violates the principle of integrity as the CEO does not work based on the organization’s purpose. Besides, according to code 5.04, the behavior analyst is expected to prevent the CEO from making deceiving statements about the organization’s work, including hiring incompetent supervisees to make money. The behavior analyst does not correct the CEO and therefore, violates code 5.04.

In this case scenario, the RTB violates the principle of ensuring competence by not being aware or not constantly evaluating his competence boundaries based on service delivery and cultural responsiveness to diverse groups (BACB, 2023). In this case, the RTB ignores the client’s cultural practices and delivers services that are insensitive to the client’s culture. He does not put the care of the clients before others as expected of behavior analysts (Bailey & Burch, 2016). This is shown when he tells the BCBA that he will work towards ensuring the client eats with utensils. He also does not evaluate his boundary of competence and how it affects the client. By being insensitive to the client’s cultural background of eating with hands, he violates the principle of treating others with respect, dignity, and compassion (Beaulieu, Addington, & Almeida, 2019). Nonetheless, the BCBA adheres to code 4.06, which requires analysts to deliver evidence-based supervision that brings positive reinforcement. By engaging the RTB, the BCBA ensures that the RTB understands the client’s cultural aspect before implementing a goal. This also shows that the BCBA respects the client’s background and culture as he consults with the client’s parents to seek further evidence/information. He, therefore, adheres to code 4.07. Next, code 4.08 requires behaviour analysts to engage in the evidence-based collection of data and monitoring of supervisees. In this case, the BCBA collects information from the client’s parents and then engages with the RTB to have constructive feedback.

According to the principle of working towards maximizing benefits for others, behaviour analysts are expected to actively identify and address factors that may result in a conflict of interest, negative effects on professional activities, and misuse of position (BACB, 2023). In this scenario, the BCBA’s colleague does not care that the client’s copy-pasted background information may affect the client’s quality of care and professional activities in the organization. Besides, using the same plan with words such as ‘restrain if they act up’ may be applicable to one client but not to another. This also violates code 6.06, which requires carrying out research based on training and preparation (BABC, 2023). This code expects behaviour analysts to act ethically based on their competence, and in the scenario, the BCBA’s colleague haphazardly pulls out previously used plans and does not use reinforcement systems, which may compromise the quality of care given to clients. Nevertheless, the BCBA adheres to code 6.07 by addressing the conflict of interests, such as the client’s copy-pasted intervention plans and background information and the services proposed by the colleagues. The BCBA does this by taking the issue to the supervisor. Further, the colleague violates code 6.09, which discourages plagiarism. Instead, the colleague uses previously used behavior intervention plans and does not effectively edit the plans to suit the needs of the clients. In the process, the colleague does not act according to the principle of benefiting the clients and the organization. The colleague proves they cannot be trusted with original work and thus does not act per the principle of integrity.

Based on code 1.07, Cultural responsiveness and diversity, behavior analysts are expected to evaluate their own biases so that they can objectively determine the needs of others. For example, terminating employment based on religious reasons would be against multiculturalism. Also, based on code 1.08, Non-discrimination, behaviour analysts should act in an inclusive and equitable manner. For instance, they can ensure all races and genders are included in a project. Lastly, in accordance with code 4.07, Incorporating and addressing diversity, behaviour analysts can ensure that topics discussed streamline cross-cutting matters such as an individual’s age, gender, and nationality, among others.

In all the scenarios, one key principle stands: BCBAs must work towards benefiting others and not doing harm. All the dishonesty, out-of-competence scope, and prioritizing of other things like money practices work towards harming the clients. As Bailey & Burch (2016) argue, a client should come first in the BCBAs’ work activities. Therefore, supervisors, trainees, and CEOs should all work towards meeting the concerns of the clients. This requires a lot of competence, integrity, and cultural intelligence to execute the roles assigned effectively.

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225 ASSIGN 9

Ethics Codes

For this week’s assignment, you are playing the role of an experienced Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA) who has been working in the field for several years. You have worked in various settings, including an elementary school, and an in-patient unit for adults. You just started a new job at a small ABA clinic for adolescents diagnosed with autism.

