Newsletter
Volume 28 | 2005 | Number 3
Think Tank on Metacontingencies and Cultural Analysis
By João Claudio Todorov, Ph.D. and Maria E. Malott, Ph.D.
The Associação Brasileira de Psicoterapia e Medicina Comportamental (ABPMC, ABA-Brazil) and Instituto Brasilense de Análise do Comportamento (IBAC), with the collaboration of the Universidade Católica de Goiás and the Association for Behavior Analysis International (ABA), sponsored a think tank on Metacontingencies and Cultural Analysis in Campinas, São Paulo, Brazil, from August 22 to August 27, 2005. The think tank model was designed as a forum for collaboration and exchange between individuals who have spent considerable work and thought on the topic of cultural analysis. The think tank model was developed as a study group to discuss the topic and attempt to answer specific questions. Participants selected some of their own writings to contribute to the discussion, and all studied each other’s material prior to the discussion. A list of topics was decided by the participants and members of the group served as moderators.
The think tank participants were: Mark P. Alavosius, University of Nevada, Reno (USA); Maria Amália Andery, Pontifícia Universidade Católica de São Paulo (Brazil); Marc N. Branch, University of Florida (USA); Deisy das Graças de Souza, Universidade Federal de São Carlos (Brazil); Sigrid S. Glenn, University of North Texas (USA); Alexander (Sandy) Hobbs, University of Paisley, Scotland (UK); Ramona Houmanfar, University of Nevada, Reno (USA); M. Jackson Marr, Georgia Institute of Technology (USA); Maria E. Malott, Association for Behavior Analysis (USA); Mark A. Mattaini, University of Illinois, Chicago (USA); Jorge Mendes de Oliveira-Castro, Universidade de Brasília (Brazil); Ingunn Sandaker, Akershus University College (Norway); Joào Claudio Todorov, Universidade Católica de Goiás, Universidade de Brasília and IESB (Brazil); and Jerome D. Ulman, Ball State University, Illinois (USA). Ricardo Martone, Diono Seco, and Thomas Woelz were present as interested observers, and took notes of the meeting proceedings.
Three major questions were addressed in the meeting: How should behavior analysis interact effectively with the social sciences? (Facilitator: Sigrid S. Glenn); What are the avenues of effective action? (Facilitator: Marc N. Branch); and How does one develop empirical studies of cultural change using the concept of metacontingency? (Facilitator: Mark A. Mattaini). Discussions were held on each of the topics over the course of five days. The products of the meeting were briefly presented at three panels in the XIV Encontro Brasileiro de Psicoterapia e Medicina Comportamental on August 27, 2005, and will be included in a special issue of Behavior and Social Issues (English version) and Brazilian Journal of Behavior Analysis (Portuguese version).
The participants express their gratitude for the suport given by Helio Guilhardi, President of ABPMC, Universidade Católica de Goiás, Universidade de Brasília, Universidade de São Paulo, Instituto de Educação Superior de Brasília (IESB), Fundaçào Universitária de Brasília (FUBRA), Fundação de Emprendimentos Científicos e Tecnológicos (FINATEC) and CNPq (Brazil).