Can contextualism help?

Abstract

The journal Behavior Therapy reflects the evolution of the field over the past 30 years, from an emphasis on analogue studies with college students and operant approaches with institutionalized subjects to increased use of clinical populations and the incorporation of cognitive therapy. Behavior therapy, as of 1997, has little to do with its philosophical roots in behaviorism, and we have paid a price for our departure from those roots. There is little left that is unique to behavior therapy, and certainly no unifying theory. We need go no further than the philosophical roots of behaviorism. It is suggested that contextualism provides a much needed overarching system that not only unites behavioral interventions, but has demonstrated some vitality in recent years for creating new interventions that do not emphasize cognitive therapy. The future of behavior therapy would be best served by revisiting our philosophical roots, returning to functional analytic thinking, and by attending to context.