behaviorist

noun

be·​hav·​ior·​ist bi-ˈhā-vyə-rist 

bē-

1

: a person who advocates or practices behaviorism

2

: a person who specializes in the study of behavior

an animal behaviorist

behaviorist adjective

Examples of behaviorist in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Perhaps the most transformational work has been done by Temple Grandin, the animal behaviorist whose research into how food animals experience and respond to their environment — particularly during transport and slaughter — has changed the way that meat and dairy producers operate. —Bill Wasik and Monica Murphy Gabra Zackman Emma Kehlbeck Lance Neal, New York Times, 23 Apr. 2024

The British animal behaviorist is known for her enduring and exceptionally detailed research on the chimpanzees of Gombe Stream National Park. —Amarachi Orie, CNN, 4 Apr. 2024

The most important of these, the behaviorists hold, is loss-aversion: Why, for example, does the loss of $100 hurt about twice as much as the gaining of $100 brings pleasure? —Robert D. Hershey Jr., New York Times, 27 Mar. 2024

The 2017 eclipse also inspired two animal behaviorists to study its impact on turkey vultures at the Joseph A. Sgaggero Memorial Park in Dover Plains, New York, on Aug. 21, 2017, as documented in a March 2018 article in The Kingbird, a quarterly journal devoted to New York State ornithology. —Jamie L. Lareau, Detroit Free Press, 25 Mar. 2024

In recent years, animal behaviorists have researched the impact of E-collars on animal welfare. —Emilie Le Beau Lucchesi, Discover Magazine, 26 Jan. 2024

While this tale is thousands of years old, animal behaviorists still use this challenge to study corvids (which include crows, ravens, jays, and magpies) and their use of tools. —Kenna Hughes-Castleberry, Ars Technica, 14 Dec. 2023

Posing as a Belgian national who was a veterinarian and animal behaviorist living in St. Louis, the scammers made plans to meet with her but never followed through. —CBS News, 20 Dec. 2023

How can an animal behaviorist help a dog with separation anxiety? —Amber Smith, Discover Magazine, 12 Oct. 2022

Word History

First Known Use

1913, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Medical Definition

behaviorist

1 of 2 noun

be·​hav·​ior·​ist

variants or chiefly British behaviourist

-rəst 

1

: a person who advocates or practices behaviorism

2

: a person who specializes in the study of behavior

Animal behaviorists are often consulted regarding such problems as aggression, self-mutilation, food aversion and inappropriate urination or defecation.

—Tom Ewing, Dog Watch

behaviorist

2 of 2 adjective

: of or relating to behaviorism

behaviorist psychology