The Behavioral Observations Podcast with Matt Cicoria

• Understanding Repetitive Behavior: Session 299 with Bill Ahearn

  Dr. Bill Ahearn joins me in Session 299 of Behavioral Observation. I met Bill a few times at conferences and I'm so glad we finally had a chance to sit down and record a podcast together. Bill is the Director of Research at The New England Center for Children. Long time listeners may recall that NECC sponsored a series of episodes, and in this podcast, we talked about some of the great research that has come out of that storied institution. As an aside, if you want to learn more about NECC, particularly working at NECC, you can find more information about that here. We covered a lot of ground in this conversation, including: Bill's early experiences as a grad student and clinician. His early work in addressing feeding problems. The research that he and his colleagues have conducted at NECC. How he construes stereotypic and self-injurious behavior as being forms of repetitive behavior. What he's learned about addressing stereotypy, including when and when not to intervene. We talk at length about Response Interruption and Redirection, particularly when it is and isn't necessary as an intervention. The behavioral interpretation of anxiety, and interventions that he and his team have brought to bear on related repertoires. I ask a few lighter questions on some topics of mutual interest (you'll have to listen towards the end to hear that). If you listen to nothing else from this podcast, towards the end of the show, Bill talks about why he is proud to be a Behavior Analyst. Please listen to that segment, as I think he makes some excellent points that are more than worth sharing. We also talked about tons of papers. I've done my best to track as many down as possible. Piazza et al. (2000). An evaluation of the effects of matched stimuli on behaviors maintained by automatic reinforcement. Rapp and Vollmer (2005). Stereotypy I: A review of behavioral assessment and treatment. Ahearn et al. (2007). Assessing and treating vocal stereotypy in children with autism. Colón et al. (2012). The effects of verbal operant training and response interruption and redirection on appropriate and inappropriate vocalizations. Rodriguez et al. (2013). Arranging and ordering in autism spectrum disorder: Characteristics, severity, and environmental correlates. Steinhauser et al. (2021). Examining stereotypy in naturalistic contexts: Differential reinforcement and context-specific redirection. Moore et al. (2022). Assessing and Treating Anxiety in Individuals with Autism. Fergus (2024). Functional Analysis and Delineating Subtypes of Restricted Repetitive Behavior in Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder. This podcast is brought to you by: Frontera. Consider taking a demo 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 BOP25 you’ll get an additional five assessments for just $100. So head to fronterahealth.com to check it out! CEUs from Behavioral Observations. 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 here.  The Behavioral Toolbox. Check out our courses for school-based and other behavioral professionals, including our newest one, Motivational Interviewing: Getting Educator Buy-In. Behavior University. Their mission is to provide university quality professional development for the busy Behavior Analyst. Learn about their CEU offerings, including their 8-hour Supervision Course, as well as their RBT offerings over at behavioruniversity.com/observations. Don't forget to use the coupon code, PODCAST to save at checkout!

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• El Estado del Análisis de la Conducta en Puerto Rico con la Dra. Yaniz Padilla Dalmau: BOP en Español 14

