Integrating Cultural Responsiveness Into Supervision: Understanding the Context, Meeting the Need, and Suggestions for Practice
Brian Conners (Seton Hall University)
Invited Panel
OBM
Biography:Brian Conners, Ph.D., BCBA, is a New Jersey Department of Education certified school psychologist and a Board Certified Behavior Analyst. He originally developed the graduate program in Applied Behavior Analysis at Seton Hall University, where he currently serves on their faculty and is their Interim Associate Dean for Academic Affairs for the College of Education and Human Services. He has worked within various sectors as a behavior analyst and consultant including public and private schools, psychiatric hospitals, and community agencies. He has presented at state and national conferences and has published articles and book chapters in multicultural and diversity issues in behavior analysis, crisis intervention, and restraint and seclusion practices in schools. He was the editor for the first book ever to be published on diversity issues in the field of ABA entitled, Multiculturalism and Diversity in Applied Behavior Analysis: Bridging Theory and Application.
Abstract: In recent years, much more emphasis has been placed on cultural competence, humility, and responsiveness, as they relate to ABA service provision. These concepts have received attention in published literature, in discussions about issues facing the field, and in our new Ethics Code. The field is making progress in defining these skills, and much discussion exists around the teaching and training of this skill set for practitioners. In addition to these needs, there is an obligation to integrate the coverage of these issues into supervision. In this panel discussion, panelists will review the context and need for this expansion of supervision, the development of a tool to assess the extent to which supervision is culturally responsive, the associated issues in practice and mentorship that should be considered in this context, and future directions for mentoring.