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The Father of Applied

Behavior Analysis in Autism:

Charles B. Ferster

Edward K. Morris

The University of Kansas

Charryse F. LuckeyThe Lovaas Institute for

Early Intervention

Midwest Headquarters

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Charryse Luckey

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Luckey Family

Morris-Fouquette

Presentations/Publication

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Fouquette, C. M., & Morris, E. K. (2006, May). The history of autism research andintervention: Was Ferster first? Paper presented at the meeting of the Association for Behavior Analysis, Atlanta, GA.

Morris, E. K., Fouquette, C. M., Smith, N. G., & Altus, D. E. (2008, June). Charles B. Ferster: The first Skinnerian in autism research, theory, and application. Poster presented at Cheiron: The International Society for the History of Behavioral and Social Sciences,Toronto, Canada.

Morris, E. K., & Fouquette, C. M. (2009). Rescued from oblivion: Ferster and DeMyer’s behavioral pharmacology in autism. European Journal of Behavior Analysis, 10, 5-18.

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Charles B. Ferster (circa 1972)

(1922-1981)

Charles B. Ferster:

Prior to Autism

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Ferster, C. B. (1951). The effect of extinction responding of stimuli continuously present during conditioning. Journal of Experimental Psychology, 42, 443-449.

Ferster, C. B., & Skinner, B. F. (1957). Schedules of reinforcement. New York: Appleton Century-Crofts, 1957.

Ferster, C. B. (1957). Concurrent schedules of reinforcement in the chimpanzee. Science, 125, 1090-1091.

Lates, V. G. (1987). Society for the Experimental Analysis of behavior: The first thirty years. Journal of the Experimental Analysis of Behavior, 48, 495-512.

Forecasting Ferster’s

Early Work in Autism

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Ferster, C. B. (1961). Positive reinforcement and behavioral deficits in autistic children. Child Development, 32, 437-456.

Ferster, C. B., & DeMyer, M. K. (1961a). The development of performances in autistic children in an automatically controlled environment. Journal of Chronic Diseases, 13, 312-345.

Ferster, C. B., & DeMyer, M. K. (1962). A method for the experimental analysis of the autistic child. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 32, 89-98.

Ferster, C. B., & DeMyer, M. K. (1961b). Increased performances of an autistic child with prochlorperazine administration. Journal of the Experimental Analysis of Behavior, 4, 84.

DeMyer, M. K., & Ferster, C. B. (1962). Teaching new social behavior to schizophrenic children. Journal of the American Academy of Child Psychiatry, 1, 443-461.

Background:Autism, Behavior Analysis,

and Indiana University

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Background in Autism:

Differential Diagnosis

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Kanner, L. (1943). Autistic disturbances of affective contact. Nervous Child:

Journal of Psychopathology, Psychotherapy, Mental Hygiene, and

Guidance of the Child, 2, 217–250.

American Psychiatric Association (1952). Diagnostic and statistical manual

for mental disorder (DSM-1). Arlington, VA: American

Psychiatric Association.

Background in Autism:

Etiology

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Bettleheim, B. (1967). The empty fortress: Infantile autism and

the birth of the self. New York: The Free Press.

Rimland, B. (1964). Infantile autism: The syndrome and its

implications for a neural theory of behavior. Englewood

Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.

Background in Autism:

Treatment

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Psychological

Peck, H. B., Rabinovitch, R. D., & Craner, J. B. (1949). A treatment program for parents of schizophrenic children. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 19, 492-498.

Roser, K. (1996). A review of psychoanalytic theory and treatment of childhood autism. Psychoanalytic Review, 83, 325-341.

Medical

Bender, L. (1947). One hundred cases of childhood schizophrenia treated with electric shock. Transactions of the American Neurological Association, 72, 165-169.

Freedman, A. M., Effron, A. S., & Bender, L. (1955). Pharmacotherapy in children with psychiatric illnesses. Journal of Nervous and Mental Diseases, 122, 479-486.

Background in Behavior Analysis:

B.F. Skinner and Research

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Background in Behavior Analysis:

B.F. Skinner

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Skinner, B. F (1936). The verbal summator and a method for the study of latent speech. Journal

of Psychology, 2, 71-107.

Skinner, B. F., & Heron, W. T. (1937). Effects of caffeine and Benzedrine upon conditioning

and extinction. The Psychological Record, 1, 340-346.

