Question

A BCBA is working with a client who has a history of smoking cigarettes. This client has recently begun developing some respiratory trouble and has become increasingly aggressive in the clinic, although the intensity of the aggression is fairly mild. The BCBA begins to provide access to cigarettes contingent upon lower rates of aggression. What, if any, ethics violation has occurred?"

Answer 1

The BCBA providing cigarettes contingent upon lower rates of aggression is likely committing an ethical violation, as it uses a harmful reinforcer that could worsen the client's health, in contradiction to widely accepted medical evidence of smoking's dangers.

Step-by-step explanation:

• The ethical consideration in question involves a Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA) conditioning access to cigarettes on a client's reduced aggressive behavior. This practice likely violates ethical standards as it reinforces a harmful behavior (smoking) that has well-documented negative effects on health, including increased risk of respiratory problems and other diseases.
• While the goal of reducing aggression is clinically relevant, using cigarettes as a contingent reinforcer could exacerbate the client's respiratory trouble and contribute to the development of chronic conditions such as Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) and lung cancer.
• Furthermore, such a method contradicts the public health notices which assert the dangers of cigarette smoking, although these claims are described in the question as supposedly 'unsupported.' However, it is widely accepted in the medical community that smoking is a direct cause of numerous illnesses.