Trends in Reporting Procedural Integrity: A Comparison

• Published in: Behavior analysis in practice Vol. 16; no. 2; pp. 388 - 398
• Main Authors: Han, Justin B., Bergmann, Samantha, Brand, Denys, Wallace, Michele D., St. Peter, Claire C., Feng, Jennifer, Long, Brian P.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Cham Springer International Publishing 01.06.2023; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Applied behavior analysis; Behavioral Science and Psychology; Discussion and Review Paper; Experiments; Internal validity; Intervention; Psychology; Trends; Adherence; Fidelity; Publication practices; Treatment integrity; Procedural integrity
• ISSN: 1998-1929; 2196-8934
• DOI: 10.1007/s40617-022-00741-5

Procedural integrity refers to the extent to which an independent variable is implemented as described. Measuring procedural integrity is one important factor when considering internal and external validity of experiments. Experimental articles in behavior-analytic journals have rarely reported procedural-integrity data. The purpose of this study was to update previous reviews of whether articles published in the Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis reported procedural integrity, spanning a period from 1980 to 2020, and compare reporting in JABA to recent reviews of studies published in Behavior Analysis in Practice (2008–2019) and the Journal of Organizational Behavior Management (2000–2020). Procedural integrity continues to be underreported across all three journals, but an increasing trend in reporting procedural integrity is evident in the Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis and Behavior Analysis in Practice . In addition to our recommendations and implications for research and practice, we provide examples and resources to assist researchers and practitioners with recording and reporting integrity data.