behavioral

adjective

be·​hav·​ior·​al bi-ˈhā-vyə-rəl 

bē-

1

: of or relating to behavior : pertaining to reactions made in response to social stimuli

behavioral problems

behavioral similarities

Half of all potential guide dogs don't get final clearance because of medical or behavioral issues.

—Cassie Kreitner

2

: relating to or concerned with the social, psychological, and emotional factors that affect financial decisions and behavior

behavioral economics

Behavioral finance … holds that financial man—far from the perfect, mechanical trader depicted in textbooks—is a rather neurotic fellow. He follows the crowd, fails to plan ahead and often makes mistakes.

—Roger Lowenstein

behaviorally

bi-ˈhā-vyə-rə-lē 

bē-

adverb

… gradually came to the conclusion that the wild dogs are physically and behaviorally distinct enough to constitute a uniform breed.

—Christine Mlot

Examples of behavioral in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

That’s the advice of Stacy Andersen, a behavioral neuroscientist at Boston University and co-director of the New England Centenarian Study, the largest study of centenarians and their families in the world. —Dominique Mosbergen, Time, 2 Oct. 2025

Scherer was unsure if anyone with crisis intervention training, training that helps officers learn how to respond to mental and behavioral health calls, had arrived to help police. —Michelle Cruz, AZCentral.com, 2 Oct. 2025

Run entirely by more than 70 dedicated volunteers, all store proceeds benefit Pacific Clinics, a nonprofit providing behavioral and mental health services for at-risk children and families. —Debby Rice, Mercury News, 30 Sep. 2025

This psychological drama kicks off Netflix's slate of award-hunting movies with Murphy in the driver's seat as a troubled teacher trying to get through to his students at a school for kids with behavioral concerns. —Madeleine Janz, PEOPLE, 30 Sep. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1919, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing behavioral

• behavioral modification
• behavioral science
• behavioral therapist
• behavioral therapy
• cognitive behavioral therapy

Rhymes for behavioral

• behavioural
• biobehavioral
• neurobehavioral