1. During an in-home session, Maya's father asks the RBT whether he can record the session on his phone so Maya's grandmother can see how the programs work. The RBT has never been told the agency's policy on recording.
What is the BEST response from the RBT?
Answer: A
Requests to film sessions involve consent, privacy, and agency policy, which the supervisor oversees, so the RBT should explain that approval is needed and contact the supervisor before any recording happens. Allowing filming because a parent can consent for his child overlooks that the recording also captures the RBT and the agency's procedures, and that the RBT cannot authorize it alone. Saying sessions can never be recorded is an overreach, because the supervisor may approve recording with proper consent and safeguards. Letting him film now and telling the supervisor later reverses the order; the video would already exist without approval, and the decision would have been made by the RBT instead of the supervisor.
2. For two weeks, an RBT and a client's mother have disagreed about session start times. The mother now makes sharp comments to the RBT in front of the client, and the RBT's polite attempts to resolve it have not worked.
What should the RBT do NEXT?
Answer: B
An unresolved conflict with a caregiver can disrupt services and the client's progress, and the RBT has already tried polite problem-solving, so the next step is to inform the supervisor promptly and ask for direction. Waiting for the tension to resolve on its own delays help while the conflict keeps playing out in front of the client. Setting new rules with the mother about start times and her conduct is a supervisory and administrative decision that an RBT should not make alone. Canceling sessions until she apologizes withholds services from the client to settle a personal dispute, which harms the client and is not the RBT's call. The supervisor can mediate, clarify scheduling, or adjust staffing.
3. At the clinic, 7-year-old Theo repeatedly holds his stomach, strains on the toilet without success, and says 'tummy hurts.' At drop-off, his mother mentioned he has not had a bowel movement in three days.
How should the RBT handle these observations?
Answer: C
Physical discomfort can change motivation, attention, and problem behavior, so the RBT should document what was observed, such as holding his stomach, straining, and saying 'tummy hurts,' along with the mother's report, in objective terms. Leaving it out because it seems medical removes context the supervisor needs to interpret the session's data. Waiting for several sessions is the right action at the wrong time; variables should be recorded when they occur so patterns can be seen. Writing that Theo is constipated and recommending a laxative crosses into diagnosis and medical advice, which are outside the RBT's scope. The RBT describes observable behavior and reported facts, and the supervisor decides whether medical follow-up is needed.
4. An RBT supports Jaden in a second-grade classroom. His teacher says that the plan to give tablet time after each finished worksheet breaks the school's no-devices-during-class rule, and she asks the RBT to stop.
What is the BEST action for the RBT?
Answer: D
When school staff report that part of an intervention conflicts with school rules, the RBT should promptly alert the supervisor, who can work with the school and revise the plan if needed. Continuing tablet time as written ignores a legitimate concern from the team and can damage the school partnership. Swapping in a different reinforcer may seem sensible, but changing a plan's reinforcement is a clinical decision the RBT cannot make alone. Noting the concern and holding it for next month's meeting is too slow, because the conflict affects every school day and needs timely attention. Communicating promptly lets the supervisor resolve the issue while keeping the plan consistent and the school relationship intact.
5. An RBT arrives for a home session with Priya and finds that the picture cards for her receptive identification program are missing from the session binder. The materials for all of her other programs are present.
How should the RBT proceed?
Answer: A
Missing teaching materials prevent a program from being run as written, so the RBT should notify the supervisor promptly and continue with the programs that can be implemented correctly. Making substitute cards and running the program without mentioning it changes the stimuli without approval, and the data would no longer reflect the planned program. Recording skipped trials as incorrect responses falsifies data, because the client never had a chance to respond. Waiting a week to see if the cards turn up delays the report and costs Priya several sessions of practice. Prompt notice lets the supervisor replace the materials or give direction so treatment stays consistent and the data stay accurate.
6. The air conditioning at the clinic fails on a hot afternoon, and the therapy room reaches about 88 degrees. During the session, Marcus whines more often and completes fewer tasks than he usually does.
How should the RBT handle the room temperature in the session note?
Answer: B
Extreme room temperature is an environmental variable that can affect motivation and behavior, so the RBT should document the AC failure and the approximate temperature in the session note. Leaving it out because temperature is not a target removes context the supervisor needs to interpret why performance dipped. Writing only that Marcus was noncompliant and having a bad day is subjective and gives no usable information. Stating that the heat caused his whining goes beyond what the RBT can observe; the heat may be related, but the RBT records the condition and the behavior side by side and lets the supervisor analyze the relationship. Objective notes of setting conditions help explain unusual data points later.
7. After a session, Lucas's mother shows the RBT a billing statement. She asks why her copayment went up this month and whether two of the sessions listed were charged twice.
What is the BEST way for the RBT to respond?
Answer: C
Billing and copayment questions fall outside the RBT's role, so the RBT should explain that billing is handled by administrative staff and make sure her question reaches the supervisor or billing office. Reviewing the statement and judging which charges look correct puts the RBT in a role they are not trained or authorized for and could give her wrong information. Telling her the agency does not handle copayments and sending her to the insurer may be inaccurate and leaves her concern unresolved. Promising to reduce hours on a timesheet to offset charges would make the timesheet inaccurate, which is falsification of service records. Redirecting appropriately respects the caregiver's concern while keeping billing decisions with the right people.
8. Partway through a session, an RBT notices that Ava has begun repeatedly picking at the skin on her forearm, a behavior that is not listed in her plan. The area is now red and bleeding slightly.
What is the most appropriate action for the RBT?
