Using Behavior Analysis for Policy Development and Analysis: Inside JABA 14

Thanks so much for checking out installment number 14 in the Inside JABA Series on Behavioral Observations. Dr. John Borrero, JABA's Editor in Chief, and I are joined by Drs. Brett Gelino and Derek Reed to discuss a novel study that they and their colleagues conducted on the University of Kansas campus.

 

The study, which culminated in the paper, "Tobacco-free policy reduces combustible tobacco byproduct," shows how a group Behavior Analysts teamed up with university policy-makers to craft and evaluate a campus-wide tobacco-free initiative.  

 

On the one hand, policy evaluation may sound like a dry topic. But if you step back and think about this for a minute, this is an example of how we can use Behavior Analytic concepts and principles to solve relevant problems at scale. How many times have you seen well-intended policies produce the dreaded "unintended consequences," because the people who made the policy did not have sufficient expertise in behavioral concepts and principles? 

 

So to my mind, this piece of research is a very exciting and promising development. Long story short, this one is for all my fellow policy-wonks out there, and there are many cool elements to this study when it comes to data collection and analysis.  

 

And here are some links that we discussed:

• Gelino et al., (2023). Tobacco-free policy reduces combustible tobacco byproduct.  
• Critchfield and Reed (2017). The fuzzy concept of Applied Behavior Analysis research. 
• Fawcett et al., (1988). Behavior Analysis and public policy. 
• Chapman and Risley (1974). Anti-litter procedures in an urban high-density area.
• You've subscribed to JABA, right?
• Huitema (2011). Simple interrupted time-series designs. 

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