Is ABA therapy good or bad for my child?
Reddit parents argued this question for 109 comments. This page takes the four most upvoted answers, checks each one against the research, and tells you what to ask a provider before you sign anything.
Every claim is checked against a named study or the BACB's own data, and reviewed by our clinical director, Rachel Blackburn, BCBA.
It depends on the provider, not the method. The question that predicts quality is how much BCBA supervision your child gets. The minimum is 5%. Ask for the number.
The Reddit post
A parent of a newly diagnosed four-year-old asked the subreddit to argue it out. Two related threads asked what to do when therapy stalls, and whether a therapist who skips goodbye is a red flag.
4 year old daughter got the official diagnosis, and besides speech and OT, they recommended ABA therapy. I googled and saw a lot positive and negative. Is or was your child in ABA, and why are you for or against it?
Read the original thread on r/Autism_Parenting · posted 2026-08-02 · 51 comments
No progress w/ therapy
Read the original thread on r/Autism_Parenting · posted 2026-08-06 · 32 comments
My son's RBT doesn't say goodbye to him when she leaves. I was hoping to get validation that not saying goodbye is unusual.
Read the original thread on r/Autism_Parenting · posted 2026-08-22 · 26 comments
Top comments at a glance
| Comment | Upvotes | Core claim | Our take |
|---|---|---|---|
| “Big picture, it's all about how it's done. We had amazing experiences with ABA. Both of my kiddos made huge gains with it” | 35 | Outcome depends on delivery, not on the label | Accurate |
| “It has moved from being compliance based to encouraging skill building for alternative behaviors” | 18 | Modern ABA has moved past compliance training | Partly true |
| “be on the alert for red flags such as pressuring for max hours. Unfortunately there are many providers who are basically thinly veiled insurance billing mills” | 9 | Pressure toward maximum hours is a warning sign | Accurate |
| “The biggest challenge I have had is the RBTs seem to cycle frequently. It is a low pay and high stress job” | 7 | Therapist turnover undermines progress | Accurate |
Is the argument about ABA, or about the provider?
Accurate
The research sides with the 35-upvote answer: a 2023 meta-analysis of 11 controlled studies and 632 children found medium gains in intellectual functioning (effect size 0.51) and adaptive behavior (0.37), with wide variation between programs (Eckes et al., 2023). The variable is the program, not the acronym.
Evidence: Eckes et al., 2023, meta-analysis
Has ABA actually changed, or is that marketing?
Partly true
The shift is real but uneven. The field now has 246,109 Registered Behavior Technicians against 81,566 BCBAs, a 3-to-1 ratio that was 2-to-1 in 2020 (BACB annual data), so who is in your living room depends on how much supervision that technician gets.
Evidence: BACB certificant data, end of 2025
Should a provider push for maximum hours?
Accurate
No. In the largest dose study on record, 1,468 children, the mean course of ABA was 13.96 months with a range of 2 to 36 (Linstead et al., 2017). Hours are supposed to come from the assessment and get revisited, not be sold as a package on day one.
Evidence: Linstead et al., 2017, n=1,468
Why does therapist turnover matter so much?
Accurate
A systematic review of technician retention found that frequent turnover carries negative impacts for patients and identified supervision as a predictor of whether technicians stay (Novak et al., 2019). Ask a provider their supervision percentage; it predicts turnover.
Evidence: Novak et al., 2019, systematic review
What to do this week
- Ask for the supervision percentage in writing. The BACB floor is 5% of treatment hours. Budding Futures targets about 20%.
- Ask how the hours were decided. A number that arrives before an assessment is a sales number.
- Ask what happens when your child says no. The answer tells you whether the program is assent-based or compliance-based.
- Ask how many technicians a typical child had last year. No provider controls turnover entirely, but the number tells you a lot.
What we have actually seen
The questions these parents landed on are the ones we would want a family to ask us, and we answer them the same way every time. Budding Futures targets BCBA supervision at about 20% of hours, four times the BACB minimum, because supervision is what keeps a plan honest between visits. Sessions run on Natural Environment Teaching, play-based and assent-based, so a child declining an activity is information rather than a compliance problem.
The Colorado numbers
- Colorado has 1,835 BCBAs and 8,110 RBTs on the BACB dashboard (retrieved August 13, 2026), roughly 4.4 technicians per analyst against 3-to-1 nationally. Supervision percentage is the question that matters most in this state.
- Autism is now 1 in 9 Colorado special education students, up from 1 in 18 in 2012 (Colorado Department of Education child count). That is why center waitlists run long and why in-home care exists.
- Health First Colorado covers in-home ABA on documented medical necessity. Budding Futures is enrolled under Provider Types 83 and 84, and most Medicaid families pay nothing out of pocket.
Quick answers
How much BCBA supervision is normal? The BACB requires a minimum of 5% of treatment hours. Budding Futures targets about 20%, and you should ask any provider for their actual figure.
How long does ABA usually last? The mean course in the largest study on record was 13.96 months, range 2 to 36 (Linstead et al., 2017). Anyone quoting a fixed three years is repeating folklore.
Is play-based ABA real ABA? Yes. Natural Environment Teaching is an established approach that runs skills through play and daily routines, and it is what Budding Futures uses.
What if therapy is not working? Ask the BCBA to show you the data behind each goal and what they would change. A provider who cannot answer that is the problem worth solving.
Should I switch providers or push through? If supervision is under 10%, turnover is high, or hours were set before an assessment, a second opinion is reasonable. Budding Futures assesses without a waitlist.
More from this series
Sources
Eckes et al., 2023
Meta-analysis of 11 controlled ABA studies, 632 children.
Linstead et al., 2017
Dose and duration in 1,468 children receiving ABA.
Novak et al., 2019
Systematic review of behavior technician turnover predictors.
BACB
Annual certificant data and the 5% supervision requirement.
Budding Futures
ABA workforce report 2026, built from BACB annual data.
Who we are
Budding Futures ABA provides in-home ABA therapy across Colorado for children 18 months to 18 years. Care is play-based and assent-based, built on Natural Environment Teaching, with BCBA supervision targeted at about 20% of hours, which is four times the BACB minimum. Parent coaching is part of every plan and there is no assessment waitlist. We accept Health First Colorado and major insurance, and most Medicaid families pay nothing out of pocket. Our clinical director is Rachel Blackburn, BCBA, and the practice is led by director Mark Hirsch.
Want the supervision number for your child, in writing?
We will tell you what our assessment looks at and why, including when we think fewer hours is the right call.