  El Estado del Análisis de la Conducta en Puerto Rico con la Dra. Yaniz Padilla Dalmau En este episodio, tuve el honor de conversar con la Dra. Yaniz Padilla Dalmau, una de las voces más comprometidas y visionarias en el desarrollo del análisis de la conducta en Puerto Rico. A través de una charla llena de realidades, aprendizajes y esperanza, exploramos el estado actual de la práctica de ABA en la isla, los desafíos sistémicos que enfrentan las familias y profesionales, y el impacto de barreras lingüísticas, económicas y estructurales. Yaniz comparte no solo el panorama de necesidades, sino también el poder de la acción colectiva, el liderazgo comunitario y la importancia de diseminar ABA de manera ética, culturalmente sensible y alejada de mentalidades colonialistas. Aprendimos sobre iniciativas locales inspiradoras, el nacimiento de PRABA, y recomendaciones esenciales para quienes desean construir cambios reales y sostenibles en nuevas comunidades. Un episodio que nos invita a reflexionar sobre cómo practicamos, para quién practicamos, y cómo podemos hacerlo mejor, siempre honrando la cultura y el valor de las comunidades que servimos. The State of Behavior Analysis in Puerto Rico with Dr. Yaniz Padilla Dalmau In this episode, I had the honor of speaking with Dr. Yaniz Padilla Dalmau, one of the most committed and visionary voices advancing the field of behavior analysis in Puerto Rico. Through a conversation filled with realities, lessons, and hope, we explore the current state of ABA practice on the island, the systemic challenges faced by families and professionals, and the impact of language, economic, and structural barriers. Yaniz not only highlights the needs but also shows the power of collective action, community leadership, and the importance of disseminating ABA ethically, with cultural sensitivity, and free from colonialist mindsets. We learn about inspiring local initiatives, the formation of PRABA, and essential recommendations for those who wish to build real, sustainable change in new communities. This episode invites us to reflect on how we practice, for whom we practice, and how we can do better—always honoring the culture and the value of the communities we serve.

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• Altering the Relative Efficiencies of Responses for Behavioral Improvement: Session 297 with Steve Ward

  Steve Ward returns to the podcast to talk about a paper he recently published with co-author Teresa Grimes, titled, "50 Practical Ways to Alter the Relative Efficiencies of Behaviors." In this conversation, we review the highlights of this paper, and discuss things like The Matching Law, making desired behavior more efficient in generating reinforcement, making problem behaviors less efficient, and how altering reinforcement parameters like delay, magnitude, and schedules can enhance learner progress. We also talk about the work that Steve does with his company, Whole Child Consulting, as well as a Q & A he will be doing on this topic that's coming up on April 23rd, 2025. Steve is the author of Teaching Good Learner Repertoires, What You Need To Know About Motivation And Teaching Games: An In-Depth Analysis, and other popular texts relevant to Behavior Analysts working in a variety of settings. If you'd like to work with Steve or find supplementary materials on the things he likes to talk about, check out his website, Whole Child Consulting. Resources discussed in this podcast: Ward and Grimes (2025). 50 Practical Ways to Alter the Relative Efficiencies of Behaviors. Ward, Parker, and Perdikaris (2016). Task as Reinforcer: a Reactive Alternative to Traditional Forms of Escape Extinction. Perone (2003). The Negative Effects of Positive Reinforcement. Steve's earlier appearances on the BOP in Session 111 and Session 187. Anxiety? ABA has something for that! (Steve's Behavior University webinar, use promo code PODCAST at checkout to save $$$). Please note that we had some internet disruptions during our recording but I don't think they detracted from the overall intelligibility of the conversation. This podcast is brought to you by: Frontera. Consider taking a demo 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 BOP25 you’ll get an additional five assessments for just $100. So head to fronterahealth.com to check it out! CEUs from Behavioral Observations. 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 here.  The Behavioral Toolbox. Check out our courses for school-based and other behavioral professionals, including our newest one, Motivational Interviewing: Getting Educator Buy-In. Behavior University. Their mission is to provide university quality professional development for the busy Behavior Analyst. Learn about their CEU offerings, including their 8-hour Supervision Course, as well as their RBT offerings over at behavioruniversity.com/observations. Don't forget to use the coupon code, PODCAST to save at checkout!

