r/ABA

Hi yall! Recently I had a client after a long field lab (I’m a hydrogeology student). I came as I always do prepared and ready to start the day. After talking with mom for a bit she asked me how my day was and I told her about my lab outside. She offered me a glass of water. I was really inclined to take it but didn’t due to fear of a reprimand. What do yall think?

Update!

Yall your comments made me laugh so hard! Next time I will graciously accept the water. Coming from being in this field and worrying about BCBAs and the power they hold over us is nerve racking. I appreciate all of y’all’s advice and it gave me some confidence. The company that I had previously worked at did not allow us to accept anything even water. I have thankfully left that company and love the current company I work for now.

Maybe I’m just petty and a know-it-all, but I think what I’ve crafted is actually pretty neat! My BCBA is very much against the idea of me designing, creating, or procuring any visuals of any kind for my clients in a way that I don’t understand since it does not cost the company anything at all, but that’s genuinely one of my favorite parts of the job so even if I cannot use them, I will not be stopped from sharing for anyone who is in a different situation than myself.

I created a menu- like a restaurant menu- for communication and task management. I cannot share files here, and I encourage any that use this idea to cater the aesthetics to their clients interests! I have created three distinct categories each aligning with the daily routine and workload of the client.

Appetizers: things that the client needs/wants in order to feel ready for completing a task. Having a snack, a drink of water, deep breaths, hand squeezes, pencil selection- anything that is an appropriate precursor for a task that does not require a significant time commitment or is a perceived reinforcer that could be used as a way to escape a demand. You know your client, and you’ve established certain routines, incorporate as much priming as you can here!

Entrees: The tasks that we are hoping to accomplish in a day or session. Letting clients choose which of these tasks to do and the order in which they’re going to complete them is a SUPER EFFECTIVE way to build productive momentum to tackle the nonpreferred activities as well! After each task completed, cross off the task and- if your client is as opinionated as mine have been- let them rate the task on how it went. Five stars=that was easy and fun! One star= That was really hard and I struggled a lot. This is also a great indirect preference assessment that will show you where more support is required and help you find where efforts should be focused.

Desserts: the reinforcers, of course! Letting them choose what they’ve earned for the task is what we already do in our day-to-day, but this is a very very direct display of the connection between efforts and rewards. If the reinforcer is not something that can be provided in an instant (like in a case where an outdoor break time is not feasible for one reason or another just yet), playing into the bit of “the chefs are still cooking up the dessert!” Continues to keep the association between the task and the response relevant in the client’s mind as well.

It’s not anything crazy or revolutionary by any means, but I think some of y’all may have a good time with it! I also like to add the “descriptions” of the menu options that are focused on the desired behaviors and replacement behaviors that we want to teach them to utilize based on each task. If presenting the demand of completing a math worksheet is known to trigger elopement, I’ll maybe put “ingredients: sitting at the desk and raising hand to ask for help” beneath it as a visual reminder of the expectations surrounding that task. If the goal and expectation is reframed around the behavior while attempting the task, that takes a small bit of the pressure of difficulty surrounding math in general.

This is not the full detailed version that I used but it’s essentially just a premack principle visual with a sprinkle of imagination. I hope y’all find your own spins to put on it!

Like honestly in my experience in home is so much better specifically with the clients I’ve had. Some might be chill in center depending on a lot of different things but in general the center is too chaotic. These clinics need WORK..

Hi everyone! I'm currently an RBT and student analyst working toward becoming a BCBA. Lately, I've been having a hard time picturing what my career will actually look like once I become a BCBA.

I've gotten a lot of experience and training from the RBT perspective, but I feel like I understand the RBT role much better than I understand the actual day-to-day life of a BCBA. From where I stand now, I see BCBAs doing supervision, making program changes, attending meetings, analyzing data, and spending quite a bit of time on their laptops, but I know there is probably a lot I'm not seeing.

I'm close enough to finishing my education that I've started seriously asking myself, "Is becoming a BCBA actually what I want long-term?" I genuinely enjoy many aspects of ABA and think I could be a good BCBA, but I don't want to continue simply because I've already invested time into the field. I want to better understand the career I'm actually working toward.

