Association for Behavior Analysis International

The Behavior Analyst Certification Board’s Professional and Ethical Compliance Code provides limited guidance on how behavior analysts achieve competence in new areas of practice. The Code says that we need to engage in appropriate study, training, supervision, and consultation from competent practitioners before practicing in a new area. However, our field lacks specific guidance on how to train practitioners to achieve competency. This paper will examine how competent practitioners are trained in the fields of medicine and psychology and how their training protocols may have relevance to the field of Applied Behavior Analysis. In those fields, the definitions of competence will be reviewed. In addition, non-technical skill repertoires that are components of competent practice and the methods for teaching them will be examined. They include repertoires that are critical for successful practice such as clinical decision-making, problem solving, rapport building, and culturally responsive practice. Suggestions for how these practices can be adapted to Applied Behavior Analysis will be offered. Implications for graduate training will be discussed.

Participants should be acquainted with the literature on scope of competence.