I’m One Person, I Can’t Be Everywhere: Challenges and Needs of Bilingual Behavior Analysts
Bilingual BCBAs are stretched thin and caught between agency English mandates and families’ wish to keep Spanish.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Martin Loya et al. (2024) talked with bilingual BCBAs who serve autistic children from Spanish-speaking homes.
The team asked open questions about daily hurdles and ethical worries.
They recorded how these analysts juggle English agency rules with families’ wish to keep Spanish alive.
What they found
The BCBAs feel torn. Agencies push English-only goals, yet families want Spanish kept.
One analyst said, “I’m one person, I can’t be everywhere,” summing up the overload.
They also lack translated materials, Spanish-speaking co-workers, and clear ethics guidance.
How this fits with other research
Dennison et al. (2019) and Rosales et al. (2023) already urged culturally responsive home ABA. The new study shows those fixes are still missing on the ground.
Vela et al. (2025) proved a Spanish-friendly parent program can thrive. Martin Loya et al. explain why such programs are rare: bilingual staff burn out.
Kelly et al. (2025) found all BCBAs face ethical puzzles, but the 2024 data reveal bilingual analysts carry extra language-rights dilemmas the broader field overlooks.
Why it matters
If you supervise bilingual staff, ask what languages families want in their goals. Add Spanish materials, share caseload, and write heritage-language objectives into the plan. These small steps keep ethics, culture, and science on the same page.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
Autistic children from Spanish-speaking homes are part of a growing group of children at the intersection of multiple marginalized identities. Research suggests a “bilingual advantage” exists, similar to that experienced by neurotypical bilingual children, and autistic adults report positive social outcomes due to being bilingual. However, much less is known about providers' experiences who play a crucial role in whether families can maintain their heritage language(s) with their children. This exploratory qualitative study examined ethical challenges and needs of U.S.-based bilingual behavior analysts who provide home-based support for autistic children from Spanish-speaking homes. This study was informed by a demographic questionnaire and semi-structured interviews with participants (N = 14) across the United States. Participants' experiences were analyzed thematically. Findings included major themes and subthemes including challenging ethical experiences and behavior analysts’ needs to provide high quality services. Implications are presented across the organizational, provider, and research and higher education levels. The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s40617-024-00916-2.
Behavior Analysis in Practice, 2024 · doi:10.1007/s40617-024-00916-2