Philosophy/History

Todd Risley, Mont Wolf, Don Baer, and R. Vance Hall (from left to right) discuss the origins of single-subject research designs in this classic 1974 film originally produced by H & H. Restored and re-digitized, this is available due to the generosity of R. Vance Hall and Bob Hoyt. Here is your opportuinity to learn the subtle nuances of single-subject designs from these behavioral giants who adapted and refined them for applied settings!

2 type II CEUs are available for completing this module.  Please click Purchase above and to the left and follow the directions.

The heart of this continuing education (CE/CEU) module is the film "Behavioral Treatment of Autistic Children: Ivar Lovaas," produced by Ed Anderson (and sold separately through the CCBS Store). This 1988 film is put into historical perspective by a couple of "bookend" papers: Gina Green (2002) traces the lineage of behavior-based approaches to autism treatment, including how Lovaas fits in; and Steve Luce (2006) discusses what has changed in our diagnostic criteria for autism spectrum disorders, and how our treatment methodologies have evolved as various studies have examined the factors that were responsible for the successful outcomes in the Lovaas (1987) study. The five segments of this module are:

1. A brief video segment plus a short reading assignment

2. A paper by Gina Green on the beginnings of ABA for autism treatment;

3. A video segment on the behavioral approach and early work at UCLA;

4. A video segment on Lovaas' early and later work with autistic children, and followup several years later; and

5. A new paper by Steve Luce on what we can learn from studies designed to replicate the Lovaas (1987) study, and evolution of our methodology since that time.

3.5 BACB Level 2 CEUs can be earned by completing this module.

Please click on purchase above to the left and follow the directions.

In cooperation with Karen R. Wagner, PhD and Behavior Services of Brevard, we offer the following CEU opportunity from The (R)Evolution of Behavior Analysis project:

Dr John Lutzker: Social Services on a Socially Significant Scale.

Dr. John Lutzker has blazed a trail in social services, much like one of his mentors, Dr Nate Azrin. Although he started in the field working with individuals with mental health and cognitive disabilities, his interest in a behavioral approach to assist families involved with child welfare led Dr Lutzker to several large-scale programs. Learn how he went from an under-motivated California college student to the innovative, forward-thinking individual who is revolutionizing child welfare. Hear who personally invited him to Kansas for his doctoral program, and how that blissful experience launched him into the fast track his career became. Discover how the effectiveness of statewide child welfare is dependent upon one well known, but often overlooked, factor. Join The (R)Evolution of Behavior Analysis as we examine the career of Dr. John Lutzker.

1.5 Level II CEUS are available for completing this module. Please click on purchase above to the left and follow the directions.

In cooperation with Karen R. Wagner, PhD and Behavior Services of Brevard, we offer the following CEU opportunity from The (R)Evolution of Behavior Analysis project:

Patrick Friman: An Atypical Behavior Analyst for Typical Kids

As the Director of Clinical Services at BoysTown, and as a Professor of Pediatrics at the University of Nebraska Medical Center, Dr Patrick Friman is an apparent anomaly in the field of behavior analysis. Not only does he not work with individuals with autism, he doesn't work with individuals with any developmental disability! His clinic consists primarily of typically developing children with challenging childhood behavior, and he has a lot to teach us about why we ALL should be looking at this surprisingly underserved population.  

2 Level II CEUs are available for completing this module. Please click on purchase above to the left and follow the directions.

In cooperation with Karen R. Wagner, PhD and Behavior Services of Brevard, we offer the following CEU opportunity from The (R)Evolution of Behavior Analysis project:

Dr Raymond Romanczyk: Influencing Behavior Analysis.

