Chronic Absenteeism and School Refusal: Session 300 with Kristen McNeely
The Behavioral Observations Podcast with Matt Cicoria
Release Date: 05/14/2025
Smarter Study Strategies Using Cover, Copy, and Compare: Session 318 with Sarah Frampton
The Behavioral Observations Podcast with Matt Cicoria
In this episode, I sit down with , who conducts research on, amongst other things, improving how we teach, learn, and organize information using behavior-analytic strategies. We explore her career journey, her research on graphic organizers and the Cover, Copy, Compare (CCC) strategy, and the broader implications for stimulus equivalence, educational technology, and effective teaching. In This Episode, You’ll Learn: How Sarah’s unconventional path led her from economics and psychology into Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA). Why note-taking and structured...
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Eye Contact and AI in ABA Treatment: Session 317 with Francesca degli Espinosa
The Behavioral Observations Podcast with Matt Cicoria
In Session 317, I sit down with Dr. Francesca Delia Espinoza to revisit one of the most foundational—but often misunderstood—topics in behavior analysis: eye contact. We explore why eye contact shouldn’t be treated as a simple objective, but instead understood within its broader social and developmental context. Francesca explains how eye contact is better re-framed as "eye-looking," and why behavior analysts need a strong conceptual foundation for evaluating when, how, and why to teach it. We discuss her recent paper in Perspectives on Behavior Science, which encourages practitioners to...
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Making ABA Research Matter: Practical Dissemination Strategies for Behavior Analytic Scholars, Inside JABA 25
The Behavioral Observations Podcast with Matt Cicoria
Episode Overview In this special episode of the Behavioral Observations Podcast, I had the honor of celebrating the 25th installment of the . This one was particularly meaningful because it also marks the final appearance of Dr. John Borrero in his role as Editor-in-Chief of . I invited John to reflect on his three-year tenure—what he learned from reading an enormous volume of manuscripts, how his thinking evolved, and why adapting our language is essential if we want behavior analysis to reach broader audiences. From there, we transitioned into an...
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Trauma-Informed Behavior Analysis, A Guide for BCBAs: Session 315 with Gabi Morgan and David Adams
The Behavioral Observations Podcast with Matt Cicoria
Thanks for joining me in Session 315 of The Behavioral Observations Podcast. In this episode, I spoke with Drs. and to dive deep into trauma-informed behavior analysis. Gabi brings her 30-year journey in the field—from undergrad roots to professorship at —while David shares his evolution from child and family therapy to clinical psychology, with a heavy focus on foster and adoptive parenting. Both guests are passionate about closing the divide between trauma therapy and behavioral strategies, and they credit mentors like for lighting the way. We...
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Supporting Schools in Hawaii with the Care Project: Session 314, Live from HABA 2025
The Behavioral Observations Podcast with Matt Cicoria
If you follow Behavioral Observations on , you might recall that I had the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to travel to the 20th Annual conference to give the closing Keynote Address. I could devote an entire podcast episode to talking about all the wonderful people I met, the fun experiences I had, and the amazing sights I was able to take in. One of the biggest highlights though, was the opportunity to sneak in the following conversation I had with a panel of employees from Hawaii's Department of Education. It turns out that the State of Hawaii is doing some innovative work in...
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Client Assent in Behavior Analysis: Balancing Autonomy & Clinical Progress, Session 313 with Cody Morris
The Behavioral Observations Podcast with Matt Cicoria
In Session 313, Dr. Cody Morris from , and the newly re-launched podcast (please also see ), joins me to dive into a topic that has merited quite a bit of discussion in Applied Behavior Analysis. These days, you pretty much have to be living under a rock in ABA circles to not have noticed the increased focus on assent practices in treatment programming. Cody is one of the preeminent authorities on this topic, and in this episode, we talk about the definitions of assent, how assent has been conceptualized in other fields, and how it applies to the work we do as Behavior Analysts. In doing so,...