I'd especially love to hear from current BCBAs:

• What does your actual day/week look like?
• How much time do you spend directly interacting with clients versus supervising, programming, analyzing data, documenting, caregiver training, meetings, etc.?
• How much of your job is actually spent behind a computer?
• How flexible is your schedule? Do you have control over your hours?
• Does work follow you home?
• How would you describe your work-life balance and the mental/emotional demands of the job?
• What's your favorite part of being a BCBA? What's the part you could do without?
• Have you ever seriously questioned staying in the field? What made you stay or what did you change?
• If you could go back to when you were an RBT/student analyst, would you still become a BCBA?
• What do you wish you had understood about being a BCBA when you were still an RBT?

I'd also really like to hear from student analysts and RBTs who are questioning whether they want to become BCBAs. What's making you hesitate?

I'm not necessarily looking to be talked into or out of becoming a BCBA. I think I'm mostly trying to see beyond my current RBT experience and understand what the other side actually looks like.

Thank you to anyone willing to share their experience!

Hi everyone! I'm currently an RBT and student analyst working toward becoming a BCBA. Lately, I've been having a hard time picturing what my career will actually look like once I become a BCBA.

I've gotten a lot of experience and training from the RBT perspective, but I feel like I understand the **RBT role much better than I understand the actual day-to-day life of a BCBA**. From where I stand now, I see BCBAs doing supervision, making program changes, attending meetings, analyzing data, and spending quite a bit of time on their laptops, but I know there is probably a lot I'm not seeing.

I'm close enough to finishing my education that I've started seriously asking myself, *"Is becoming a BCBA actually what I want long-term?"* I genuinely enjoy many aspects of ABA and think I could be a good BCBA, but I don't want to continue simply because I've already invested time into the field. I want to better understand the career I'm actually working toward.

I'd especially love to hear from current BCBAs:

* What does your **actual day/week** look like?
* How much time do you spend directly interacting with clients versus supervising, programming, analyzing data, documenting, caregiver training, meetings, etc.?
* How much of your job is actually spent behind a computer?
* How flexible is your schedule? Do you have control over your hours?
* Does work follow you home?
* How would you describe your work-life balance and the mental/emotional demands of the job?
* What's your **favorite** part of being a BCBA? What's the part you could do without?
* Have you ever seriously questioned staying in the field? What made you stay or what did you change?
* If you could go back to when you were an RBT/student analyst, **would you still become a BCBA?**
* What do you wish you had understood about being a BCBA when you were still an RBT?

I'd also really like to hear from **student analysts and RBTs who are questioning whether they want to become BCBAs**. What's making you hesitate?

I'm not necessarily looking to be talked into or out of becoming a BCBA. I think I'm mostly trying to see beyond my current RBT experience and understand what the other side actually looks like.

Thank you to anyone willing to share their experience!

I’ve been an RBT for about a year and my biggest pet peeve is seeing grown adults purposely rage bait these children in the name of “teaching them to self advocate”. One of my coworkers will literally push their client (not enough to fall over but just a shove) or will literally SNATCH a toy out of the child’s hand or mess up a craft/activity they are doing to prompt them to say “I don’t like that” and I think that is repulsive!!!!! There’s SOOO many opportunities to prompt self advocation, especially in a center setting. Especially as the kids play with each other everyday. I think it’s insane to push around vulnerable children!!!!!

Edit: talked to my BCBA and management and they were shocked by this behavior. They said they are going to address it ASAP.

So I am an RBT working for a school district. I am contracted outside of the district from a third party. School starts tomorrow and I got some information for my client on Friday. Well today comes around and I have a message from my recruiter basically saying that the district’s BCBA doesn’t have space for me and I have to find an outside BCBA to do my supervision hours or I go from getting paid $29 to $22 dollars an hour because I can’t work as an RBT and I will have to work as a para. I have no idea how to even go about doing this nor do I even know if this is okay to do since I signed a contract. Any suggestions?

I was working as a lead at my previous clinic but my commute was an hour and 20 minutes with traffic. I actually liked my coworkers but I figured I should take a job that is closer. Mind you, I have been trying to get out of the ABA field for a long time. I've been an RBT for 3 years now, I have job hopped, but I know deep down this is NOTTTT what I want to do. This is just a job until I go to school again.

