Newsletter
Volume 29 | 2006 | Number 2
New Zealand ABA
By Dr. David Harper
A major activity for the New Zealand chapter of ABA (NZABA) from 2005-2006 was the hosting of the second annual NZABA conference held from August 26-28th at the School of Psychology, Victoria University of Wellington. There were around 55 attendees and 33 talks. In addition, the conference included a poster session for the first time, which attracted five further presentations. A notable feature of the conference in the past has been the high number of student presentations, and this year was no exception with around 24 of the presentations being given by students. Another feature of this year’s conference was the wide range of topics covered, including the areas of: choice, stimulus control, behavioral pharmacology, timing, human operant, applied behavior analysis, and animal welfare. The 2006 conference will be hosted by the Department of Psychology, University of Waikato, Hamilton. Although final dates are yet to be confirmed, we are planning for late August or early September.
The other major activity of NZABA over the last year was the establishment of the chapter as an approved education provider by the Behavior Analyst Certification Board. Oliver Mudford (University of Auckland) was approved as the Acceptable Education Coordinator for NZABA. The first continuing education event was held March 22, 2006 and was attended by five Board Certified Behavior Analysts.
David Harper (Victoria University of Wellington) was re-appointed as the President of NZABA for another year, with Maree Hunt (Victoria University of Wellington) appointed as Treasurer.
People interested in joining NZABA should note that there is no formal application process or fee. Active membership is achieved by attending the annual conference and paying any necessary fees (note that there is no fee for student presenters).