Behavior Analyst & Trainee Workloads: Baseline Reports, Ethical Implications, and Practical Solutions
Average BCBA/trainee workload already exceeds safe limits, and hidden cultural duties make it worse.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Schreck et al. (2025) sent a survey to 322 BCBAs and trainees. They asked how many hours they really work and how many clients they carry.
The goal was to pin down a baseline before hunting for fixes.
What they found
Most respondents log more than a full-time week. Caseloads also top the numbers our field says are safe.
The extra load comes from unpaid tasks like report writing and parent calls. People report high stress and worry about slipping ethics.
How this fits with other research
Martin Loya et al. (2024) extends these numbers. Their interviews with bilingual BCBAs show heritage-language duties pile even more unpaid hours on top of the baseline.
Rosales et al. (2023) and Dennison et al. (2019) explain part of the gap. Translating materials and coaching culturally diverse families are rarely billable, yet they eat time.
McCabe et al. (2023) reframes the problem. When 1:1 ratios are impossible, they argue group ABA is the ethical route—an idea that could trim hours if adopted widely.
Why it matters
You now have hard data showing average workloads break the safe limit. Use the number when you negotiate caseload caps or extra admin pay. If you serve bilingual or culturally diverse families, cite Martin Loya et al. (2024) and Rosales et al. (2023) to justify added support or reduced caseloads. For centers that simply can’t staff 1:1, test the group rotation model from McCabe et al. (2023) to stay ethical without burning out.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
Abstract Workload (e.g., direct client responsibilities, supervision, administration, and travel) within applied behavior analysis-based service provision may pose significant challenges for behavior analysts and trainees. Intensive workloads may result in overwork and related ethical issues, such as service and supervision quality issues, personal health issues, and availability of behavior analysts (e.g., absenteeism, turnover, and attrition). This survey of behavior analysts and trainees ( N = 322) indicated that the average workload exceeded average employee expected workweek hours and recommended client assignments. Behavior analysts’ and trainees’ job responsibilities included many responsibilities beyond client services (e.g., supervision, administration, and travel). Many of these activities remained uncompensated. Respondents reported high levels of work and personal life stressors related to their workload. Owing to the multitude of possible ethical issues related to these workload factors, individuals, organizations, and the field of applied behavior analysis must continue to evaluate these workload variables and enact prevention, assessment, and intervention steps to mitigate overwork for the benefit of the profession and its clients.
Behavior Analysis in Practice, 2025 · doi:10.1007/s40617-025-01113-5