ABA this week
02/16/25-02/22/25
Scholarly publications
Includes peer reviewed journals within and adjacent to behavior analysis
(Starred journals available to BCBAs through the BACB portal)
Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis *
2/17 Briere, M. L., Janetzke, S., Fleck, C. R., & Bourret, J. C. (2025). Differential reinforcement and stimulus fading without escape extinction to teach cooperation with nasal swab tests. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 1–12. https://doi.org/10.1002/jaba.70000
In a home with 5 participants, 1 tolerated a nasal swab with reinforcement, while 4 eventually tolerated with fading
Behavior Analysis in Practice
2/18 Browne, C.J., McComas, J.J., Meyer, P. et al. Testing the Teach-Back Method with Instructional Staff to Increase Procedural Fidelity of Instruction for Children with Disabilities. Behav Analysis Practice (2025). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40617-025-01042-3
The teach-back method is sometimes used in healthcare, and it is where the teacher instructs the learner and the learner is asked to tell the teacher what was taught in their own words. 3 staff learned how to conduct a MSWO reinforcer assessment with this method
2/20 Čolić, M., Catrone, R., Araiba, S. et al. Supporting Immigrant Families in Special Education: Insights and Collaborative Strategies for School-Based ABA Practitioners. Behav Analysis Practice (2025). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40617-025-01041-4
The authors discuss the challenges faced by immigrant families, as well as solutions first proposed by Epstein and the author's own solutions
Journal of Organizational Behavior Management * Volume 45, Issue 1 (2025) (5 articles, 0 open access)
Most intriguing: Conceptualizing Job Burnout Through a Behavioral Lens: Implications for Organizational Behavior Management
2/20 Flynn, K. E., & Wilder, D. A. (2025). An evaluation of task clarification and feedback to teach feedback reception skills. Journal of Organizational Behavior Management, 1–10. https://doi.org/10.1080/01608061.2025.2468190
Previous studies have confirmed that BST and other methods can teach feedback reception skills. The authors tried task clarification alone, which worked for 1/3 staff. With task clarification and performance feedback, all 3 learned the skills
Behavioral Interventions *
2/22 Buckley, J., Brodeur, J., Clark, M., Bird, F. and Luiselli, J.K. (2025), Improving Clothing and Grooming Appearance of Students With Neurodevelopmental Disabilities: Evaluation of a Measurement Checklist and Care Provider Intervention. Behavioral Interventions, 40: e70004. https://doi.org/10.1002/bin.70004
For 4 students, the checklist and staff care intervention worked and everyone liked it
Perspectives on Behavior Science
2/18 Nicolosi, M., Dillenburger, K. Neurodiversity: A Behavior Analyst’s Perspective. Perspect Behav Sci (2025). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40614-025-00435-7
(Open access) A discussion of the neurodiversity movement that is very reasonable but could never satisfy Reddit
Behavior Modification *
2/19 Kinney, C. E. L., Dowdy, A., & Wolfe, K. (2025). A Meta-Visual-Analysis of Single-Case Experimental Design Research. Behavior Modification, 0(0). https://doi.org/10.1177/01454455251320686
A MVA is a meta-analysis that uses aspects of visual analysis. The authors describe how to conduct a MVA
Education and Treatment of Children
2/19 Greenwood, C.R., Carta, J.J., Atwater, J. et al. Ecobehavioral Assessment and Analysis. Educ. Treat. Child. (2025). https://doi.org/10.1007/s43494-025-00149-0
Researchers at the University of Kansas have used what they term ecobehavioral assessment and analysis for 40 years. It is similar to the functional analysis methodology, wherein environment-behavior relations are examined for specific qualities (e.g., what activities foster the most language interactions?)
