behavior therapy

noun

variants or behavioral therapy or behavior modification or behavioral modification

: psychotherapy that is concerned with the treatment (as by desensitization or aversion therapy) of observable behaviors rather than underlying psychological processes and that applies principles of learning to substitute desirable responses and behavior patterns for undesirable ones (such as phobias or obsessions) compare cognitive therapy

behavior therapist noun

or behavioral therapist

Examples of behavior therapy in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Pay attention to what treatment specialty your therapist provides: Some offer specific approaches such as cognitive behavioral therapy, psychodynamic psychotherapy or dialectical behavior therapy. —Bryan Cochran, Discover Magazine, 12 July 2024

Depending on the cause and severity of your incontinence, the urologist may recommend lifestyle and behavior therapies, prescription medications, and specialist procedures (including surgery). —James Myhre & Dennis Sifris, Md, Verywell Health, 8 July 2024

Emes got second opinions and even entered an online cognitive behavior therapy class for pain management offered through Lehigh Valley Hospital that is part of a five-year research project at Stanford University. —Susan Miers Smith, Hartford Courant, 20 Jan. 2024

Despite behavior therapy often recommended alone or as adjunct to medications, only about half of children with current ADHD, 53.6%, had used medication and 44.4% had received behavioral therapy in the last year, according to parent responses. —Mary Kekatos, ABC News, 27 May 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1937, in the meaning defined above

Medical Definition

behavior therapy

noun

variants or behavioral therapy or behavior modification or behavioral modification

: psychotherapy that is concerned with the treatment (as by desensitization or aversion therapy) of observable behaviors rather than underlying psychological processes and that applies principles of learning to substitute desirable responses and behavior patterns for undesirable ones (such as phobias or obsessions) compare cognitive behavioral therapy, cognitive therapy