The Behavioral Observations Podcast with Matt Cicoria

Latest episodes

Showing 20 · updated from the feed

Are we thinking about prompts all wrong? Session 339 with Andy Bondy

#39 trending · Social Sciences

What exactly do we mean when we say we're "fading" a prompt? Is a physical prompt inherently more intrusive—or more difficult to eliminate—than a gestural or verbal promp

Sep 21
55 min

Safety, Dignity, and Clinical Judgement in Skills Based Treatment: Session 338 with Cory Whelan

What does it look like to assess and treat severe problem behavior when safety concerns have become so significant that a student can no longer participate successfully i

Aug 27
1 h 25 min

What is Gestalt Language Processing? Session 337 with Kathleen Oppenheimer

Gestalt Language Processing (GLP) and Natural Language Acquisition (NLA) have become extraordinarily popular in speech-language pathology, particularly in conversations a

Aug 12
1 h 14 min

What is Facilitated Communication? BOP Rewind | Session 199/336 | Jason Travers

Welcome to Session 336 The Behavioral Observations Podcast. Well technically, this is actually Session 199, and I wanted to take a minute to explain why you're hearing

Jul 24
1 h 13 min

Conducta Verbal: Cultura, Contexto y Comunicación Funcional | BOP en ESP 18 con Janet Enriquez

En este episodio, Miguel conversa con Janet sobre la conducta verbal desde una perspectiva práctica y cultural. A lo largo de la conversación, exploran por qué la conduct

Jul 14
1 h 23 min

Essential for Living in Action: Building Meaningful Skills Through Everyday Events | Session 334 with Kristina Montgomery and Emily Beal Wilkinson

Many behavior analysts have experienced the frustration of teaching a skill successfully in one setting only to discover that it doesn't transfer to the situations where

Jun 30
1 h 24 min

Beyond 80% Correct: Rethinking Mastery Criteria in ABA: Session 333 with Sarah Richling & Dan Fienup

How do we determine when a learner has truly mastered a skill? In behavior analysis, performance criteria such as "80% correct across two sessions" have become nearly u

Jun 12
1 h 12 min

Helping Complex Kids Thrive Through Practical Behavioral Parenting Strategies: Jenny Demark, Linda Reinstein and Conrad Leung | Session 332

In this episode, I'm joined by Dr. Jenny Demark, Conrad Leung, and Dr. Linda Reinstein to talk about their new book, Complex Kids, Simple Solutions: How to Raise Resilien

May 27
1 h 09 min

Supporting Individuals With Severe Problem Behavior Through Collaboration: Session 331 with Ben Seifert

In Session 331, I sat down with Dr. Ben Seifert to talk about some of the most challenging — and important — work happening in applied behavior analysis today: supporting

May 14
1 h 03 min

Supporting Health and Wellness in Developmental Disabilities: Session 330: Brandon May, Maggie Pavone, and Kate Heersink

In this episode, I'm joined by Drs. Brandon May and Maggie Pavone, and Kate Heersink to talk about how we can better support healthier lifestyles for individuals with dev

Apr 25
1 h 13 min

Train Smarter, Not Harder: Heart Rate Zones, VO2 Max, and Better Fitness: Session 329 with Nick Green

In Session 329, I'm joined once again by Dr. Nick Green, Ph.D., BCBA-D, who's been doing some really interesting work at the intersection of fitness and behavior science.

Apr 8
1 h 01 min

Conditioning Books as Reinforcers: How to Increase Reading Engagement in Young Children: Inside JABA 26

Episode Summary In this episode, I'm joined by Dr. Daniel Fienup, Dr. Kate Loomis, and Lilian Morales to discuss their recent paper in JABA, Turning the Page: Increasing

Apr 2
1 h 07 min

Comportamiento, espacio y algoritmos: Análisis de la conducta recargado, BOP en Español 17 con Alejandro León

Comportamiento, espacio y algoritmos: Análisis de la conducta recargado En este episodio de Espacio y Comportamiento, Miguel Avila conversa con Alejandro León sobre una d

Mar 20
1 h 09 min

The 2025 Verbal Behavior Conference Panel Discussion: Session 326

Thanks for joining me for Session 326 of The Behavioral Observations Podcast. This episode was recorded live at the 2025 Verbal Behavior Conference, where I had the honor

Mar 11
59 min

Developing Rapport and Sustaining Motivation in Autism Treatment: Session 325 with Alice Shillingsburg

In this episode, I talk with Dr. Alice Shillingsburg about her work on rapport building and pairing procedures in applied behavior analysis for children with autism. We e

