Enhancing Quality in BCBA Supervision for Supervisors and Supervisees: Evaluating a Standardized Supervision Curriculum

Abstract

The field of applied behaviour analysis (ABA) relies on established Board-Certified Behaviour Analysts (BCBAs) to train new professionals working toward certification. Although the certification body (i.e., the Behavior Analyst Certification Board, BACB) regularly develops task lists that outline the knowledge and skills that form the foundation for the BCBA professional examination, there are few rules related to the number of task list items covered in supervision and the depth to which they are practiced. Further, research has identified several barriers to providing effective supervision. To support effective supervision practices and address barriers, experts have developed resources and provided recommendations to inform a systematic approach to supervision. However, there is a lack of empirical evaluations of supervision resources and recommendations. In the present study, a pre-post design was implemented to evaluate the effect of a standardized supervision curriculum on (a) barriers to providing supervision and supervisor confidence, (b) breadth and depth of content covered, and (c) knowledge outcomes. Seven supervisor-supervisee dyads participated. The results suggest that the curriculum (a) reduced the degree to which a lack of time to review submissions and a lack of resources are barriers for some supervisors, and (b) promotes supervisor confidence that supervision practices align with BACB standards and ethical standards. The results also suggest that the curriculum is associated with improvements in supervisee knowledge of behaviour-analytic concepts. Participants reported that the use of the curriculum helped them cover concepts more thoroughly. The results also suggest that the curriculum is an acceptable, feasible resource.