Journal of Behavioral Education
2/19 Benevides, J., Cividini-Motta, C. & R. Mandel, N. Teacher-Implemented Accumulated and Distributed Reinforcement in the Classroom Setting. J Behav Educ (2025). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10864-025-09578-8
3 kids got either accumulated or distributed reinforcement in the classroom. Both schedules reduced interfering behavior, and 2/3 students preferred distributed reinforcement. Most studies tend to find a preference for accumulated reinforcers (though not coauthor Mandel)
European Journal of Behavior Analysis
2/21 Almarzooq, N., Alnemary, F., Almoqbel, S., Alsaleh, A., Alhaqbani, O., Alganam, M., … Jessel, J. (2025). A consecutive controlled case series of 13 performance-based interview informed synthesized contingency analyses in Saudi Arabia. European Journal of Behavior Analysis, 1–25. https://doi.org/10.1080/15021149.2025.2464847
The IISCA in Saudi Arabia: how it went and what people thought of it
Book publications
Textbooks, handbooks, manuals, or mass-market
Upcoming:
Using Functional Analysis in Psychotherapy, Niklas Törneke (Available now)
Handbook for Behavioral Skills Training, Edition 1, Sturmey & Maffei-Almodovar (Available now)
Ethical Decision Making in Applied Behavior Analysis, Schwartz & Kelly (Available Mar. 2025)
New this quarter:
Research Methods in Applied Behavior Analysis (3rd Edition), Bailey & Burch
Multiculturalism and Diversity in Applied Behavior Analysis: Bridging Theory and Application (2nd Edition), Conners & Capell (Eds.)
Talk Behavior to Me: The Routledge Dictionary of the Top 150 Behavior Analytic Terms and Translations, Samuel
The Behavior of Social Justice, Parks et al.
A Practical Guide to Functional Assessment and Treatment for Severe Problem Behavior, Jessel & Sturmey (Eds.)
Handbook of Organizational Performance, Volume II, D. Johnson & C. Johnson (Eds.)
Recent:
Podcasts
ABA Inside Track
Episode 301 - (LISTENER CHOICE) Tutorial - Procedural Integrity
Behavioral Observations
The 2024 Verbal Behavior Conference Panel Discussion
Blogs
Generally these are produced by professionals
ABAI
Part 3: Navigating AI: Organizational Ethics and System-Wide Changes in Behavior Analysis
If you are that person that is, somehow, desperate to include AI in your business, Janet Twyman has some ideas for keeping it under control
From Dogma to Skepticism: The Essential Role of Humility in Scientific Discovery and Learning
A PhD student at UNR discusses his personal journey
Steve Hayes
Five Bad Ideas About Learning How to Change: Navigating the Dance of Life with Skill and Awareness
Licensing & professional organizations
Business world
Autism services, behavioral health, etc.
Republicans' Medicaid cuts could cripple Centene, Molina and Uncertainty in Washington rattles telehealth sector
Scattershot, unpredictable cuts to random budgets. Medicaid is broadly popular, and telehealth was initially deployed in rural communities. This new administration is such a mess that it’s making me root for insurance companies.
Accidentally behavior analysis
A mainstream news article that relates to behavior analysis
We Left Our Kid With My Sister for a Week. When We Got Back, He Was Unrecognizable., Slate
Frankly I didn’t post this when I read it initially because I suspect that it’s fake. A family leaves their rowdy son with his aunt, and return home to a focused, docile, polite kid, only to realize…he has been clicker trained. Using a clicker with treats, the aunt has Clockwork Orange’d him into a perfect angel. They like the effects but suspect that there is some dark underbelly to clicker training. I think it’s designed to get a reaction out of the columnist, along the lines of, you’ve erased his human agency!! But ironically, she endorses it.
Continuing education
UPCOMING:
BehaviorLive now charges $25/month for “free” CEUs?
Verbal Beginnings has 2 CEUs on 2/26
Flashback
Skinner taught kids to write…with invisible ink?
A short publication on Project Follow Through included a list of the curriculum that was used in the behavior analysis group. That included a writing program, authored by a familiar name. The second author name is misspelled – her name is Sue-Ann Krakower – which made the search harder. A Google result leads to a 1968 story in the Harvard Crimson, where our friend Burrhus describes his handwriting program:
Here is what Skinner says about it in the third volume of his autobiography, A Matter of Consequences:
Thanks for your list of articles. Today I read Nicolosi's article on Neurodiversity, and enjoyed the Skinner invisible ink story. Love your substack.