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How do I choose a behavior therapist?
Therapists will get a lot of information about children’s family life during their time with them, which can help them improve their skills in all aspects. So when we look for a suitable therapist, we need to consider many factors. Here are some things to pay attention to when looking for a good therapist:
1. Professional Qualifications
Level 1: Registered Behavior Technician (RBT)
- Primarily responsible for practicing behavior analysis and providing direct services.
- May not design, intervene, or evaluate training content.
- Requires continuous practice supervision by a BCaBA, BCBA, or BCBA-D.
- RBTs require ongoing certification, which includes ongoing supervision and compliance with the RBT Code of Ethics established by the BACB.
- RBTs must renew their certification annually, including passing the RBT Competency Assessment and completing a renewal application.
Level 2: Certified Associate Behavior Analyst (BCaBA)
- Bachelor-level certification in behavior analysis
- May not independently design, intervene, or evaluate training content.
- Must be supervised by a BCBA/BA-D certified individual.
- BCaBAs must maintain their certification, receive ongoing training and supervision, and adhere to the ethical requirements of the BACB. BCaBAs must complete additional courses and ongoing training before performing supervisory work.
Level 3: Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA)
- Master’s level certification in behavior analysis.
- Can provide independent behavior analysis services.
- BCBAs can supervise the work of Board Certified Assistant Behavior Analysts, Registered Behavior Technicians, and other personnel who perform behavior analysis.
- BCBAs must maintain their certification, receive ongoing training and supervision, and comply with the ethical requirements of the BACB. BCBAs must complete additional courses and ongoing training before they can perform supervisory work.
Level 4: Board Certified Behavior Analyst-Doctor (BCBA-D)
- Doctoral-level certification in behavior analysis.
- Professionals who earn the BCBA-D designation perform the same functions as BCBAs.
- BCBA-Ds supervise Board Certified Assistant Behavior Analysts, Registered Behavior Technicians, and others who practice behavior analysis.
- BCBA-Ds are required to maintain their certification, receive continuing training, and abide by the BACB Code of Ethics, just like BCBAs. BCBA-Ds complete additional training before they can supervise.
2. Love
Being loving is one of the most basic requirements for being a child educator. Therapists must be people who love working with children. Before teaching, therapists need to establish a harmonious and close relationship with children. A good relationship can enhance children’s learning motivation and effectiveness, making learning more effective.
3. Rational Emotions
Therapists sometimes have to face some challenging behaviors of children, including aggressive behaviors, insulting or personally offensive words, etc. In the face of various such situations, therapists must be able to remain calm and composed at all times, and observe and analyze the emotions, reactions and behaviors of children without moving.
4. Good communication and listening skills
The therapist is responsible for regularly updating the child’s situation and providing professional parenting strategies and suggestions so that parents can fully understand the child’s learning progress, communicate with the therapist on the child’s education policy and reach a consensus with the child’s parents or guardians. Communication is a two-way process, and a suitable therapist can also act as a good listener and solve the problems that parents are concerned about.
5. Sense of responsibility
Therapists need to take responsibility for the child’s learning. If the therapist encounters problems in teaching or managing the child’s behavior, they should take the initiative to follow up. A responsible therapist will actively seek solutions to the problem and do their part for the child’s learning.
6.Patience
After setting learning goals for children, therapists will break them down into many progressive learning units for teaching. Therefore, the learning process of children may be extremely long, and learning effectiveness may not be achieved in a short time. Therapists need to constantly experiment and adjust teaching methods to find the most suitable learning style for children. Therefore, therapists need to be very patient to lead children on a long learning journey.
