![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Poling described EAB as a weak force in the collective drive for greater social impact, going so far as to suggest that the acronym EAB implies an “esoteric” (p. 8) analysis of behavior. The bleakest assessment in this regard was offered by Poling (2010) in his evaluation of the field's basic science wing (normally labeled after its methodological canon, the experimental analysis of behavior, or EAB). They also agreed, however, that considerable work lies ahead before this goal can be accomplished. The authors agreed that behavior analysis can improve both society and its status within society by tackling problems about which laypersons and diverse scientific communities care deeply. Toward this end, the contributors to a recent special section of The Behavior Analyst ( Schlinger, 2010) discussed how our field might productively innovate by connecting with mainstream science and culture. Intellectual movements either evolve or stagnate, so one hopes that tomorrow's behavior analysis will not look exactly like today's. The basic science wing of behavior analysis has been described as especially detached from this goal, but is it really necessary that basic science demonstrate social relevance? If so, why hasn't this occurred more often, and what can be done to improve the status quo? To address these questions and to stimulate discussion about the future of basic behavior science, I describe two widely embraced arguments in favor of pure basic science (that which is undertaken without concern for practical applications) explain why a translational research agenda is likely to better recruit tangible support for basic science propose that addressing practical problems does not require basic science to abandon its focus on fundamental principles and identify some possible impediments to translational innovation that may need to be addressed for basic behavior science to increase its translational footprint. It has been argued that to increase societal impact behavioral researchers must do more to address problems of obvious practical importance. ![]()
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