Therapeutic Relationships in Applied Behavior Analysis: Current Status and Future Directions

Plattner and colleagues sent an online survey to 277 board-certified behavior analysts. They asked how much training each person had received in building a warm, trusting bond with clients—what therapists call the therapeutic alliance. The survey also asked if the BCBAs knew and used motivational interviewing skills to boost client buy-in.

Two out of every three respondents said they got little or no formal training on forming strong relationships with clients. Over half had never studied motivational interviewing, yet most wanted to learn. The authors conclude that alliance skills are a clear training gap in ABA.

Ensor et al. (2024) extends this worry by showing the gap can be closed: they taught early-intervention staff brief presession pairing skills via behavioral skills training and kids’ problem behaviors dropped.

Kazemi et al. (2022) used the same survey method and found BCBAs also feel unprepared to handle workplace conflict—another soft-skill hole that predicts lost cases and turnover.

Schreck et al. (2016) is a predecessor survey that already mapped treatment-choice gaps; Plattner et al. (2023) zooms in specifically on relationship training, updating the timeline.

If you supervise RBTs or coach parents, add a five-minute pairing drill before instruction and track smiles, eye contact, or approach responses. Fold one motivational interviewing question—"What matters most to you about this goal?"—into your next session note. These micro-chips of alliance work cost nothing, align with the code’s assent requirement, and may prevent the burnout and case loss flagged in related surveys.