Behavioral assessment: review and prospect

In this article I review the history and publication trends of the behavioral assessment (BA) section of the journal, outline future directions for the BA section and suggest avenues for future assessment research. BA began as a stand-alone journal in 1978 and was incorporated as a regular section of Behaviour Research and Therapy (BRT) in 1992. Throughout this article I will use 'BA' to refer to both the stand-alone assessment journal and the assessment section of BRT. Since its inception, the scope of BA has been broad, with behavioral assessment defined to include the assessment of motoric, cognitive, emotional and physiological responses. Several publication trends are identified, including a declining frequency in the number of submitted and published articles on behavioural assessment. This parallels the declining number of assessment articles published elsewhere. Despite these trends, assessment research continues to form a vital foundation for other types of psychological research (e.g. treatment outcome studies), and there is a continued need for assessment-related research. A number of potentially fruitful directions for assessment research are suggested.