460 BOOK REVIEWS

at best. Behavior modification is uniquely suited for integrating service and, at least, applied research; by definition, one should both implement and evaluate pro- grams. The scientist-practitioner model may be viable yet, not with these functions split apart as they have often been in the past, but combined--and this calls for development of more integrated training approaches, as well as expanded conceptions of research.

Locus of intervention. A final question is the relation of behavior modification to social change. Some critics conjure up an image of behavioral approaches as a set of control techniques to force-fit children into the status quo. Yet, by definition, behavior modification views behavior in an environmental context and must be con- cerned with making some alteration in that environment. For example, administering drugs to a "hyperactive" child (though sometimes inappropriate) implies, as do some types of psychological treatment, that the problem rests solely within him. By contrast, Patterson argues that "the most efficient approach to the problem of dealing with children who do not adjust to the classroom undoubtedly lies in re-designing the school system." And Stuart, while acknowledging some role for direct service, argues for "the development of skills basic to changing the situational determinants of behavior on either a microsocial or macrosocial scale." Yet the critics are not entirely without justification, for there is in fact considerable variation in the ends toward which behavior modifiers do apply their methods. This is largely a question of value choices, and it not only persists but becomes more pressing when one seeks to alter social institutions rather than adapt the individual to them. An effective action technology is now developing which is specific, observable and readily ex- portable, and therefore questions of how it will be used are among the most im- portant we will address in the future.

In summary, the BANFF Conference is a generally informative, sometimes pro- vocative collection of papers which has something to offer most everyone concerned with training others in behavior modification.

REFERENCE

HOBBS, N. Mental health's third revolution. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 1964, 34, 822-833.

BRUCE L. BAKER Nichols House Harvard University Cambridge, MA

LIBERMAN, ROBERT PAUL. A Guide to Behavioral Analysis and Therapy. New York: Pergamon Press, Inc., 1972. xv + 343 Pp. $9..50 ($5.50 soft cover).

What kind of information do students and therapists need in order to become acquainted with the field of behavior modification? And how should the information be presented? A Guide to Behavioral Analysis and Therapy answers these questions in a very satisfactory way.

Guidebooks vary in style and comprehensiveness. Some present only the very

BOOK REVmWS 461

essential information for the hungry and bewildered tourist while others ramble on forever. Liberman compromises nicely. First, he details ways of describing behavior specifically and then moves rapidly through the essential basic principles of behavior, including positive and negative reinforcement, behavior shaping, extinction, punish- ment and aversive conditioning, generalization, discrimination, and imitative learning. This information is presented skillfully and clearly, and the reader is actively in- volved by having to answer increasingly difficult multiple choice questions. Slow and rapid learners are treated differently; for the first there are more details and prompts, while the latter can skip pages.

In the second part of the book the principles are seen applied in the behavior therapies. Here the main emphasis is on an operant approach to the behavior prob- lems of adults and children emphasizing skillful manipulation of the social environ- ment of the patient or client, a theme which is continued in an appendix wherein behavioral approaches to the family and to couple therapy are described. One rather novel section considers the behavioral aspects of the verbal psychotherapies demon- strating that although they may not call it that, successful psychotherapists often use techniques such as reinforcement and extinction. Also covered are the token economy, systematic desensitization, assertive training, and behavior modification in the classroom. Again multiple choice questions and answers actively involve the reader.

An annotated bibliography prepared by Dr. Daniel E. Brown describes 68 basic publications in a variety of applications of behavior modification. This list contains articles and books published up to 1970, and with this limitation are nicely selected to provide more advanced reading.

This book, ff properly used, will enable the beginner to grasp enough of the essentials of behavior analysis and modification either as a preparation for reading more complex writings or for learning the techniques of behavior therapy under clinical supervision. Although there are 343 pages, a sample of the first hundred revealed that only 9 were full pages of print, and that 29 were completely blank. Since the remainder seem to average about half full, I estimate that the guide is functionally 125 pages in length. One might legitimately ask the publisher, in these days of increasing environmental awareness, how many trees would have been saved if paper could have been used more sparingly!

W. STEWART AGRAS Department of Psychiatry University of Mississippi Medical Center Jackson, Mississippi

COHEN, H. L., & FILIPCZAK, J. A New Learning Environment. San Francisco, Cali- fornia: Jossey-Bass, 1971. xxvi + 192 Pp. $8.75.

Cohen and Filipczak's A New Learning Environment literally demonstrates that the "unmotivated" ean be motivated and that the "unteachable" can be taught, given the appropriate environmental conditions. This book should be made mandatory