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• Improving Access to Medical Care for Individuals with Intellectual Disabilities: Session 296 with Brandon Franklin

  Brandon Franklin returns to the podcast after a very long hiatus. You'll have to go back to Session 36 to hear his first appearance as a matter of fact. It turns out that he's been doing a lot of innovative clinical work in that time. Currently, he is the Chief Behavior Analyst for the Lee Specialty Clinic and a Behavioral Consultant at Kramer Behavioral Health. In these roles, Brandon has implemented various interventions to help individuals with intellectual disabilities access routine medical and dental care. If you're not familiar with this topic, it might sound pretty mundane, but as you'll hear, these populations really struggle to attend and participate in routine medical appointments, which, not surprisingly, has downstream negative health consequences. As such, interventions that improve on the current statistics can truly be considered life-saving. In this podcast, we get into the following: Common phobias associated with medical treatments. Brandon's personal experience with aerophobia (the fear of flying), and what he did to improve it. The basics of desensitization strategies. How he and his team members use these strategies to improve the rate of successful medical appointment visits. And finally, the research on this topic that he is doing for his dissertation. Brandon has generously compiled a list of references, which you can find here. He's passionate about this topic and is willing to talk with anyone about it, so feel free to hit him up on LinkedIn. Here's all of Brandon's contact info. Here's all the desensitization resources you could ask for. This podcast is brought to you by: Frontera. Consider taking a demo 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 BOP25 you’ll get an additional five assessments for just $100. So head to fronterahealth.com to check it out! The Profound Autism Summit. The Profound Autism Summit is a two-day conference taking place on April 10th and 11th in Boston, MA. Following on the massive success of the 2024 Summit, the 2025 event brings together leaders from the areas of research, medicine, treatment, advocacy, and education to discuss the needs and support of those with Profound Autism across disciplines and throughout the lifespan. HRIC Recruting. Cut out the middleman and speak directly with Barbara Voss, who's been placing BCBAs in great jobs all across the US for 15 years.  CEUs from Behavioral Observations. 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 here.  The Behavioral Toolbox. Check out our courses for school-based and other behavioral professionals, including our newest one, Motivational Interviewing: Getting Educator Buy-In.

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• Response to Name Interventions for Staff and Caregivers: Inside JABA 22

  This is not a show about teaching eye contact. We'll get to that in a bit. First though, I should note that the 22nd installment of the Inside JABA Series is coming out comically late. I apologize for getting us off schedule. The good news is that we already have a great paper to discuss for the 23rd Inside JABA episode that I think you're going to love, so I hope to have that one out later on in the spring. Back to this episode. Drs. Danny Conine and Jenn Fritz join me to discuss a paper Danny wrote with his colleagues called, "Evaluating a screening-to-intervention model with caregiver training for response to name among children with autism." There are so many great things about this paper, and listeners will be able to tell this from my enthusiasm in discussing it with Danny and Jenn. As I noted above, this is not about teaching eye contact, but rather, a more generalized repertoire of responding to one's name (RTN). We get into why these two things are different, and, as Danny tells it, RTN repertoires have many benefits that directly impact learning and safety. In this paper, he describes an elegant assessment and intervention that his research team implemented to develop RTN in the study's participants. In carrying out this study, they also employed a simple and effective assent withdrawal component, which we get into. Then, they took what the skills they developed in a clinic setting, and taught the participant's caregivers to implement RTN procedures at home. As such, this paper provides a great example of how to generalize skills across settings. Very cool! Along the way, Danny provides practical tips clinicians can consider for their own practice. All of this to say, I'm hoping you'll agree that the wait for this episode will be worth it! Resources discussed in this podcast: Conine, et al. (2025). Evaluating a screening-to-intervention model with caregiver training for response to name among children with autism. Conine, et al. (2020). Assessment and treatment of response to name for children with autism spectrum disorder: Toward an efficient intervention model. Conine, Vollmer, and Bolívar (2019). Response to name in children with autism: Treatment, generalization, and maintenance. BOP Session 212 with Tim Hackenberg. Luczynski and Hanley (2013). Prevention of problem behavior by teaching functional communication and self-control skills to preschoolers. The Verbal Behavior Approach, by Dr. Mary Barbera. Links to Danny's faculty page, Research Gate profile, LinkedIn, and his lab's Instagram. Jenn's faculty page, Research Gate profile, LinkedIn, and the UHCL ABA Program page. If you enjoy this episode, please consider sharing with friends and colleagues!

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