The Nature of Culturo-Behavioral Science Interventions: Editorial

Abstract

The study and understanding of culture from a behavioral science perspective have been advancing on several fronts: publications, a special interest group, higher education training, think tanks, and the first ABAI specialized conference. PublicationsThe publication of Behavior and Social Issues (BSI) has been a major contributor to the continuous study of cultural matters in the behavioral community. With the pioneering vision of Joseph Morrow (its first editor) and other behavior analysts, BSI has been publishing research and conceptual articles for over 40 years (Luke et al., 2017). First issued in 1978, the journal was called the Behaviorists for Social Action Journal (BSA, 1978(BSA, -1985; then, it changed its name to Behavior Analysis and Social Action (1987Action ( -1989. ABAI acquired BSI in 2018 and began its publication in 2019. By the end of 2021, Mark Mattaini will have been the journal's editor for the last 21 years, and Richard Rakos, past editor and one of the early founders, continues as consulting editor into the present.Several books have been published throughout the years on the behavioral approach to cultural issues. Most recently, ABAI started the publication of a book series, and its first two volumes center on cultural matters (Cihon & Mattaini, 2020;Houmanfar et al., 2021). Special Interest GroupThe same pioneering group that launched BSI initiated the Behaviorists for Social Responsibility (BFSR) special interest group (SIG) of ABAI in 1977(Luke et al., 2017. Since then, the members of the SIG have continued to advocate for a behavioral-scientific approach to cultural phenomena. (See Richling et al., 2020, for BSFR's recent report.) In 2018, BSFR became an associate SIG of ABAI. With this arrangement, all members of the SIG, currently about 60, receive complimentary electronic access to BSI, as well as other benefits. Think TankThe think tanks on cultural studies (TTCS) have been another contributing initiative to the advancement of culturo-behavior science. Members review specific literature and gather for several days at a time to discuss concepts, research, and applications. Participants in the think tanks have embraced the concept of the metacontingency proposed by Glenn (1988Glenn ( , 1991Glenn ( , 2004 and its relevance to understanding cultural evolution. The first think tank, TTCS1, was