Behavior analysts often implement functional communication training (FCT) to treat socially reinforced challenging behavior, which involves teaching clients an appropriate communication response to access the reinforcer maintaining challenging behavior. One option for making FCT more practical is to introduce treatment signals that teach the client the discrimination of when requests will be honored while increasing periods of unavailability. This is known as FCT with discriminative stimuli. These signaled periods that end following the passage of time or a client responding (e.g., cooperation with tasks) use multiple and chained schedules, respectively. Although these treatments effectively reduce reinforcement while maintaining ideal levels of adaptive and challenging behavior, practitioners may be unfamiliar with how to solicit input from clients, caregivers, and other stakeholders when designing such interventions. This paper serves as a tutorial on how to collaborate with consumers when using FCT with discriminative stimuli and highlights key areas for client and caregiver input.

Motivating operations alter the value of a consequence and increase or decrease the current likelihood of behavior that has previously been followed by that consequence. Unconditioned motivating operations do not require a learning history to alter the effectiveness of a reinforcer, whereas conditioned motivating operations (CMOs; reflexive, transitive, and surrogate) require a learning history to alter the effectiveness of consequences and occur frequently in clinical practice. This paper reviews applied and basic research on CMOs published since Langthorne and McGill, Behavior Analysis in Practice, 2, 22-31, (2009) and translates key findings into practical guidance for clinicians. In addition, research on CMOs is integrated into clinical examples and practice guidelines to assist practitioners with the successful identification and integration of CMOs into behavior-analytic interventions. Potential implications of this paper include improved accuracy in identifying the motivating variables that influence challenging behavior, enhanced selection of function-based treatments, and greater precision in arranging antecedent conditions to strengthen appropriate alternative behavior.

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s40617-026-01185-x.

Emerging literature indicates the promise of incorporating qualitative inquiry with traditional behavior-analytic work. Specifically, the potential for mixed methods research in behavior analysis could move the field in an exciting and innovative direction. In this paper, I describe my research training experiences in quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methods approaches. I then summarize four contemporary mixed methods paradigms. Finally, I describe how integrating mixed methods frameworks can generate novel insights in behavior analysis and suggest recommendations for interested behavior analysts to develop their mixed methods research repertoires.

In behavior analysis, the concept of reflexivity as it relates to stimulus equivalence is well-studied and understood. However, reflexivity as defined through qualitative inquiry also holds value for behavior analysts to promote rigor, transparency, and equity in research. We propose turning foundational behavior-analytic skills inward to observe one's own behavior and to determine why we do what we do in our research and practice, including a consideration of epistemology and axiology. The act of considering qualitative reflexivity can help behavior-analytic researchers and practitioners examine how their individual perspectives, subjectivities, and biases may inform their subsequent observable behavior related to research. Although we suggest the benefits of qualitative reflexivity for all research contexts, engagement in this process is particularly important when considering work with marginalized communities. A process of self-reflective guidance should be utilized by behavior analysts to consider qualitative reflexivity regarding power structures, historical impact, and decision-making processes. Reflecting and questioning assumptions about whose voices are privileged in the research context is fundamental for all researchers and can be explored in behavior analysis through this process of qualitative reflexivity.

Single-case designs are commonly used to produce demonstrations of control on an individual-level in behavior-analytic research. The selection of alternative methods of investigation, such as qualitative approaches, may expand areas of analysis and discussion for behavior analysts. Integrating alternative research methods often necessitates collaboration with experts within fields that commonly use those designs. As a result, strategies to effectively collaborate and integrate research methods not presently in one's scope of competence may warrant additional consideration and inquiry. The present paper discusses and highlights insights and skills gained from experiences collaborating with qualitative researchers and reflecting on relevant lessons that were learned.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1007/s40617-025-01091-8.].

Abstract Children diagnosed with intellectual and developmental disability (IDD), including autism spectrum disorder (ASD), often present to pediatric acute care hospitals for behavioral crises or medical care. Board Certified Behavior Analysts (BCBAs) and Registered Behavior Technicians (RBTs) have important skill sets and can partner with multidisciplinary teams to advance the care of hospitalized patients with ASD or IDD. We describe the care model used by our Behavior Analysis and ASD/IDD Team (BAAT) in an inpatient medical setting. Components of the BAAT approach include: (1) consultation triage, (2) direct behavior analytic services (including assessment, intervention, and caregiver training), (3) staff training, (4) crisis response, (5) behavioral data collection, and (6) multidisciplinary collaboration. We include representative data from 2 years of the BAAT service to demonstrate the individualized and innovative application of our approach, as well as preliminary outcome data to show the potential impact of the program. This study highlights the key role of BCBAs and RBTs in acute inpatient medical settings, particularly in optimizing the care of children with ASD or IDD and behavioral health needs, while disseminating behavior analytic practice.