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| Opening Event and Society for the Advancement of Behavior Analysis Award Ceremony |
| Saturday, May 24, 2025 |
| 8:00 AM–9:30 AM |
| Marriott Marquis, M2 Level, Marquis Salon 1-5 |
| Instruction Level: Basic |
| Keyword(s): Opening Event, SABA, SABA Awards |
| Chair: M. Christopher Newland (Auburn University) |
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SABA Award for Distinguished Service to Behavior Analysis: Michael Perone |
| Abstract: Things I Have Learned About Service (So Far): Behavior analysis, along with other scientific fields, relies on the contributions of volunteers to carry out a range of essential functions, for example, as elected officers of organizations such as ABAI, as editors and reviewers for our journals, on study sections of granting agencies such as NIH and NSF, and as coordinators and members of boards and committees. Volunteers decide the direction of our organizations; the work we deem as scientifically or clinically meritorious and therefore worthy of publication, financial support, or awards; the characteristics that define excellent training programs; and which programs merit the recognition of accreditation. Over the last 40 years, I have had the opportunity to serve in some of these capacities. In this brief talk, I will share the most important lessons I’ve learned along the way. |
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| MICHAEL PERONE (West Virginia University) |
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 Michael Perone is a professor at West Virginia University. He served the university for 12 years as chair of the Department of Psychology and for 8 years as associate dean for faculty in the College of Arts and Sciences. He has served ABAI in several ways, including as president (twice), chair of SABA’s first capital campaign, coordinator of the Accreditation Board, chair of the task force on contingent electric skin shock, and ABAI’s delegate to AAALAC International, an organization that assesses and accredits animal care and use programs. He has hung around so long that the number of things he has done right is getting close to balancing out the many things he has done wrong, a circumstance for which he is grateful. |
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SABA Award for Scientific Translation: Timothy Hackenberg |
| Abstract: Tokens of Gratitude: Science is a social enterprise, and this is nowhere more evident than in collaborative research we undertake with students, mentors, and colleagues. In this presentation, I will briefly describe a program of research on token reinforcement, highlighting along the way the many contributions of my collaborators. This line of work began with an attempt to better understand human-nonhuman differences in self-control, where token-based methods have been used to narrow the procedural disparities that have plagued past species comparisons. The research then moved into an analysis of token reinforcement in its own right, including the translational application of token economic principles to applied problems. Whether in one these main lines of research, or in the various offshoots that have sprung up along the way, the research has been truly collaborative in nature. I have been fortunate to work with some great students and colleagues, who deserve much credit for any lasting significance of this work, and with whom I genuinely share this award. |
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| TIMOTHY D. HACKENBERG (Reed College) |
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 I was first turned on to behavior analysis by Jane Howard at Cal State Stanislaus, in the late 1970s, the first of many fortunate accidents in my behavior analysis journey. I later finished my B.A. degree at UC Irvine. And while there was not much in the way of behavior analysis at Irvine, I was lucky to work with a great group of behavior analysts in an applied setting and became involved in the fledgling SoCal-ABA. Another happy coincidence at this time was attending an APA convention in Los Angeles and meeting Phil Hineline, who later became my PhD mentor at Temple University. In Phil’s lab I worked with rats and pigeons but acquired an appreciation for cross-species continuity of behavior. Following a one-year hiatus spent navel gazing back in Southern Cal, I was lucky enough to take a post-doc with Travis Thompson at the University of Minnesota, splitting time between the operant lab and the state hospital. I then had the good fortune to work for nearly two decades on the faculty in the Behavior Analysis program at the University of Florida, working alongside talented and productive students and colleagues, followed by 13 years at Reed College, where I enjoyed the challenges and joys of teaching in a small liberal arts setting. I retired in 2022, and now live in southern England, where I enjoy nature walks with my two dogs and one wife, learning how to drive on the other side of the road, and watching daily drama unfold at the bird feeder in the garden. |
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PRESENTATION CANCELLED: SABA Award for International Dissemination: Julio de Rose |
| Abstract: Behavior Analysis in Brazil began with Fred Keller’s visit to the University of São Paulo in 1961, which led to the formation of the first generation of behavior analysts in the country. This early group of researchers trained others who went on to become professors at various universities and multiplied the number of behavior analysts, scientific output, and services to the community. This progress of Brazilian Behavior Analysis continued steadily, with one significant milestone being the formation of the ECCE group (an acronym for Studies on Behavior, Cognition, and Teaching). This network of researchers from several Brazilian universities has fostered strong international collaboration and is dedicated to basic and applied research on verbal behavior and derived relations. The ECCE group evolved into the National Institute for Science and Technology on Behavior, Cognition and Teaching, active since 2008. Over the past eight years, researchers from the Institute have published around 500 articles in peer-reviewed journals and trained nearly 100 new Ph.D.s. The work of the ECCE group, along with the contributions of many other behavior analysts in Brazil, represents a highly successful case of international diffusion of Behavior Analysis, resulting from more than 60 years of collective effort by Brazilian behavior analysts since Fred Keller’s visit laid the foundation for this progress. |
