Newsletter
Volume 31 | 2008 | Number 1
4th International Conference: Sydney, Australia
By Dr. Maria E. Malott, ABA Executive Director/Secretary Treasurer
Sunday, August 12th through Tuesday the 14th, 2007, were exciting days for conference attendees who convened in beautiful Sydney, Australia for the 4th International ABAI Conference. In addition to many worthwhile educational events, attendees had wonderful opportunities to enjoy Australia’s famous arts and entertainment and explore the picturesque countryside. One of the most popular destinations was the Sydney Opera House (Figure 1) with its incredible architectural design and performers. Other sight-seeing tours included the Sydney Harbour Coffee Cruise, Blue Mountains, Cairns Great Barrier Reef, and Hunter Valley Wine Country.
Figure 1. The Sydney Opera House on Bennelong Point.
Sydney was the star of the conference and earned a 96% “excellent” to “very good” rating in the post-conference survey. Many attendees commented that Sydney had been the best location to date for our international conference. Other high scorers in the survey include ABAI staff, volunteers, and registration, each earning a 93% “excellent” to “very good” rating. Presenters were appreciative, as well, of the availability of computers in the meeting rooms, which earned a 91% rating. Attendees also enjoyed the coffee and snack breaks throughout the day.
The conference was launched with an opening reception featuring an auction of B. F. Skinner memorabilia, cash bar, music, and hors d’ouvres. This event was made possible by the generous sponsorship of the B. F. Skinner Foundation and the directors of the Australian and New Zealand chapters of ABAI. The auction was facilitated by Dr. Simon Dymond and featured a manuscript page, an autographed book, and several other B. F. Skinner memorabilia, which were provided through the efforts of Drs. Julie and Ernie Vargas (Figure 2).
Figure 2. Drs. Earnest and Julie Vargas at the opening reception and B. F. Skinner Foundation auction.
The program included a rich variety of topics on science, practice, education and professional issues. The following are our nine invited presenters and the topics they addressed: Dr. Joseph Ciarrochi (human cruelty from the perspective of experimental behavior analysis); Dr. Michael Davison (behavioral reinforcement); Dr. Marc Branch (drug tolerance effects on fixed-interval and fixed-ratio performance); Dr. Francis Mechner (the analysis of behavioral contingencies); Dr. Thomas Brigham (contributions of behavior analysis to AIDS education); Dr. Marjorie Charlop-Christy (behavioral interventions for children with autism); Dr. Matthew Sanders (a public health approach to parenting); Dr. Mark Mathews (treatment of dementia); Dr. William Heward (contributions of behavior analysis to education); and Dr. Julie S. Vargas (Skinner’s insights on social and ethical issues).
Figure 3. Presenters in an evening poster session.
A total of 171 posters covered topics including the experimental analysis of multiple species, verbal behavior in humans, development of new technologies in applied behavior analysis, quantitative analysis and others (Figure 3).
The paper presentations were equally diverse in topic, including 49 impressive talks on science; 33 on practice; 23 on education; and 16 on theoretical or ethical issues.
Figure 4. Dr. Janet Twyman, ABAI President.
More than 360 attendees and presenters from 19 countries—Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, Germany, India, Ireland, Japan, Korea, Mexico, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Thailand, Turkey, the United Kingdom and the United States—participated in the conference. ABA International was represented in Sydney by President Dr. Janet Twyman, who gave the opening address (Figure 4), and President-Elect Dr. William Heward, who provided the concluding remarks (Figure 5), as well as other members of the ABAI Council. Some of our Brazilian members are pictured in Figure 6.
Figure 5. Dr. Bill Heward, ABAI President-Elect, and Dr. Marjorie Charlop-Christy.
We were also given the honor of having Past Presidents and Council Representatives in attendance: Dr. Marc Branch, Dr. Michael Davison, Dr. Sigrid Glenn, Dr. Gina Green, Dr. Linda Hayes, Dr. Kennon (Andy) Lattal, Dr. Richard Malott, Dr. Masaya Sato, and Dr. Rachel Tarbox, among others. Several attendees are attentively listening to a speaker in Figure 7.
Figures 8 and 9 below show the accomplished attendees Drs. Greg Stikeleather and Doug Greer. You can also see Drs. Kenneth Hunter and Linda Hayes enjoying some of the sights of downtown Sydney in Figure 10.
Figure 6. From left, Dr. Lucia Williams, Prof. Paula Debert, and Dr. Martha Hübner.
Figure 11 shows conference attendees enjoying the choices from one of the extensive buffets that was included in the registration fees.
The Sydney conference would not have been possible without the assistance of many individuals, who generously gave their time and expertise to make this event a success. Cynthia and John Tanner Blackledge with the Australian Association for Cognitive Behaviour Therapy offered valuable assistance with marketing and planning the conference, along with colleague Dr. Ross Menzies, President. ABAI also wishes to thank Elizabeth Watson for her assistance in coordinating volunteers. Dr. Dick Malott’s slide show during the closing event was a big hit. We’d like to thank him for sharing his time and skill in highlighting the accomplishments of our talented presenters.
Figure 7. Dr. Linda Hayes (center foreground) and Dr. Richard Malott (right foreground) among other distinguished members during a presentation.
ABAI would also like to recognize The Center for Autism and Related Disorders (CARD) for their generous contribution towards the buffet lunch that was held on Monday of the conference. Figure 12 shows Dr. Rachel Tarbox and other representatives from CARD.
New Zealand ABA was very generous in combining its annual meeting with the ABAI conference and sponsored 23 posters, papers, panels and symposia. A total of 45 New Zealanders made the trip to Sydney. Dr. David Harper, a member of the Program Committee for the conference (pictured in Figure 13 with the other Program Committee members), and Michael Davison deserve special thanks for their encouragement of presenters and students at the conference.
Figure 8. Dr. Greg Stikeleather.
Finally, we would like to thank the entire ABAI staff for over a year of hard work which helped make this important event a delightful success.
Figure 9. Drs. Doleen-Day Keohan and Doug Greer.
Figure 10. Drs. Kenneth Hunter and Linda Hayes downtown Sydney.
Figure 11. From left, Drs. Marc Branch, Martha Pelaez, Joe Morrow, and Jack Marr enjoying brunch.
Figure 12. Karen Wong, Aarathy Kumar, and Rachel Tarbox of the Center for Autism and Related Disorders.
Figure 13. International conference organizers: (from left) Drs. Simon Dymond, David Harper, Maria Malott, Cynthia Blackledge, and J. T. Blackledge.