{"id":50500,"date":"2026-01-07T10:45:00","date_gmt":"2026-01-07T15:45:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/behavioralobservations.com\/?p=50500"},"modified":"2026-01-07T10:53:48","modified_gmt":"2026-01-07T15:53:48","slug":"the-importance-of-hard-and-soft-skills-in-aba-practice-session-320-with-tiffany-kodak-and-landon-cowan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/behavioralobservations.com\/be_obs\/the-importance-of-hard-and-soft-skills-in-aba-practice-session-320-with-tiffany-kodak-and-landon-cowan","title":{"rendered":"The Importance of Hard and Soft Skills in ABA Practice: Session 320 with Tiffany Kodak and Landon Cowan"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Embed Player\" src=\"https:\/\/play.libsyn.com\/embed\/episode\/id\/39644840\/height\/128\/theme\/modern\/size\/standard\/thumbnail\/yes\/custom-color\/233d61\/time-start\/00:00:00\/playlist-height\/200\/direction\/backward\/download\/yes\/font-color\/FFFFFF\" height=\"128\" width=\"100%\" scrolling=\"no\" allowfullscreen=\"\" webkitallowfullscreen=\"true\" mozallowfullscreen=\"true\" oallowfullscreen=\"true\" msallowfullscreen=\"true\" style=\"border: none;\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Listen on: <a href=\"https:\/\/podcasts.apple.com\/us\/podcast\/the-importance-of-hard-and-soft-skills-in\/id1086413253?i=1000744143476\">Apple Podcasts<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/episode\/4OwbyO8VEZGKfqZKuEVrJ9?si=aWwXItsuR7S2qD3eA7QbQg\">Spotify<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=EOFQTzPuYRQ\">YouTube<\/a><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">In <strong>Session 320<\/strong>, I sit down with <strong>Landon Cowan and Tiffany Kodak<\/strong> to talk about an area of behavior analysis that doesn\u2019t get nearly enough attention: <strong>professional (or \u201csoft\u201d) skills<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">We spend a lot of time in our field teaching and refining <strong>technical, clinical, or \u201chard\u201d skills<\/strong>\u2014and for good reason. But far less time is devoted to the interpersonal, communication, and problem-solving skills that ultimately determine how effective we are as clinicians, supervisors, and collaborators. In this conversation, Landon and Tiffany share their research aimed at identifying, defining, and measuring these professional skills, along with some eye-opening findings about where skill gaps exist.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">\ud83d\udd0d What We Cover in This Episode<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li class=\"\">How <strong>hard skills<\/strong> differ from <strong>professional (soft) skills<\/strong> in behavior analysis<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">Why professional skills are so difficult to define, measure, and systematically teach<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">How Landon and Tiffany developed a comprehensive <strong>professional skills survey<\/strong> for behavior analysts<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">The challenges of survey design, including question format, length, readability, and pilot testing<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">Results from a survey completed by <strong>189 ABA supervisors<\/strong>, including:\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li class=\"\">Which skills supervisees demonstrate most frequently<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">Which skills supervisors rate as most important for career advancement<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">A significant gap between the <strong>importance of problem-solving skills<\/strong> and how often they\u2019re actually demonstrated<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">Why <strong>solution-based problem identification and independent problem solving<\/strong> emerged as key areas for improvement<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">A surprising finding that many supervisors report feeling confident teaching these skills despite identifying major skill deficits<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">How <strong>Behavioral Skills Training (BST)<\/strong> can be used to effectively teach professional skills<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">Why the field needs clearer <strong>operational definitions and better data collection<\/strong> to build a stronger literature base<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">Practical advice for <strong>BCBA trainees and early-career BCBAs<\/strong> around self-assessment, feedback, and ongoing professional development<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">\ud83c\udfaf Key Takeaways<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"\">This episode reinforces something many of us already suspect: <strong>professional skills matter\u2014a lot<\/strong>. In many cases, they\u2019re just as important (if not more important) than technical expertise when it comes to supervision, leadership, and long-term success in the field. Developing these skills requires intentional training, honest self-reflection, and a commitment to continuous learning. My hope is that this conversation helps push our field toward doing a better job of teaching, measuring, and valuing the skills that make behavior analysts more effective in the real world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Resources and Links<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li class=\"\">Dr. Kodak's <a href=\"https:\/\/www.marquette.edu\/psychology\/directory\/tiffany-kodak.php\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">faculty page<\/a> at Marquette University.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">Dr. Cowan's <a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/landon-harrison-cowan-ph-d-bcba-d-94003446\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">LinkedIn page<\/a>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\"><a href=\"https:\/\/link.springer.com\/article\/10.1007\/s40617-023-00823-y\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Cowan and Kodak (2024)<\/a>. Professional Skills for Behavior Analysts: A Survey on the Proficiency and Importance of Hard and Soft Skills.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\"><a href=\"https:\/\/link.springer.com\/article\/10.1007\/s40617-019-00368-z\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">LeBlanc, Taylor, and Marchese (2019)<\/a>. The Training Experiences of Behavior Analysts: Compassionate Care and Therapeutic Relationships with Caregivers.