I was getting guaranteed 40 hours at my regular rate. Now I am starting over at this new clinic, and admin/non-billable is at $7.25...This made me feel so depressed. I am supposedly shadowing for the whole week for $7.25????? On top of this I have been going through personal things, and I called in sick today and tomorrow. I regret leaving where I was comfortable, but it is SO hard to find a new job that is not ABA related. I've tried milking my administrative parts of my job and I have applied to more than 15 jobs now. I am so depressed from starting over, mourning the loss of my friend, and not getting compensated fairly. Is anyone else on the same boat? I want to crash out so bad but I have been in been just rotting with this awful cough and body aches. I'm pretty sure if I don't show up with a doctor's note I will get written up LOL

I’ve been in ABA for about 4 years, and lately I’ve reached a point where I genuinely dread going to work. I’m constantly angry, I’ve been showing up late, and honestly, I don’t even feel like myself anymore. I get really irritated when my clients have behaviors, and that makes me feel guilty because I know it isn’t their fault. I’m just tired.

My current agency has also been frustrating. I’m often not notified about cancellations or client vacations until the last minute, and I’ve had to constantly follow up about my schedule. I’ve gone weeks with very few hours, and right now I’m sometimes only working around 2 hours a day. I told them a month ago that I needed more consistent hours, but I’m still waiting. I want to quit so bad but i don't know if that is the best move but we have such a high turn over rate and im just done with aba in general.

I’m applying to jobs outside of ABA because I think I’m ready for a different career, but I haven’t been able to get hired yet. I feel stuck because I need the money, but I also don’t know how much longer I can keep doing this.

For those who left ABA, how did you know it was time? Did you wait until you had another job, or did you leave because you were already completely burned out?

I’m honestly looking for advice because I don’t know if I should keep trying to make this work or accept that I’m done?

The title says it all. By travel time I mean from client to client homes. I feel like my company pays shockingly low and I am just curious what other peoples company pays

My company has seen several kids graduate in the last few months. For whatever reason, intake has been slow. This has resulted in several of us RBTs working reduced hours. I worked just 19 hours last week for example.

I am collecting fieldwork hours and since I'm in my first year, I am only allowed to collect restricted hours. Unfortunately, because I am working so few hours, I am not able to log anything close to 160 or even 100.

I received another job offer from a company for an internship position. They will give me both restricted and unrestricted hours. They can wait 14 days at the most, though (but I am out of office till Friday, ao can only inform my BCBA and OM on Friday, leaving me effectively 10 days).

My company has a one month notice policy and have mentioned that they will report RBTs who abandon their jobs to the board. I understand this might be a concern during periods of staff shortage, but there are so many of us now who need hours. I don't think they would find it hard to find coverage.

Is it unethical for me to send in a resignation on Friday, saying I won't be in after the following week?

I live in an at-will employment state.

So I was an RBT for about a year and a half with younger kids, a self-contained para for a little while for middle school, and now I'm a supervisor at a group home for adults.

I have noticed working in my para and group home role and speaking with various professionals such as psychologists and speech therapists that SO MUCH ABA is used by them.

So far I've seen least to most prompting, BIPs, behavior chaining, positive reinforcement for undesired tasks, first/then, planned ignoring, data collection (not in the school) and much more that I can't think of off the top of my head.

The kicker is I've had multiple people tell me they don't like/are wary of ABA and one person even asked if I used dog clickers on kids or made them speak in order to receive food.

So a lot of parents/caregivers are avoiding ABA and recieving other services they think are benefiting them and receiving the exact same thing in different packaging. I wonder about the ethics of not informing them and also how utterly unfair it is for people to look down on what we've done and get to do the same things and be viewed at in a much better light. And furthermore, these methods are being used without the same level of data collection, so they're not even achieving the same level of results.

