behavioral

especially British, be·hav·iour·al

[bih-heyv-yer-uhl]

adjective

1. relating to a person’s manner of behaving or acting.

   The program provides academic and behavioral supports for students of concern.

   Most of our biggest health risks are largely preventable with behavioral change.

2. Psychology, Animal Behavior.,  relating to or studying observable activity in a human or animal, often thought of as the aggregate of responses to external and internal stimuli.

   This psychiatry textbook offers a thorough discussion of both the behavioral sciences and clinical psychiatry.

   Harassment of wild marine mammals has disrupted their behavioral patterns, including migration, breeding, and feeding.

Other Word Forms

• behaviorally adverb
• behaviourally adverb
• interbehavioral adjective
• interbehavioural adjective
• interbehaviorally adverb
• interbehaviourally adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of behavioral¹

First recorded in 1925–30; behavior ( def. ) + -al ¹ ( def. )