Designing A Successful Supervision Journey: Recommendations and Resources for New BCBA Supervisors
Use the ready-made checklist to set up your first supervision-of-supervision meeting and keep it on track all year.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Fraidlin et al. (2023) wrote a how-to paper for brand-new BCBAs. These BCBAs must now get their own supervision while they supervise others. The authors give a checklist, sample forms, and a month-by-month plan to start the new relationship right.
What they found
The paper does not test people. Instead, it lists the exact forms and talking points that help a new supervisor and a consulting supervisor stay on track. The checklist covers setting goals, giving feedback, and tracking trainee progress.
How this fits with other research
Garza et al. (2018) gave similar tools for supervising trainees, but Fraidlin updates the focus to the new BCBA who now needs supervision too. The two papers fit like nested dolls: Garza for the trainee side, Fraidlin for the novice boss side.
Irwin Helvey et al. (2022) told trainees how to ask for good supervision. Fraidlin flips the script and tells the new supervisor how to invite and use supervision-of-supervision. Together they cover both sides of the same conversation.
Hajiaghamohseni et al. (2021) surveyed BCBAs and found most supervision is inconsistent. Fraidlin’s checklist answers that problem by giving a standard routine any new supervisor can follow on day one.
Why it matters
If you just got your BCBA certificate and now supervise RBTs or students, you must also meet with a consulting supervisor. Print the article’s one-page checklist. Use it at your first meeting to set goals, pick observation times, and plan feedback. You turn a vague requirement into a clear, useful habit.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
As of 2022, board certified behavior analysts who are certified for less than 1 year and have met the qualifications to serve in a supervisory capacity are required to meet with a consulting supervisor if they wish to supervise trainees’ fieldwork experience. These guidelines establish a different supervisory level of accountability in our field, supervision for supervisors. Recommendations that are uniquely tailored for new supervisors and address the relationship between new and consulting supervisors have not yet been published. In this article, we share recommendations and resources with new supervisors. We extend current literature by outlining steps new supervisors can take and resources they can use to prepare for a successful supervision journey with their consulting supervisor and supervisees.
Behavior Analysis in Practice, 2023 · doi:10.1007/s40617-022-00728-2