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| JULIO DE ROSE (Universidade Federal de Sao Carlos) |
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 Dr. Julio de Rose obtained his Ph.D. at the University of São Paulo, Brazil, in 1981. From 1984 to 1986 he was a postdoctoral Fulbright fellow at the Shriver Center for Mental Retardation, in Waltham, MA. Since 1990 he has served as a Full Professor of Psychology at the Federal University of São Carlos, Brazil. Dr. de Rose was a founding member and first chair of the ECCE research network, which brings together researchers from several Brazilian universities. This network later evolved into the Brazilian National Institute of Science and Technology on Behavior, Cognition and Teaching, where Dr. de Rose serves as the research director. He has authored or co-authored nearly 200 articles and chapters on experimental, applied, and conceptual Behavior Analysis, published both in Brazil and internationally, and has supervised 39 Ph.D. graduates. He has also served on the editorial boards of several international journals in the field of Behavior Analysis and has been associate editor of The Psychological Record (2018-2024). |
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SABA Award for Effective Presentation of Behavior Analysis in the Mass Media: Alexandra Kurland |
| Abstract: Starting Small: A Brief Introduction to Loopy Training and Microshaping: Alexandra Kurland is best known for the instrumental role she has played in bringing clicker training into the horse world. Beginning in 2018 she has hosted Equiosity, a weekly podcast about “all things equine with a special emphasis on the horse-human bond.” The podcast has featured many lengthy conversations with behavior analysts. Collaborating with behavior analysts has led to innovative teaching strategies that increase the effectiveness of positive reinforcement training. Central to these strategies is loopy training, a teaching strategy that minimizes errors, increases rates of reinforcement and produces robust, reliable behavior. This presentation defines loopy training and the related microshaping. It provides an example of the type of change that becomes possible when loopy training is used. When behavior analysts and animal trainers learn each other’s language and collaborate together, both communities benefit. |
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| ALEXANDRA KURLAND (The Clicker Center) |
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 Alexandra Kurland is a graduate of Cornell University. A lifelong horse person, she began teaching in the early 1980’s. She specializes in the development of a horse’s balance: physical and emotional. Helping horses stay sound throughout a long working lifetime is the goal. In 1998 Alexandra launched the rapidly growing field of clicker training for horses with the publication of her first book, “Clicker Training for Your Horse”. Alexandra teaches clicker training geared to any horse need or sport—including working with foals; developing reliable, safe riding horses; training advanced performance horses; and working with so-called problem horses. She has written “The Click That Teaches: A Step–By–Step Guide in Pictures” and “The Click That Teaches: Riding with the Clicker”. She has also produced “The Click That Teaches” DVD lesson series and on-line course. Her most recent book is: “Modern Horse Training, A Constructional Guide to Becoming Your Horse’s Best Friend”. Together with Dominique Day, one of the co-founders of Cavalia, Alexandra hosts the weekly Equiosity podcast. Equiosity began in 2018 and has over 300 episodes. Prior to covid Alexandra traveled widely, giving clicker training seminars and presenting at conferences in the US, Canada, the UK, and Europe. More recently most of her teaching is done on line through her Stay-At-Home, Learn-At-Home on-line clinics. |
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SABA Award for Enduring Programmatic Contributions: Center for Behavioral Studies and Research |
| Abstract: In 1998, Dr. Emilio Ribes-Iñesta was honored with a prestigious Society for the Advancement of Behavior Analysis (SABA) award. This recognition reverberates in the field of behavioral analysis to this day. His unwavering dedication as a scholar, researcher, educator, and promoter of Experimental Analysis of Behavior has left a profound and far-reaching impact on the discipline. His foundational research and nurturing of new researchers at the Center for Behavioral Studies and Research (CEIC) at the University of Guadalajara, Mexico's second-largest public university, have set an enduring standard for future generations, inspiring all of us with the potential for excellence in our academic pursuits. |
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| CARLOS DE JESÚS TORRES (University of Guadalajara) |
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 Full Research Professor at the Center for Behavioral Studies and Research of the University of Guadalajara since 1991. Member of the National System of Researchers since 2006. Master's (2000) and Ph.D. (2005) in behavioral science from the University of Guadalajara. He has been a full professor at the undergraduate level at the Instituto Tecnológico de Estudios Superiores de Occidente from 1996 to 2008. Full professor in the postgraduate program in Behavioral Science: Behavior Analysis option from 2006 to date. Co-responsible for the Laboratory of Behavioral Processes and Animal Models since 1991. He has participated as a director in several undergraduate, master's, and doctoral degree projects in areas such as health psychology, temporal control of behavior, analysis of linguistic behavior, control processes, and stimulus discrimination, and evaluation of methodological strategies in behavior analysis. He has presented more than 100 papers at specialized national and international conferences. He has given more than 20 workshops on methodological and analytical skills related to animal and human behavior in experimental and applied fields. He has published more than 40 papers, including articles in indexed journals, book chapters, and the co-edition of two books. The current lines of work are:
- Parametric analysis of the temporal control of behavior.
- Dispositional analysis of behavior.
- Development of interdisciplinary research.
- Evaluation of interactive styles.
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| Keyword(s): Opening Event, SABA, SABA Awards |
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