Answer: D
A new repetitive behavior that is already causing tissue damage is a safety concern, so the RBT should keep Ava safe according to training and notify the supervisor right away. Ignoring the picking to withhold attention is an extinction-style procedure that is not in her plan, and without direction it could allow the injury to worsen. Documenting it for the next scheduled meeting is appropriate for harmless new behaviors but too slow when skin is bleeding. Writing a definition and collecting a week of data are steps the supervisor may direct, but doing them before reporting delays help and takes on a role that belongs to the behavior analyst. Severity, not novelty alone, determines how fast the RBT reports.
9. When an RBT arrives for an afternoon session, Kai's father mentions that Kai played video games on a tablet for about four hours straight before the RBT came. Kai is slow to engage in the first few activities.
What should the RBT do with the father's report?
Answer: A
Activities right before a session, such as prolonged screen use, can affect motivation and engagement, so the RBT should record the father's report, clearly attributed to him, in the session note. Leaving it out because the RBT did not see it is a misconception; caregiver reports are documented as reports, which keeps them objective. Advising the father to limit screen time is a clinical recommendation that belongs to the supervisor, not the RBT. Writing that the games made Kai unmotivated and caused his slow start states a cause the RBT cannot confirm. Recording the report alongside what the RBT observed, such as slow engagement in early activities, gives the supervisor the information needed to look for patterns across sessions.
10. A daycare teacher tells an RBT that during yesterday's fire drill, 4-year-old Nora froze, covered her ears, and had to be carried outside. The RBT works with Nora at the daycare three mornings a week.
What should the RBT do about the teacher's report?
Answer: B
Freezing and needing to be carried during an emergency drill is a safety concern reported by a member of the intervention team, so the RBT should pass it to the supervisor promptly. Keeping it private because it happened outside the session ignores that team members' observations are exactly what the supervisor needs, especially when safety is involved. Starting fire drill practice adds a new intervention without direction, which the RBT cannot do alone even with good intentions. Waiting to see whether Nora freezes during the next drill puts her at risk in a real emergency before anyone has planned for it. The supervisor can decide whether to assess the behavior and coordinate a safety plan with the daycare.
11. While waiting between tasks at the clinic, 13-year-old Eli takes a folding pocketknife out of his backpack and starts opening and closing it. No one at the clinic knew he had brought it.
Which action should the RBT take?
Answer: C
A client with access to a weapon creates an immediate safety risk for the client and others, so the RBT should follow the clinic's safety procedures and report it to the supervisor right away. Asking Eli to put it away and only noting it later leaves the knife accessible and keeps the supervisor uninformed during an active risk. Taking the knife and keeping it until next week as a consequence turns a safety issue into an unplanned punishment procedure that is not in his plan. Carrying on with the session and waiting for the next supervision meeting delays the report while the danger is still present. Weapons and hazardous contraband call for immediate escalation so the supervisor and caregivers can act.
12. Midway through an in-home session, a lawn crew starts running leaf blowers and mowers outside the therapy room window for about 30 minutes. Zoe covers her ears and responds to fewer instructions during that time.
What should the RBT include in the session note?
Answer: D
Loud environmental noise is a variable that can disrupt responding, so the RBT should document the noise, about how long it lasted, and Zoe's observable responses, such as covering her ears and responding to fewer instructions. Recording only the trial data leaves the supervisor without context for the drop in performance. Saying Zoe was too distracted to learn anything is a subjective conclusion that cannot be observed or measured. Suggesting the family reschedule lawn care is a recommendation about the home environment that the supervisor, not the RBT, would make if needed. Objective notes about disruptions help the team decide whether a data point reflects skill level or a temporary setting event.
13. A parent tells an RBT that last week she started Omar on a gluten-free, casein-free diet and several high-dose vitamin supplements recommended by an online parent group. She asks what the RBT thinks of the plan.
Which response BEST fits the RBT's role?
Answer: A
A newly introduced diet or supplement regimen can affect behavior and complicates interpretation of progress data, so the RBT should inform the supervising BCBA promptly; the BCBA can then discuss it with the family and coordinate with medical providers. Sharing a personal opinion on the diet is outside the RBT's role and could be taken as professional advice. Advising the parent to stop the supplements may sound evidence-based, but telling a family to change a treatment is a decision for the BCBA and the child's medical team, not the RBT. Watching the data for a few weeks first delays communication and lets an untracked variable shape the data. The RBT can kindly tell the parent the supervisor will follow up.
14. Before a session, an RBT reviews Liam's written plan and notices that one page says to deliver a token after every correct response, while another page says to deliver a token after every third correct response.
What is the RBT's BEST next step?
Answer: B
When written protocol steps conflict, the RBT should ask the supervisor for clarification before running the program, because only the supervisor can say which schedule is intended. Following the later page assumes it is the update, but that is a guess that could deliver the wrong reinforcement schedule. Alternating between the schedules creates inconsistent treatment and makes the data impossible to interpret. Picking the schedule that seems to work best is a clinical decision about reinforcement that belongs to the supervisor, even if the RBT notes the choice. Seeking clarification promptly keeps implementation accurate, protects treatment integrity, and often reveals a document error that the supervisor needs to fix for other staff as well.
15. After a weekend at the beach, 6-year-old Sofia arrives at the clinic with red, peeling skin on her shoulders. She pulls away and whimpers whenever her shirt rubs against them during activities.
Which action is MOST appropriate for the RBT?
Answer: C
A visible sunburn that causes discomfort is a physical setting variable that can affect behavior and responding, so the RBT should document what is observable: red, peeling skin on her shoulders, and pulling away and whimpering when her shirt rubs. Leaving it out because it happened outside session time ignores that the discomfort is present during the session. Writing that the sunburn will probably cause problem behavior is a prediction, not an observation. Applying lotion from the first-aid kit may go against agency policy or the family's wishes and does not remove the need to document. Accurate notes of physical conditions help the supervisor interpret the day's data and follow up with the family if needed.
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