Artificial intelligence (AI) is rapidly emerging as a powerful tool within applied behavior
analysis (ABA), offering new opportunities to enhance assessment, clinical decision-making,
documentation efficiency, and outcomes monitoring.
However, the integration of AI into behavioral healthcare introduces complex ethical considerations that challenge traditional models of professional responsibility. Riding the AI Wave: Safeguarding Clinical Integrity in ABA
examines how behavior analysts can responsibly adopt AI technologies while maintaining fidelity to ethical principles, clinical judgment, and client-centered care.
This presentation reviews the ethical implications of AI through the lens of the BACB Ethics Code, focusing on competence, informed consent, data privacy, transparency, supervision, and accountability when clinical recommendations are supported by algorithmic systems. Participants will explore real-world scenarios illustrating both the benefits and risks of AIassisted practice, including bias in data-driven recommendations, overreliance on automated
outputs, and challenges to professional autonomy.
Attendees will leave with actionable strategies to integrate AI ethically into clinical workflows while protecting client welfare, strengthening professional integrity, and ensuring that technology supports—rather than replaces—the clinical expertise of behavior analysts.
Learning Objectives
- Identify key ethical risks and considerations associated with the use of artificial intelligence in applied behavior analysis practice.
- Apply relevant BACB Ethics Code principles to evaluate the appropriate use of AIsupported tools in assessment, treatment planning, and supervision.
- Describe practical safeguards behavior analysts can implement to maintain clinical integrity and human oversight when incorporating AI into service delivery.