Ethics Code Presentation

As an experienced BCBA, you are asked to present on supervising others and the core principles from the Ethics Code for Behavior Analysts to new employees. This group of employees at the company you are working for includes a mix of RBTs, BCaBAs, and BCBAs. You will be providing them with real-life supervision scenarios that apply to the core principles as well as relevant ethical codes.

Scenario 1

When you first started working in the field, you were asked to supervise 20 supervisees at your company. This company was run by a CEO who had never worked in the field of ABA and was concerned about making a profit from the business. You realized that the number of clients was increasing at a pace that impacted the treatment of clients. The quality of care started to dip, and your clients started engaging in more behaviors due to inconsistent schedules. The CEO made a few recommendations that were questionable. One of the recommendations made was that students conduct supervision and bill insurance to save time and money. These students were in school to become BCBAs but had not yet graduated or completed their supervision hours. You were asked to sign off on these supervision notes so that billing could be approved.

Scenario 2

You were working with a 6-year-old client with autism who engages in mild problem behaviors and struggles with activities of daily living. During mealtimes, this client ate with his hands and did not know how to eat with utensils. In the functional life skills assessment, a goal stated, “Client will use utensils to eat with during mealtimes independently.” You thought about entering this goal in, as it is typically the next goal you work on based on his skill level and age. Before implementing this life skill goal, you wanted to discuss it with the parents first. The primary RBT on his case said, “He shouldn’t be eating with his hands; it is bad manners.” You spoke with the parents, and the parents informed you that culturally, they ate all meals with their hands and did not need to worry about him using utensils. You decided to discuss this with your RBT and explain your reasoning. The RBT said, “Well everyone else is eating with utensils; I will just work on this anyway.”

Scenario 3

After you had a few years of experience, you worked for one year at an in-patient behavioral health center. At this center, you were being trained by a colleague who copy and pasted behavior intervention plans, and changed the names regardless of background information. You noticed that these behavior plans were not client-specific and were the same. These plans also included wording like, “Rush to use physical prompting if needed, and restrain if they act up.” You noticed these plans were lacking reinforcement systems or least-to-most prompting. When you were asked to review these plans and edit them, you decided to bring these issues up to your supervisor.

Assignment Directions

For this assignment, you will use the Unit 9 Assignment Template to create a narrated PowerPoint® presentation to describe the core ethical principles from the Ethics Code for Behavior Analysts, applying these core principles to the case scenarios above and applying relevant codes in relation to supervision skills.

Please include the following:

Slide 1: Title

Slide 2: Ethics Code for Behavior Analysts

Briefly describe the role of the Ethics Code for Behavior Analysts.
Audio: Introduce yourself and describe, in detail, the importance of the Ethics Code for Behavior Analysts.
Slide 3: Core Ethical Principles

List each of the core principles.
Audio: Describe each core principle in detail.
Slide 4: Ethics Code and Core Principles for Supervision – Scenario 1

Identify the ethics code(s) relevant to the scenario (from Sections 4, 5, and 6).
Based on the supervision case scenario, relate the relevant core principles that apply to the situation.
Audio: Using specific information from the scenario, explain the situation, your rationale for choosing the relevant codes and core principles, and how the situation adheres to or violates the codes.
Slide 5: Ethics Code and Core Principles for Supervision – Scenario 2

Identify the ethics code(s) relevant to the scenario (from Sections 4, 5, and 6).
Based on the supervision case scenario, relate the relevant core principles that apply to the situation.
Audio: Using specific information from the scenario, explain the situation, your rationale for choosing the relevant codes and core principles, and how the situation adheres to or violates the codes.
Slide 6: Ethics Code and Core Principles for Supervision – Scenario 3

Identify the ethics code(s) relevant to the scenario (from Sections 4, 5, and 6).
Based on the supervision case scenario, relate the relevant core principles that apply to the situation.
Audio: Using specific information from the scenario, explain the situation, your rationale for choosing the relevant codes and core principles, and how the situation adheres to or violates the codes.
Slide 7: Multiculturalism

List at least three examples of multiculturalism from the Ethics Code for Behavior Analysts (age, disability, ethnicity, gender expression/identity, immigration status, marital/relationship status, national origin, race, religion, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status).
Audio: Based on your selected examples, explain in detail how behavior analysts embrace multiculturalism and diversity in the field.
Slide 8: Conclusion

Summarize the main points of your presentation.
Slide 9: References

Include at least two sources to support your responses.