Some reflections on 25 years of the association for behavior analysis: Past, present, and future

This paper offers some reflections on the discipline and profession of beha vior analysis, as well as on the Association for Behavior Analysis (ABA), o n the occasion of the association's 25th anniversary. It is based on a pane l session conducted at the 1999 convention that included six past president s of ABA (Donald M. Baer, Judith E. Favell, Sigrid S. Glenn, Philip N. Hine line, Jack Michael, and Edward K. Morris) and its current Executive Directo r and Secretary-Treasurer (Maria E. Malott). Among the topics addressed wer e (a) the survival of behavior analysis in university and cultural contexts , (b) the training of behavior-analytic researchers and practitioners, (c) relations between basic and applied research, (d) convergences between beha vior analysis and other disciplines, (e) the structure and function of ABA, and (f) the importance of students for the future of the association, the discipline, and the profession. Questions from the audience raised issues c oncerning the relevance of major behavior-analytic journals, advances in be havior analysis since the death of B. F Skinner, and the availability of ac cessible, popular material on applied behavior analysis.