Feb 23
1 h 05 min

Resilience Is a Skill — Raising Capable Kids in a Fragile World: Session 324 with Paulie Gavoni and Steve Ward

In Session 324, Dr. Paulie Gavoni and Steve Ward join me to discuss what resilience actually looks like from a behavior science perspective — and why many well-intentione

Feb 13
1 h 21 min

Building Clinical Excellence in Autism Services: How Apollo Trains and Supports RBTs and BCBAs - Session 322

In this episode of the Behavioral Observations Podcast, I'm joined by Kim Dean, founder of Apollo Behavior, and Kristen Vaughn, Vice President of Clinical Operations, to

Jan 30
1 h 01 min

Entrenamiento de Habilidades Conductuales: BOP en Español 16 con Maria Sanchez

En este episodio, Miguel conversa con María Sánchez, una profesional con un impacto notable en la formación de analistas de conducta en España y Latinoamérica. La charla

Jan 27
43 min

The Four Leadership Hats: Applying Behavioral Science to Leadership and Supervision — Session 321 with John Guercio

In this episode, I'm joined by John Guercio for a wide-ranging and practical conversation about leadership through a behavioral lens. John and I dig into what it actually

Jan 15
1 h 30 min

The Importance of Hard and Soft Skills in ABA Practice: Session 320 with Tiffany Kodak and Landon Cowan

In Session 320, I sit down with Landon Cowan and Tiffany Kodak to talk about an area of behavior analysis that doesn't get nearly enough attention: professional (or "soft

Jan 7
1 h 14 min

Chart trend

Position in the Social Sciences chart (US), last 90 days.

#1#19#37JulAugSepOct

#14

all-time peak

677

days in the top 50 since Nov 2024

Chart positions

Where The Behavioral Observations Podcast with Matt Cicoria ranks today in each Apple Podcasts chart (US, Oct 1, 2026).

#195 ▼ 32 Science US

#22 ▼ 3 Social Sciences US

What listeners say

A curated, balanced selection of Apple Podcasts reviews.

I enjoy this podcast so much. It provides timely content that is directly relevant to my work and is presented in an easily consumable, “friendly conversation” type format. Some Bonus Points!!! The show also provides me with access to so many knowledgeable professionals including many absolute LEGENDS in the field! Thanks Matt Cicoria! Please keep doing what you do!

Grateful for this Content · Dec 2025

The host is amazing and comes with wonderful questions that allow the guest to expose their knowledge and unveil the side of behavioral analysis that they are experts in.

MJT6421 · Oct 2025

I just listened to episode of 309 and I am so thankful that these conversations are being had. It was an eye opening conversation because it provided examples of how misinterpretation of behaviors can have adverse and sometimes deadly effects on people who have autism. Autism training and awareness should be required in law enforcement.

loritori!! · Sep 2025

As a new student in ABA, I found episode 34 of the Behavioral Observations Podcast with Dr. Megan Miller, insightful and informative. In the episode Dr. Miller talks about how to get learners to follow instructions in a way that feels supportive rather than forceful. She explains it in a way that new students in the field, as well as people outside the field can easily understand. Dr. Miller outlines a strategic seven step process to be successful in implementing instructional control and alternatives to escape extinction. The seven steps allow balance with effective teaching and relationship building with the learner. She emphasizes building trust and working together to achieve results. I’m excited to learn more about the seven steps and implementing them.

SarahG-An ABA student · Oct 2024

The apparently revelatory information shared by Caio Miguel is old hat to any SLP. Have you never listened to one? Typically a BCBA walks into a speech session and tells SLPs how to do their jobs and tells them what they’re doing wrong. This episode is just another example of you don’t know what you don’t know and you don’t ask, listen and learn, you just overpower and assume to possess all skills and knowledge in whatever field you find yourselves working in. The work of BCBAs has not only been psychologically damaging but they do damage by ignoring what an 18-month-old brain needs in terms pre-linguistic development and forces them to engage in silly behaviors that don’t hold meaning for that child. Kids don’t get to be that age again and might not ever develop sufficient prelinguistic capacities because BCBAs stole their valuable time and filled it with observable, countable nonsense. I get that the guest is trying to fix this. Please start with learning all the prerequisites to joint attention—don’t start with joint attention. But mostly, start listening to people who already know this information and how to apply it; stop stomping on them. I would like to say I was shocked that BCBAs didn’t already know the information in this podcast, but I’m not shocked. I am a little surprised about how humbly boastful this man was when sharing freshman-year, page one of the textbook about 50 years too late. Go to your conference and wow the crowd of behavior analysts with your revolutionary findings while the SLPs are at work trying to undo damage and buy back time for children.

WPVan · Jan 2025

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