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\"><a href=\"https:\/\/link.springer.com\/article\/10.1007\/s40617-018-00289-3\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Taylor, LeBlanc, and Nosik (2018)<\/a>. Compassionate Care in Behavior Analytic Treatment: Can Outcomes be Enhanced by Attending to Relationships with Caregivers?<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\"><a href=\"https:\/\/behaviorlive.com\/conferences\/Stonesoup2026\/home\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">The Stone Soup Conference<\/a> (use promo code PODCAST26 to save at registration).<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\"><a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/4qHDWdl\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Sommers-Flanagan and Sommers-Flanagan (2023)<\/a>. Clinical Interviewing.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\"><a href=\"https:\/\/onlinelibrary.wiley.com\/doi\/abs\/10.1002\/jaba.908\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Carroll, Preas, and Paden (2022)<\/a>. Training supervisors to provide performance feedback using video modeling with voiceover instructions: A replication.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Sponsor shoutouts!<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li class=\"\"><a href=\"https:\/\/officepuzzle.com\/bop\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Office Puzzle<\/a>: A thriving ABA practice depends on systems that actually support your team, not slow them down. If you\u2019ve struggled with software that\u2019s buggy, hard to navigate, or offers little support when you need it most, you\u2019re not alone. That\u2019s why so many practices are switching to Office Puzzle. Go to <a href=\"https:\/\/officepuzzle.com\/bop\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">officepuzzle.com\/bop<\/a> to learn more!<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\"><a href=\"https:\/\/fronterahealth.com\/demo\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Frontera<\/a>. Consider taking a <a href=\"https:\/\/fronterahealth.com\/demo\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">demo<\/a> of Frontera's Assessment Builder and see how the ethical application of AI technologies can help you serve clients and save you time! Your first assessment report is free. And if you use code <strong>BOP25<\/strong> you\u2019ll get an additional five assessments for just $100. So head to <a href=\"https:\/\/fronterahealth.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">fronterahealth.com<\/a>&nbsp;to check it out!<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\"><a href=\"https:\/\/behaviorlive.com\/conferences\/Stonesoup2026\/home\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">The 2026 Stone Soup Conference!<\/a> This is one of the best values in the online conference space. I'm actually going to be one of the speakers at this year's event, along with a great cast of other characters you're probably familiar with. Save on your registration by using promo code PODCAST26!<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\"><a href=\"https:\/\/behaviorlive.com\/conferences\/vbc\/home\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">The 2026 Verbal Behavior Conference!<\/a> Taking place March 26\u201327, 2026, in Austin, Texas, or livestream and on-demand on BehaviorLive. Presenters will include Drs. Mark Sundberg, Patrick McGreevy, Caio Miguel, Alice Shillingsburg, Sarah Frampton, Andresa De Souza, and Danielle LaFrance will share how Skinner\u2019s analysis of verbal behavior can guide the assessment and treatment of generative learning challenges in children with autism and other developmental disabilities. And don\u2019t miss the special pre-conference workshop on Wednesday, March 25.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\"><a href=\"https:\/\/behavioralobservations.com\/get-ceus\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">CEUs from Behavioral Observations<\/a>. Learn from your favorite podcast guests while you're commuting, walking the dog, or whatever else you do while listening to podcasts. New events are being added all the time, so check them out&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/behavioralobservations.com\/get-ceus\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">here<\/a>.&nbsp;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Listen on: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | YouTube In Session 320, I sit down with Landon Cowan and Tiffany Kodak to talk about an area of behavior analysis that doesn\u2019t get nearly enough attention: professional (or \u201csoft\u201d) skills. We spend a lot of time in our field teaching and refining technical, clinical, or \u201chard\u201d skills\u2014and&#8230;  <a class=\"excerpt-read-more\" href=\"https:\/\/behavioralobservations.com\/be_obs\/the-importance-of-hard-and-soft-skills-in-aba-practice-session-320-with-tiffany-kodak-and-landon-cowan\" title=\"Read The Importance of Hard and Soft Skills in ABA Practice: Session 320 with Tiffany Kodak and Landon Cowan\">Read more &raquo;<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":50499,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"nf_dc_page":"","ghostkit_customizer_options":"","ghostkit_custom_css":"","ghostkit_custom_js_head":"","ghostkit_custom_js_foot":"","ghostkit_typography":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[756,755,754,28,757],"class_list":["post-50500","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-podcasts","tag-landon-cowan","tag-professional-skills","tag-soft-skills","tag-supervision","tag-tiffany-kodak","page-entry"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.4 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>The Importance of Hard and Soft Skills in ABA Practice: Session 320 with Tiffany Kodak and Landon Cowan - The Behavioral Observations Podcast<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/behavioralobservations.com\/be_obs\/the-importance-of-hard-and-soft-skills-in-aba-practice-session-320-with-tiffany-kodak-and-landon-cowan\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The Importance of Hard and Soft Skills in ABA Practice: Session 320 with Tiffany Kodak and Landon Cowan - The Behavioral Observations Podcast\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Listen on: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | YouTube In Session 320, I sit down with Landon Cowan and Tiffany Kodak to talk about an area of behavior analysis that doesn\u2019t get nearly enough attention: professional (or \u201csoft\u201d) skills. 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