Subjective Can Be Scary—But Worth It: Personal Reflections on How Qualitative Methods Can Advance Applied Behavior Analysis
A short interview or journal can surface client values that your frequency data miss.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Mejía-Buenaño (2025) wrote a personal essay. The author argues that numbers alone can hide what clients and families feel.
The paper urges BCBAs to add open-ended interviews, journals, or field notes to their normal data sheets.
What they found
The author found that stories and quotes reveal barriers, values, and joys that graphs never show.
One example: a parent’s journal showed nightly tears over homework even while trial scores climbed.
How this fits with other research
Tyrer et al. (2009) asked parents about home EIBI. Their interviews showed love for progress but also deep fatigue. The new essay echoes that finding and says, “Keep asking for those stories.”
Rosales et al. (2021) used interviews with Latino families. Language and paperwork fears came up again and again. The essay’s call for qualitative data extends this work to any family.
Harper et al. (2026) show how to capture gestures and tone during interviews. The essay nods to this method as a next step for richer files.
Gitimoghaddam et al. (2022) scanned 770 ABA papers and found almost zero quality-of-life data. The essay answers that gap: add a few open questions and you get QoL straight from the source.
Why it matters
You already graph behavior. Add one interview question at intake: “What does success look like for your family?” Write the answer in their words. This five-minute step can guide goals, show true progress, and keep caregivers engaged.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
Abstract Applied behavior analysis is a quantitative field. We calculate frequency of responses per minute, percentage of incorrect and correct responses, percentage of agreement across raters on a regular basis. The safety in numbers can be comfortable—they are clear and objective. However, numbers do not provide the whole picture of a person’s experience. Qualitative approaches provide valuable insights into the lived experience of people. Yet, undertaking qualitative approaches can be scary for those of us in a quantitative field. The subjective data and findings can be extremely challenging to navigate. There is also the matter of feeling like an imposter or a fraud. In this personal narrative inquiry, I tell my story of embracing qualitative approaches as a behavior analyst, the challenges and the surprising discoveries of the depths this data could help us reach. The relevance of qualitative approaches lies in understanding how various qualitative methods and approaches can enhance our understanding of lived experience. Some points about qualitative research are drawn out for context, and my personal experience is explored to show the journey, joys, and challenges of discovering and embracing qualitative research as a behavior analyst.
Behavior Analysis in Practice, 2025 · doi:10.1007/s40617-025-01120-6