109. Stop the Shock, with Anne Beirne and Brian Middleton

Discover what’s possible when learning doesn’t hurt. 

Ann Beirne is a Board Certified Behavior Analyst with over two decades of experience working with children and families in a variety of settings. She is the co-author of Understanding Ethics in Applied Behavior Analysis: Practical Applications, now in its second edition. The book invites the perspectives of those within and outside the field of behavior analysis to offer commentary on topics including collective bargaining, moral philosophy, neurodiversity, compassionate care, and ethics in research. 

Brian Middleton is a Board Certified Behavior Analyst as well as an Autistic Self-Advocate. He is the creator of the Bearded Behaviorist, an initiative dedicated to the dissemination of behavior science and the inclusion of trauma-informed care standards in applied behavior analysis and other human services. 

In today’s conversation, we discuss: 

• The history of the Judge Rotenberg Center
• The use of contingent electric skin shock 
• Physical and psychological side effects caused by receiving contingent electric shock
• Behavioral principles of reinforcement and punishment
• The Stanford Prison Experiment
• A timeline of legal events leading up to the recent conference at ABAI Boston
• Advice for people who are eager to take action 

The Global Autism Project unequivocally condemns the use of painful aversive procedures under any circumstances, including the use of contingent electric skin shock. In accordance with the United Nations, we believe that the use of CESS is torturous and inhumane, and we advocate for the discontinuation of this concerning and unethical practice. 

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