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 *
10/13 Kim, J. Y., Shawler, L., & Gilroy, S. (2026). Application of operant demand in autism and developmental disabilities: An updated review (2017–2025). Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 59(4), e70090. https://doi.org/10.1002/jaba.70090
(Open access) From 2017-2025 the authors identified 30 articles on applied operant demand, finding that there is an increase in using these principles for applied research in terms of treatment durability, but less focus on generalization 

Call, N. A., Scheithauer, M. C., Bernstein, A. M., Gillespie, S., Williams, C. L., McMahon, M. X. H., & Mitteer, D. R. (2026). Delay discounting of treatment outcomes by caregivers of children undergoing different behavior-analytic interventions. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 59(4), e70091. https://doi.org/10.1002/jaba.70091
In a replication, the authors examined delayed treatment outcomes for families with children with severe behaviors, and compared discounting to families whose treatment was focused on skill acquisition. The caregivers whose children engaged in severe behaviors discounted delayed outcomes more steeply 

Behavioral Interventions *
10/12 Ditzler, Harley, Ji Y. Kim, Jonathan W. Ivy, and Tyler Blocher. 2026. “ Brief Access Delay and Interruption to Reduce Social Media Use: Is it Effective?” Behavioral Interventions: e70151. https://doi.org/10.1002/bin.70151
(Open access) 5 college students used an app that delayed their access to social media, and limited when they could use it. 2/5 reduced time on social media, but 3/5 remained the same or even increased, indicating that delays or restrictions may not be universally effective 

Perspectives on Behavior Science
10/15 Ferron, J., Kirby, M., Lipien, L. et al. Using Case-Specific Effect Sizes to Complement Visual Analysis in Single-Case Design Research. Perspect Behav Sci (2026). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40614-026-00516-1
(Open access) The authors discuss how to generate case-specific effect sizes for single-case design (a summary flowchart is here) 

Reilly, M.P. On the Four-Term Contingency in Behavior Analysis. Perspect Behav Sci (2026). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40614-026-00523-2 

Madden, G.J., Garland, K., Molano-Gallardo, J. et al. Pavlovian Approaches to Preventing Impulsive Choice: Envisioning an Ideal School-Based Prevention Program. Perspect Behav Sci (2026). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40614-026-00514-3
(Open access) The authors provide translational and applied evidence that a conditioned stimulus can serve to reduce impulsive choice (e.g., smaller sooner) by bridging a delay. This was an effective intervention in a kindergarten classroom and was easily implemented by a teacher (an alarm at random followed by a fun activity) 

Wolfe, K., Ferron, J.M. Type I Error in Single-Case Experimental Designs. Perspect Behav Sci (2026). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40614-026-00522-3
(Open access) A discussion of type I errors (false positives) in SCD -- how they can happen and how they can be mitigated 

Behavior and Social Issues
10/12 Walton, L., E., Wheatley, E., Preston, E. et al. Behavioral Vaccine or Social Suppressant: The Good Behavior Game, a Scoping Review. Behav. Soc. Iss. (2026). https://doi.org/10.1007/s42822-026-00269-1
(Open access) In a scoping review of the Good Behavior Game, the authors conclude that most studies use broad definitions of certain behavior classes or even unrelated behaviors for measurement. They suggest that the GBG could be a broadly effective intervention, but that (ironically) it would benefit from strict definitions in research 

10/15 Robertson, D.L., Pelaez, M. Self-Censorship and Rule Governed Behavior. Behav. Soc. Iss. (2026). https://doi.org/10.1007/s42822-026-00274-4
(Open access) The authors conceptualize self-censorship in academia as a consequence of hierarchical rules, and analyze one particular law in Florida 

Behavior Modification *
10/11 Wolfe, K., LeJeune, L. M., Guest, J. D., Shoemaker, A. M., Stratton, J. P., Tuxworth, C., & Gates, H. C. (2026). Understanding How Experts Conduct Visual Analysis. Behavior Modification, 0(0). https://doi.org/10.1177/01454455261495076
(Open access) 15 researchers used Talk Aloud Problem Solving (or something like it) to tact different aspects of graphs. They mainly mentioned "level, trend, and variability," but typically not other aspects 

Journal of the Experimental Analysis of Behavior *
10/12 Galvis-Quintana, D., Sharma, R., & Lewon, M. (2026). Motivational and discriminative aspects of context in renewal and reinstatement of operant behavior in mice. Journal of the Experimental Analysis of Behavior, 126(3), e70149. https://doi.org/10.1002/jeab.70149
Rats were trained either after 24 hours of food deprivation or without deprivation, then tested for reinstatement under various conditions. Reinstatement rates were highest when the test condition matched the training condition 

Education and Treatment of Children
10/11 Baltodano-Van Ness, H.M., Marsh, R.J., Spurlock, K.R. et al. The Landscape of Automatic Reinforcement: A Scoping Review of Participant Characteristics and Behavioral Topographies. Educ. Treat. Child. (2026). https://doi.org/10.1007/s43494-026-00195-2
27 studies were identified wherein an FA found that a behavior was maintained by automatic reinforcement. Given the included demographic information, it is impossible to use this data to draw conclusions about automatically reinforcing behavior, and the authors suggest more diverse studies on the phenomenon 

10/16 Rolf, K.R., Bundock, K., Slocum, T.A. et al. An Initial Investigation of the Implementation, Effects, and Social Validity of a Mathematics Vocabulary Intervention. Educ. Treat. Child. (2026). https://doi.org/10.1007/s43494-026-00197-0
(Open access) 30 students with learning disabilities who did not master mathematics vocabulary were taught with a Direct Instruction-inspired vocabulary curriculum and were compared with a waitlist group. The treatment group had superior outcomes on a test of mathematics vocabulary 

