Newsletter
Volume 29 | 2006 | Number 2
Polish ABA
By Dr. Monika Suchowierska
In 2005, the Polish Association for Behavior Analysis (PABA) celebrated its fifth birthday! Since 2000, PABA has been fulfilling its goals of developing and disseminating knowledge about behavior analysis as a science of behavior and about the radical behaviorism of B. F. Skinner as a philosophy of this science. In five years, PABA has grown from 5 to 40 members; disseminated knowledge about conceptual, experimental, and applied behavior analysis to students and professionals interested in behavioral approaches in Poland; become affiliated with ABA; and hosted the second European ABA conference. Specific accomplishments of the past year are summarized in the following paragraphs.
In September 2005, PABA hosted the second conference of European ABA (EABA). Eighty attendees from 16 different countries participated in the conference, which included five invited addresses, 58 talks, and three workshops. Additionally, 18 posters were presented. For more information and pictures of the event, please visit: http://www.ptab.univ.gda.pl/eaba_conference_schedule.htm and http://www.ptab.univ.gda.pl/gdansk_2005.htm.
Several steps were taken to offer BACB-approved courses in Poland, beginning with a visit by the Behavior Analysis Certification Board’s Executive Director, Dr. Gerald L. Shook. Dr. Shook met with the Dean of the Psychology Department at the Warsaw School of Social Psychology (WSSP) to discuss developing a sequence of behavior analytic courses that would partially fulfill BACB certification requirements. The Warsaw School of Social Psychology approved the first specialization in applied behavior analysis in Poland. The course sequence specialization offered by WSSP was in turn approved by BACB as fulfilling the requirements of the Board. The specialization in applied behavior analysis at WSSP will be directed by Dr. Monika Suchowierska.
Dr. W. Joseph Wyatt visited Poland as the guest of PABA and WSSP. During his visit, he made three presentations and met with PABA members and faculty at WSSP. For more information about this visit, please go to: http://www.ptab.univ.gda.pl/wyatt.htm and http://www.marshall.edu/alumni/Wyatt2006.asp.
PABA held four meetings in the past year, during which four lectures were given. In addition, members of PABA have begun working on a glossary of behavior-analytic terms in Polish. Board members of PABA continue teaching courses on behavior analysis at the University of Gdansk, the Warsaw University, and the Warsaw School of Social Psychology. Additionally, Dr. Monika Suchowierska became the Associate Editor of the Behavior Analysis Digest.
Although we are proud of PABA’s accomplishments in the last year, we have set high goals for ourselves for the next year. In 2006-2007 we plan to:
- hold the first conference of PABA in conjunction with the visit of ABA delegates to Poland;
- establish a faculty and student exchange between Marshall University in West Virginia and WSSP;
- publish the first issue of the Behavior Analysis Digest in Polish, and
- publish a glossary of behavior-analytic terms in Polish.