My client is an older kid and in home and doesn’t want to play with toys or the games I bring. They are non vocal and only ever want to go outside which family usually doesn’t allow and I’m glad for that because it makes it hard to run goals. The only thing they actually engage with is eating or phone/TV time. They seem to enjoy slime and sand but I don’t bring them out since my client will try and eat them or make a very big mess. My BCBAs haven’t overlapped since the first session and give me the basic advice of just check something out from the clinic which is what I’ve been doing. When we do go outside it’s a battle to even have my client look at me. Most of the goals are NET and I don’t know if I shouldn’t bring up to my team if DTT goals might be better.

I was recently assigned a teen client who is about my size (I’m a 5’2 woman), and last night she showed the first signs of aggression toward me. It was pretty severe, and I realized I don’t feel physically or mentally equipped to safely handle aggressive behavior from an older client.

I want to request off the case, which would be my first time ever, but I’m nervous about the BCBA trying to convince me to stay or how long it would take to get a new client. The company also accommodated me by giving me a case close to home, so I feel guilty.

At the same time, I don’t want to keep pairing with her if I already know I’m not the right fit. I’d rather they assign someone who feels physically capable of handling the case so the client can get the support she needs sooner.

Is this good enough reason to get off a case? Have you ever requested to change clients?

hello, as the title states i have been a bt for one and half months now. im in a clinical setting, which is much more helpful when it comes to needing help physically but asking questions seems to be a big no no when my one month mark hit. i still feel like i have no clue what im doing. we accept kids 2-9 at my clinic, and i just cant find a good way to pair well yet. i haven’t ever worked with kids before, but i adore them and play very well with them. i didnt really have a childhood/parents growing up due to neglect, so never really experienced much of parenting until i hit about 18 yrs old and moved out w my dad which has been a blessing, but…theres not much to teach at that point except love. idk if this is affecting my ability to perform this job or not, but i just can’t seem to find the structure of teaching yet. i do great with playing, and incorporating NET, but table pairing and “work” is very difficult with non complying children. i dont think i set boundaries or firmness well at all, but i really am clueless when it comes to that. i have one child that they realized i dont do well with AT ALL n they want me to be able to be independent and not needing help 24/7, so they have been putting me with her for 2 sessions now and its not going well at all. she just really seems to not like me, and i have no clue why. she keeps throwing things, trying to eat everything in site, peeing herself and laughing at my face even though she is potty trained, running away, screaming, hitting, throwing her urine at me, grabbing my crotch, really anything to get a reaction. i know they said she is highly reaction based due to her having autism and down syndrome, so i never give her anything unless she’s being calm bodied/silly in the appropriate way. i tried pairing with her but every toy i give her she ends up throwing straight back at me. management had a talk with me and said i need to do better, but i literally had a lead rbt take over for about two minutes to regulate her and once he left, i did everything he did word for word and she still FREAKED OUT. i cant tell what im doing wrong or why she doesn’t like me, but do u guys have any advice ? have u ever dealt with this before ? any advice is welcome, thank u so much !!!

Has any RBTs been hired as a Behaviorist & Counselor?

I’m with my client for the 7th session and he’s got his tablet. Parents have been told to implement less tablet time especially outside of session so he doesn’t associate it with the tablet being taken just for sessions.

They have not reduced tablet time as far as I can tell. He spends at least half of his session on his tablet or watching TV. If I interact with him, he pushes me away.

I have successfully got him to at least echo me when I say ‘go away’ but beyond that I can’t do anything at all.

The BCBA said she will address this in parent training this week (again).

But I dont know how to pair with my client if he’s only wanting a tablet and silence from me.

i know company’s don’t care about you but my supervisor sure does, this morning i texted her that my father had passed away yesterday and i was ready to come in emotional but ready for work. she told me to take the week off and helped me with scheduling and HR and since i get 3 days of paid leave i can do that but my friday wouldn’t be paid which im fine with. my very thankful for her

I’m a RBT and I got removed from a case because I’m not interacting w kiddo as much? Idk how that came to be because I talk w him a lot and we do all the board games they have available. Ig they mean that I’m not physically active with him, we do movement brain breaks and that’s it. I was communicated through email that they want me to exercise with him and next day I got kicked out from the case I didn’t even see him yet. Either way I think it’s for the best because I suffer from chronic back pain from my scoliosis and doing exercises will be really painful.