Why we study behavior—and how: On the utility of observing action

In 2000, the APA’s Board of Scientific Affairs announced the Decade of Behavior (DoB) to promote the importance and support for the study of human action (Kendall, 2000). Nevertheless, the proportion of published studies that include measures of behavior has declined steadily (e.g., Baumeister Vohs, & Funder, 2007, Banks, Woznyj, & Mansfield, 2021). In this talk, we will provide a personal account on why and how we are enthusiastic about studying behavior. Specifically, we will (a) discuss why studying behavior yields uniquely informative and relevant insights, (b) provide a practical definition of what constitutes a behavioral measure, and (c) present a program of experimental research on intergroup criticism where behavioral measures have allowed us to make unique predictions and yield surprising findings. We will discuss how to increase actual behavioral research. peerReviewed publishedVersion