Skinner, B. F (1945a, October). Baby in a box. Introducing the mechanical baby tender. Ladies’

Home Journal, 62, 30-31, 135-136, 138.

Skinner, B. F (1948). Walden two. New York: Macmillan.

Skinner, B. F (195l, December). How to teach animals. Scientific American, 185, 26-29.

Skinner, B. F (1953). Science and human behavior. New York: Macmillan.

Skinner, B. F (1954). The science of learning and the art of teaching. Harvard Educational

Review, 24, 86-97.

Skinner, B. F (1956b). What is psychotic behavior? In F. Gildea (Ed.), Theory and treatment of

the psychoses: Some newer aspects (pp. 77-99). St. Louis, MO: Committee on

Publications, Washington University.

Morris, E. K., Altus, A. E., & Smith, N. G. (2005). B. F. Skinner’s contributions to applied

behavior analysis. The Behavior Analyst, 28, 99-131.

Background in Behavior Analysis:

Research

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Estes, W. K., & Skinner, B. F. (1941). Some quantitative properties of anxiety.

Journal of Experimental Psychology, 29, 390-400.

Fuller, P. R. (1949). Operant conditioning of a vegetative human organism. Journal of

Psychology, 62, 587-590. Bijou, S. W. (1955). A systematic approach to an

experimental analysis of young children. Child Development, 26, 161-168.

Greenspoon, J. (1955). The reinforcing effect of two spoken sounds on the

frequency of two responses. American Journal of Psychology, 68, 409-416.

Azrin, N. H., & Lindlsey, O. R. (1956). The reinforcement of cooperation between

children. Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, 52, 100-102.

Lindsley, O. R. (1956). Operant conditioning methods applied to research in chronic

schizophrenia. Psychiatric Research Reports, 5, 118-139.

Gewirtz, J. L., & Baer, D. M. (1958). The effect of brief social deprivation on

behaviors for a social reinforcer. Journal of Abnormal and Social

Psychology, 56, 49-56.

Background in Behavior Analysis:

Research (Cont.)

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Flanagan, B., Goldiamond, I., & Azrin, N. H. (1958). Operant stuttering: The control of

stuttering behavior through response-contingent consequences. Journal of the

Experimental Analysis of Behavior, 1, 173-177.

Williams, C. D. (1959). The elimination of temper tantrums by extinction procedures.

Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, 59, 269.

Ayllon, T., & Michael, J. (1959). The psychiatric nurse as behavioral engineer. Journal of the

Experimental Analysis of Behavior, 2, 323-334.

Isaacs, W., Thomas, J., & Goldiamond, I. (1960). Application of operant conditioning to

reinstate verbal behavior in psychotics. Journal of Speech and Hearing Disorders,

25, 8-12.

Orlando, R., & Bijou, S. W. (1960). Single and multiple schedules of reinforcement in

developmentally retarded children. Journal of the Experimental Analysis of

Behavior, 4, 339–384.

Morris, E. K., Altus, S. E., & Smith, N. G. (2013). A study in the founding of applied

behavior analysis through its publications. The Behavior Analyst, 36, 70-111.

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Background at Indiana University:

The School of Medicine and

Marian K. DeMyer

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The Indiana University

School of Medicine

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LaRue D. Carter Memorial Hospital

(1952-1996)

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Marian K. DeMyer (circa 1964)

(1922-2002)

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Clinical Research Center Room

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Ferster’s Appointment and Initial

Research and Scholarship

Experimental Analysis of Behavior

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Ferster, C. B. (1960). Intermittent reinforcement of matching to sample in the pigeon. Journal of the Experimental Analysis of Behavior, 3, 259-272.

Ferster, C. B., & Appel, J. B. (1961). Punishment of S- responding in matching to sample by time out from positive reinforcement. Journal of the Experimental Analysis of Behavior, 4, 45-56.

Ferster, C. B., Appel, J. B., & Hiss, R. A. (1962). The effect of drugs in a fixed-ratio performance suppressed by a pre-time-out stimulus. Journal of the Experimental Analysis of Behavior, 5, 73-88.

Zimmerman, J., & Ferster, C. B. (1964). Chained VI performance of pigeons maintained with an added stimulus. Journal of the Experimental Analysis of Behavior, 7, 83-89.

Behavioral Neuroscience

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Ferster, C. B., & Aprison, M. H. (1960). A multiple-unit pigeon apparatus. Journal of the Experimental Analysis of Behavior, 3, 165-166.

