Pragmatic Application of Risk Ratios in Behavior Analysis

Joslyn and Morris (2024) recently published a tutorial on adapting and applying risk ratios to within-subject behavioral data. Newland (2024; this issue) offers a commentary on Joslyn and Morris that expands the discussion of risk ratios and how they are typically applied in group comparison research. He is also critical of the approach described by Joslyn and Morris, and advocates against its use primarily because it differs from the traditional calculation. Although we agree with many of Newland's assertions about the benefits of the traditional approach, we disagree that it is the only method of evaluating relative risk that may be useful to behavior analysts. In this response to Newland, we summarize and respond to his concerns, discuss our own concerns with his perspective, consider variables that may affect the relative utility of the two approaches, and provide concluding remarks.