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From Amazon to Autism Care: AI Powered Tools for ABA and Diagnostics: Frontera Series on AI with Grant Sickle
The Behavioral Observations Podcast with Matt Cicoria
In this episode of The Behavioral Observations Podcast, I talk with , former Amazon product leader and current head of product at , a company building AI-powered platforms to improve autism care. Grant shares how his team is developing and tools to shorten waitlists, streamline reporting, and support clinicians in delivering more efficient ABA therapy. We also discuss how Frontera’s app enables HIPAA-compliant behavior tracking, parent engagement, and asynchronous supervision — while addressing the issue of . This conversation highlights...
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Culturally Sensitive Approaches to ABA Treatment: Session 311
The Behavioral Observations Podcast with Matt Cicoria
In Session 311, I sit down with Christina Nylander and Leah Hussain from to talk about culturally sensitive approaches to Autism intervention. We dive into three case studies that show how flexible, individualized care can make a huge difference in building the rapport that's so important in our clinical work. Along the way, we share strategies for gaining parent buy-in, supporting bilingual language development, and using AAC devices to help children communicate more effectively with their families. Here’s what we cover: The parent...
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Improving Health Routines for Adults with Disabilities Using Synchronous Reinforcement Strategies: Inside JABA 24
The Behavioral Observations Podcast with Matt Cicoria
In this episode of the Inside JABA Series podcast, we dive into a fascinating discussion on health-related routines for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). Dr. Katie McHugh, Dr. Claudia Dozier, and Editor-in-Chief Dr. John Borrero share insights from their recent study, Synchronous Reinforcement Schedules Promote Tolerance of Health-Related Routines for Adults with Disabilities. The conversation explores how synchronous reinforcement schedules—where reinforcement occurs in real time alongside behavior—can improve tolerance for essential routines like...
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Improving Autism and Law Enforcement Interactions through ABA: Session 309 with Lyndsy Coffield
The Behavioral Observations Podcast with Matt Cicoria
In Session 309, I welcome Dr. Lyndsy Coffield, Director of Client Success at , to share her unique journey in the field of Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) and her groundbreaking work training law enforcement officers on autism awareness. Dr. Coffield’s path into ABA began with an undergraduate degree in speech pathology, later becoming an RBT and eventually a BCBA. Today, she oversees intake and marketing at a growing clinic network in Georgia while also dedicating her research to improving police interactions with individuals on the autism spectrum. This episode explores the...
info_outlineKristen McNeely joins me for an informative discussion about the challenging topic of School Refusal and Chronic Absenteeism.
If you are in any way connected to a school community, you've probably heard about this difficult and growing problem. As we discuss in this episode, school refusal is an ever-growing concern, and it manifests itself in numerous ways.
Kristen is both a BCBA and a Licensed Marital and Family Therapist in California, and she spends nearly all of her time working with parents who have children who engage in school refusal.
In this episode, we cover:
- The distinction between the terms Chronic Absenteeism and School Refusal.
- How School Refusal can be thought of as a continuum of attendance patterns.
- The role of anxiety in these response patterns.
- Assessing the function of School Refusal behaviors.
- Helping parents intervene with School Refusal.
- The importance of wrap around supports for severe cases.
- How School Refusal can turn into what's known as Failure to Launch.
You're going to want to listen all the way through to the end because she closes the show not only some awesome advice for the newly minted, but a poignant personal story.
Resources mentioned in this podcast:
- The School Avoidance Alliance.
- Kearney and Silverman (2010). Measuring the Function of School Refusal Behavior: The School Refusal Assessment Scale.
- SPACE (Supportive Parenting for Anxious Childhood Emotions).
- Episode 58 of ABA Inside Track (Interview with Christopher Kearney).
- Kristen's website.
- Kristen's Instagram.
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- HRIC Recruting. Cut out the middleman and speak directly with Barbara Voss, who's been placing BCBAs in great jobs all across the US for 15 years.
- CEUs from Behavioral Observations. Learn from your favorite podcast guests while you're commuting, walking the dog, or whatever else you do while listening to podcasts. New events are being added all the time, so check them out here.
- The Behavioral Toolbox. Check out our courses for school-based and other behavioral professionals, including our newest one, Motivational Interviewing: Getting Educator Buy-In.