Aprison, M. H., & Ferster, C. B. (1961a). Neurochemical correlates of behavior. I. Quantitative measurements of the behavioral effects of the serotonin precursor, 5-hydroxytrytophan. Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics, 131, 100-107.

Aprison, M. H., & Ferster, C. B. (1961b). Neurochemical correlates of behavior. II. Correlation of brain monoamine oxidase activity with behavioral changes after iproniazed and 5 hydroxyltryptophan administration. Journal of Neurochemistry,

6, 350-357.

Aprison, M. H., & Ferster, C. B. (1961c). Serotonin and behavior. Recent Advances in Biological Psychiatry, 3, 151-162.

Behavioral Applications

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Ferster, C. B., Nurnberger, J. I., & Levitt, E. B. (1962).

The control of eating. The Journal of Mathetics, 1,

87-109.

Ferster, C. B. (1960). A semi-automatic teaching machine.

Journal of the Experimental Analysis of Behavior,

3, 245-246.

Nurnberger, J. I., Ferster, C. B., & Brady, J. P. (Eds.).

(1963). An introduction to the science of human

behavior. New York: Appleton-Century-Crofts.

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Ferster, C.B. (1958). Reinforcement and

punishment in the control of human

behavior by social agencies. Psychiatric

Research Reports American Psychiatric

Association, 10,101-18.

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A Behavioral Interpretation of Autism

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Ferster, C. B. (1961). Positive reinforcement and

behavioral deficits in autistic children. Child

Development, 32, 437-456.

The Experimental Analysis of the Behavior

of Children with Autism

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Ferster, C. B., & DeMyer, M. K. (1961a). The development of

performances in autistic children in an automatically

controlled environment. Journal of Chronic Diseases,

13, 312-345.

Ferster, C. B., & DeMyer, M. K. (1962). A method for the

experimental analysis of the autistic child. American

Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 32, 89-98.

Introduction

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Method

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Photo of the experimental room

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Schematic of Room

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8-Column vendor

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Results

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Discussion

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Behavioral Pharmacology in Autism

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Ferster, C. B., & DeMyer, M. K. (1961b). Increased

performances of an autistic child with prochlorperazine

administration. Journal of the Experimental Analysis of

Behavior, 4, 84.

Introduction

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Method

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Matching-to-sample device

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Results

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Discussion

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Application:

Teaching New Social Behavior

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DeMyer, M. K., & Ferster, C. B. (1962). Teaching new social

behavior to schizophrenic children. Journal of the

American Academy of Child Psychiatry, 1, 443-461.

Introduction

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[T]he continuous efforts to treat these…children have met with

only sporadic success. Much of the literature dealing with

[them]…discusses types of approaches used in the one-to-one

therapy situation by professionally trained therapists. This

paper tells of a study in a residential treatment setting using

untrained psychotherapists, consisting of child-care workers,

nurses, and teachers, as the principal therapists of a group of

autistic …children. The treatment is a combined individual-

milieu process directed by a psychiatrist.

Introduction

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Since all psychotherapy is essentially a learning experience,

with the therapist becoming for the child one of the chief

reinforcers and punishers of behavior, the question was raised

as to whether a less complex theory of learning might be used

by child-care workers in a treatment situation…. On the basis

of its simplicity and thus its potential workability by untrained

therapists, the theory of operant conditioning with the concept

of reinforcement (Skinner, 1953; Ferster, 1958) was chosen as

a therapeutic tool.

Method

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Results

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Discussion

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Williams, C. D. (1959). The elimination of temper tantrums by

extinction procedures. Journal of Abnormal and Social

Psychology, 59, 269.

Ayllon, T., & Michael, J. (1959). The psychiatric nurse as

behavioral engineer. Journal of the Experimental

Analysis of Behavior, 2, 323-334.

DeMyer, M. K., & Ferster, C. B. (1962). Teaching new social

behavior to schizophrenic children. Journal of the

American Academy of Child Psychiatry, 1, 443-461.

After Ferster, After Indiana

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DeMyer after Ferster

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Indiana After Ferster

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Basic Research

Applied Research

Intervention Research

Ferster after Indiana

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In Autism

In Behavioral Analysis

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Charles B. Ferster (circa 1972)

(1922-1981)

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The Father of Applied

Behavior Analysis in Autism:

Charles B. Ferster

Edward K. Morris

The University of Kansas

Charryse F. LuckeyThe Lovaas Institute for

Early Intervention

Midwest Headquarters