Behavior Analysis at a Macro Level: The Case for Behavior Analysts in Public Policy Work
Start acting like a pediatrician—join your state ABA advocacy committee this month and put behavior analysis into the next bill.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Napolitano and colleagues wrote a call-to-action paper. They asked behavior analysts to treat policy work like a clinical duty.
The authors used no data. They built a map showing how BCBAs can join state boards, write bills, and shape Medicaid rules.
What they found
The paper found a gap: most BCBAs stay in clinics while other health fields sit at the policy table.
They argue the gap hurts clients because laws are written without our science.
How this fits with other research
Haberlin et al. (2025) gives a living example. Australia just built its own BCBA regulator using the exact macro-steps Napolitano wants.
Jackson-Perry et al. (2025) sounds different—they push Critical Behavioral Studies and autistic partnership. Both papers demand the same thing: new institutional muscles, just in different arenas.
Alligood et al. (2021) hands you the ladder. Their three-step plan—mentor, community, entry work—fits policy jobs as well as it fits geriatric or OBM practice.
Why it matters
If you want insurance to pay for 30 hours instead of 20, someone at the statehouse has to write that line. Napolitano says that someone should be you. Join your state ABA advocacy committee this month; bring a single data graph from your toughest case. Speak for two minutes. That is policy work, and clinics will feel the change.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
Despite some early starts, such as Seekins and Fawcett’s, The Behavior Analyst, 9, 35–45, (1986) description of the stages of public policy making and the ABAI task force on public policy headed by Fawcett et al, The Behavior Analyst, 11, 11–25, (1988), little progress has been made to bring the field of behavior analysis up to the standards of other professions (e.g., pediatrics) in the area of advocacy. In this article we will use experiences in advocating for the profession of behavior analysis in the state of New York to encourage behavior analysts to become involved in advocacy in their state (locally, regionally, state-wide). Further, we suggest that the experiences and observations of professionals who are experts at advocating on a national level (e.g., pediatricians) may be important in encouraging behavior analysts to establish a national advocacy platform. In addition, this article will attempt to make the case as to why it is critical that behavior analysts seek and adopt leadership positions municipally, at the state level, nationally, and even internationally, in the area of advocacy. Finally, we will suggest that there is a need to integrate advocacy into the training and daily activity of behavior analysts and why the field might now be ready for this shift, as we stand on the shoulders of giants.
Behavior Analysis in Practice, 2025 · doi:10.1007/s40617-024-00928-y