Dr Raymond Romanczyk is everywhere. From positions of influence in the Association for Professional Behavior Analysts, to the American Psychological Association, to the Association for Behavior Analysis International, to Health systems in the state of New York, Dr Romanczyk is an agent of change. Learn how his acceptance in the psychology department at SUNY during a critical period of change shaped his future professional directions, and allowed him the opportunity to further his interests in evidence-based practices as Rutgers went through a similar metamorphosis. Hear how his work with children, particularly those on the autism spectrum, have made him a contributor to the science of behavior through many outlets. See how he has used his experience in Basic Research, Psychology, Applied Behavior Analysis, and other disciplines in order to affect change in local, regional and national systems. Find out why attending conferences is so important to your continued evolution and development as an agent of change. See how involvement in the organizations and processes that affect your ability to practice may involve work and dedication, but are surprisingly easy to infiltrate. See how attending some early-morning conference meetings may have a profound impact on your ability to contribute in meaningful ways. Get practical tips from an expert regarding involvement within the field, and discover how influencing larger systems in which we practice may be more challenging initially, but can pay off in big ways. This video gives valuable basic information on how to increase your professional involvement in the field of behavior analysis, not only for altruistic reasons, but to benefit your career, practice and opportunities in the behavior analytic community. If you have ever wondered how certification tests are created, or how you could become more involved in the processes of policy and practice, this CEU session is for you!

1 Level II CEU is available for completing this module. Please click on purchase above to the left and follow the directions.  

The second release in our Continuing Education (CE/CEU) program, this talk was originally filmed on May 29, 2007 in San Diego on the last day of the ABAI convention.

The Cambridge Center is fortunate in having more than one leader in behavioral economics among its Trustees: Steve Hursh and Donald Hantula. Several years ago, Dr. Hursh addressed the annual CCBS Trustees meeting, and presented "Behavioral Economics and the Future of Behavior Analysis." We later posted the Powerpoint slides from that presentation here on behavior.org as a resource, and they consistently rank high in popularity year after year. Many of us first heard the term "behavioral economics" by reading Hursh's papers in JEAB.

In 2004, the Cambridge Center and Temple University jointly hosted "What Works in Behavioral Economics – Practical and Policy Issues" Don Hantula was the conference organizer and a presenter, as were Steve Hursh, George Ainslie, Mark Dixon, and many others, talking about how a behavioral economist looks at problems like consumer behavior, gambling, and drug abuse.

At our Annual Meeting in 2006, Don agreed to make this presentation before our cameras in San Diego. You'll find his presentation informative, to the point, and well-explained for the behavior analyst. Hantula talked about the origins of behavioral economics and the distinctions between that viewpoint and traditional economics. He discussed the economics of behavioral situations, and explained the differences between open and closed economies. Next, he talked about models of choice in behavioral vs. traditional economics, and related it to work by Herrnstein and many others on the Matching Law. Finally, he discussed delayed discounting and hyperbolic curves, and why that explained some things that otherwise wouldn't make sense.

When asked how behavioral economics was relevant to the ABA practitioner, Don answered "Are your reinforcers not reinforcing? Are you seeing problem behaviors going on in your classrooms that you can’t figure out how to address? Are you seeing people making choices that you cannot understand? Behavioral economics will provide a way to make sense of this, and also provide a way to analyze a situation and develop new and innovative interventions to change the behaviors of interest and improve the lives of the people with whom you are working.”

Study questions and transcripts are contained in a downloadable study guide. Short quizzes are included after each of the segments.

2 BACB Level 2 CEUs can be earned by completing this module.

Please click on purchase above to the left and follow the directions.

Andy Lattal (2007)

The Cambridge Center is pleased to present this third installment in our Continuing Education (CE/CEU) series, a fascinating look at the way operant research labs have used and evolved technology in the development of our science of Behavior Analysis. Andy Lattal presented this to the Cambridge Center at our annual Trustees meeting in 2006, and he consented to present it in front of our cameras in San Diego on May 29, 2007, the closing day of the ABA conference. Andy makes some very good points about the interaction of our instrumentation and our conceptual understanding of behavior. We measure only what our apparatus allows us to, and in the beginning it required an inventor's skill set to be to present stimuli and measure behavior while manipulating contingencies of reinforcement. The advancement of instrumentation and apparatus has led to more sophisticated questions about behavior as it has become possible to measure it. The evolution of behavioral technology both enables and reflects our scientific interests.

1.5 BACB Level 2 CEUs can be earned by completing this module.

Please click on purchase above to the left and then follow the directions.