An Issue of Ethics within the BCBA Industry with Karen Chung– Episode 171

There’s a need and a demand for ABA services with increased funding beginning to occur. The Behavior Analysis field has some great momentum but as the field grows, and large private equity firms enter this space, there is a concern of degradation of the treatment provided and the quality of services. In this episode, Dr. Graham Taylor speaks with Karen Chung, Karen has 12 years of experience as a Certified Behavioral Analyst and is the CEO and founder of Special Learning, Inc., an education technology company that delivers web-based training, virtual supervision, and consultation for BCBAs anywhere in the world. Aside from her work with Special Learning, Karen has been at work building the Ethical Standards Board, an online database of certified ABAs and registered behavioral technicians available for the public to find qualified clinicians and agencies. Together they discuss the current state of the Behavioral Analysis field, some of the challenges of rapid growth, and the demand for services, as well as highlighting some of the gaps in the ethics code and how that fails to regulate the quality of treatment from large private equity firms. Finally, we discuss a new service called the Ethics Standards Board for ABA Centers (ESBAP), which provides a centralized database of ABA Agencies that are rated by their performance by peers as well as by their clients. ESBAP is creating a resource available to the public, to help shift and support those organizations that are behaving ethically, doing quality work, and outcomes-oriented that have opportunities for RBTs to find a career path to mentorship.

 

For more information about Special Learning Inc., please visit: https://www.special-learning.com/

To contact Karen Chung, please email at kchung@special-learning.com

For more information about the Ethical Standards Board for ABA Centers, the ESBAP, please visit: https://esbap.org/