Using Behavioral Economics to Inform Behavior Analyst Regulation Fees in Ontario

This study applied behavioral economic methods to assess the efects of regulatory cost on demand for the opportunity to
practice behavior analysis in Ontario using a hypothetical purchase task. The provincial government of Ontario recently
passed legislation to expand the psychology regulatory body to include behavior analysts. Professional regulation has been
a key longstanding priority for many professionals in the province and the Ontario Association for Behaviour Analysis
(ONTABA, 2021) alike. This is an important step in public protection policy, the professionalization of the practice of
applied behavior analysis (ABA), and standards of practice in the province. This study aimed to inform part of the process
using an operant demand framework because fees are required to operate regulatory bodies, which implies that professionals
interested in becoming regulated health professionals must pay initial and ongoing fees. Demand was analyzed using the
exponentiated model of demand. Participants included 60 practitioners, who indicated they were board certifed behavior
analysts and Ontario residents. The fndings indicated that participants’ mean Pmax value (the price at which consumption
becomes elastic) was $624.65 at the aggregate level. These results may indicate Ontario behavior analysts’ perceptions of
the acceptability of varying costs associated with regulation. Further, the study demonstrates the applied utility of behavioral
economic methods to assess demand for commodities within behavior analysis.