The Psychological Record
10/11 Ruiz, F.J., Martínez-Carrillo, E. Making Large Language Models More Flexible to Changing Contingencies through Tracking Induction. Psychol Rec (2026). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40732-026-00698-9
(Open access) AI (LLMs) can rigidly adhere to rules, making them insensitive to changing contingencies -- just like people. Tracking made them more flexible, with some variability between models for different types of tracking 

10/13 Romero, E., Zepeda, I. & Cabrera, F. Serial Anticipation Learning in a Dashiell Maze: Speed and Variability to Reach the Goal. Psychol Rec (2026). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40732-026-00701-3
Rats were trained to run a maze with reinforcement; later they ran the same maze in either a signaled reinforcement or signaled no reinforcement condition. In the no reinforcement condition, rats were slower and showed more behavioral variability 

Journal of Contextual Behavioral Science
10/12 Building an Inclusive Campus: A Culturally Responsive ACT Approach for Provider Empowerment and Stigma Reduction in China
An ACT intervention reduced mental health stigma amongst university mental health professionals in China

Book publications

Textbooks, handbooks, manuals, or mass-market

Upcoming:
An Ethics-Focused Guide for BCBA® Fieldwork: Shaping the Future, Solley & DePriest (Feb 2027)
Clinical Handbook of ABA Interventions for Autistic Learners: Research, Training, and Practice, Leaf, Ferguson, Cihon & Sanders (Eds.) (Dec 2026)
Performance Management and Supervision: A Behavior Analytic Perspective, Gravina & Jimenez-Gomez (Eds.) (Nov 2026)
Nonlinear Contingency Analysis: Going Beyond Cognition and Behavior in Clinical Practice, Layng, Andronis, Codd, Abdel-Jalil (Eds.) (Nov 2026)
Handbook of Applied Behavior Analysis in the Classroom: Integrating Research into Practice, Jessel (Eds.) (Oct 2026)
Optimizing Acceptance and Commitment Therapy: Translating Research Into Practice, Twohig & Levin (Eds.) (Oct 2026)
Case Studies and Applications in Nonlinear Contingency Analysis, Abdel-Jalil & Linnehan (Eds.) (Oct 2026)
WAVE Prosocial Assessment and Curriculum, Rehfeldt & Dixon
AIM Navigators, Dixon (Pre-order)
Personal Narratives on the Behavior Analysis of Human Language and Cognition: Stories from Around the World, Harte et al. (Eds.)
Digital Technologies in Behavior Science: Theoretical and Practical Applications, Crone-Todd, Hantula, Layng (Eds.)
Promoting Language for Learners with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Verbal Behavior Guide for Practitioners, Vladescu & Kissamore (Eds.)
Navigating Ethics in Behavior Analysis: Dealing with Gray Areas, Carr

Recent:
2025
2024
2023

Podcasts

ABA Inside Track
Shaping

Behavioral Observations
Less Pressure, More Productivity: Rethinking BCBA Billable Hours | Session 340 with Matt Linder

Blogs

Generally these are produced by professionals

ABAI
We Cannot Teach Every Sentence: Building Generative Social Repertoires Through Script Fading
In a guest post, a researcher describes teaching social referencing through script fading 

Keeping Up with Behavior-Analytic Literature in the Age of Artificial Intelligence
We have written something superior to this, we may publish it someday 

On the Recall for Cultural Analysis
A discussion of Malagodi's proposals for cultural analysis 

Roger Kelleher and the Science of Big Effects
A discussion of some classic basic work wherein signals during fixed schedules reduced pauses 

Steve Hayes
We Are the Contingencies: Growing Values-Based AI Without Fear
In a blog that seems at least neutral on "AI," he begins by comparing AI to cancer. At least there's some interesting stuff about prosocial behavior 

Licensing & professional organizations

ASAT
Mental Health Outcomes Associated with Applied Behavior Analysis in a U.S. National Sample of Privately Insured Autistic Youth
A large retrospective study of data for over 17k kids finds that kids who received ABA had a slightly higher chance of mental health hospitalization later in life. The reviewers here correctly recognize that this does not mean that ABA caused mental health hospitalizations, but that the kids referred for ABA may differ from kids not referred 

Business world

Autism services, behavioral health, etc.

Focused Behavior Solutions Files for Bankruptcy Citing Reimbursement Delays as Key Cause
Delayed payments is a common strain on businesses, but given the current environment, this is likely to be a common issue. Nevertheless, something to point out with this particular business: they had a single site in Walla Walla, Washington, plus a clinic in…Nebraska? That would seem strange but for the fact that, for a brief period, Nebraska had the highest RBT reimbursement rate in the nation, and clinics opened just to chase that rate

Accidentally behavior analysis

A mainstream news article that relates to behavior analysis

Texas health agency proposes eliminating children’s autism program, AP
A state program subsidizes ABA for a small group of kids to the tune of 13 million over about 2 years. That’s a lot of money…if you don’t consider that the total Texas state budget is 338 billion over 2 years, making 13 million about 0.003% of the budget. If you, dear reader, make exactly $100,000 per year, this is equivalent to saving you $3

Continuing education

UPCOMING:

BehaviorLive has free events: 10/27 (ETH), 10/28, 10/29 (ETH)

Flashback

♫ Everything I do…is without agency ♫ 

In the Fall 1995 edition of the journal Behaviorology (see page 11), fan fave Billy Baum addresses the eternal albatross of radical behaviorism: freedom. 

Also note some interesting discussion of what we now might refer to (perhaps incorrectly) as the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis.