​Abstract

As behavior-analytic research advances, it is important to acknowledge the challenges faced in
clinical service delivery. Practitioners' ability to implement and sustain evidence-based practices
in clinical settings often lags decades behind published literature. We cannot assume this gap is
due to practitioners' lack of attention to behavior-analytic research or their desire to apply it.
Perhaps a more pragmatic explanation is that these advancements are not always immediately
applicable or may even be inaccessible entirely. Practitioners encounter various barriers and
complex challenges in clinical settings – many of which remain underexamined in behavior
analytic literature. In the title of an article published in the Journal of the Experimental Analysis
of Behavior, Sidman (2007) posed the question, "What's in it for us?" Detailed in Sidman's
answer were reflections on the reinforcers he contacted in his own applied research experiences
and thoughts, elegantly linking them to those of practitioners and a shared desire to enact change.
This presentation will build on Sidman’s response by highlighting the importance of behavior-
analytic research and providing conceptually systematic examples of how research can be
effectively translated into practice.

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Objectives​​

1. Attendees will be able to recognize the influence of foundational behavior-analytic
research on the conceptual underpinnings of current research and practice.
2. Attendees will be able to link barriers and obstacles that practitioners often face in
clinical service delivery with typical factors contributing to the research-to-practice gap
in behavior analysis.
3. Attendees will be able to describe conceptually systematic ways to leverage the principles
of behavior analysis and relevant research in clinical service delivery.​