Recent Projects Update

Reflections was originally published in 1978 with a collection of articles and talks by Skinner in 1970s. It was a decade of social unrest, intergenerational conflict, political division, and worry about environmental degradation and nuclear war. These themes of human behavior and society remain with us today, perhaps in even more acute form, and Skinner’s analyses remain as fresh and cogent as when they were written. This edition is an extended version of the original and includes five additional articles, photographs, and some of Skinner’s autobiographical notes and comments. A foreword by David Roth describes the relevance of this book for the 21st century. Available in paperback and in PDF format.

Science and Human Behavior is a true classic. The Extended Edition features a foreword by Dr. Vincent J. Carbone, which is both a retrospective appreciation and a contemporary evaluation of the book. Also added is a never before published introduction by Skinner’s closest friend and colleague, Dr. Fred S. Keller. The students of behavior analysis will appreciate a functionally improved and expanded index created by Dr. David C. Palmer. Available in hard cover and in PDF format.

The work continues on our archival project. In 2024, we digitized thousands of pages of Skinner’s letters, notes, and drafts. Along with photographs and audio/video footage, these materials are now centralized on a cloud-based DAM (digital assets management) system. The next goal is to prepare archival materials to be available not just to researchers but to the general public as well. 

Our third Skinner Session (May 4, 2024) celebrated the release of B. F. Skinner’s Reflections on Behaviorism and Society: Extended Edition. The event featured Dr. T. V. Joe Layng, who spoke on reflections on teaching, and Dr. Thom Ratkos who spoke on reflections on government. A panel discussion was held immediately after the presentations. The speakers joined other panelists: David Palmer, David Roth, Carl Sundberg, and Julie Vargas.

Skinner Session is designed for BCaBAs, BCBAs, and BCBA-Ds as well as students of, and all people interested in behavior analysis. This is a continued education event where behavior analysts can earn up to 3 BCBA CEUs. The price for each session is $10 ($30 for all three sessions). All proceeds benefit the B. F. Skinner Foundation and donations are welcome. The recordings are available as on-demand CEU courses at behaviorlive.com.

With more than 1,100 registered participants, the fourth live online Skinner Session (October 25, 2024) shaped up to be the most attended conference produced by the B. F. Skinner Foundation. Sponsored by Association of Professional Behavior Analysts (APBA) and Behavior Analyst Certification Board (BACB), this Skinner Session celebrated the upcoming release of B. F. Skinner’s classic,  Science and Human Behavior: Extended Edition. The event was chaired by Anika Costa (M.S.Ed, BCBA) and Paulie Gavoni (Ed.D., BCBA-D) and featured Dr. Susan Schneider, who spoke on human behavior and climate change, and Dr. Judah Axe, who spoke on the science of the design of cultures. The session ended with Q&A by Drs. Julie Vargas and John Keller, as they shared stories and answered questions about their fathers, B. F. Skinner and Fred Keller. 

If you were unable to attend the live presentations, the recordings will be available on BehaviorLive as on-demand CEU courses for a $10 per session fee. 

In 2024, we continued to branch out into various multimedia projects. In addition to constantly growing collection of videos available on the community website, the Foundation launched a podcast, Dialogues on Verbal Behavior, available on Spotify and Apple Podcasts. Dr. David C. Palmer and David Roth provide and in-depth chapter-by-chapter analysis of Skinner’s masterpiece, Verbal Behavior. As one listener commented, “This is wonderful!!! Learning about Verbal Behavior from Dr. Dave Palmer was an all-time academic highlight. Now everyone can experience the same magic!” New episodes are added weekly.