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SBN History
Although experiments in behavioral endocrinology were
conducted as early as the mid-1800's (see our Founders
Page), the field did not truly begin to develop until the
late 1930's, when pioneers such as Frank
A. Beach and William
C. Young began to investigate the influence of hormones
on mating behavior. These two individuals trained many
of the 20th century's most influential behavioral (neuro-)endocrinologists,
and by the late 1950's, they were organizing occasional
meetings in California for their growing group of colleagues.
Although informal and under various names, the "West
Coast Sex Meetings" began to be held annually in 1965
and continued into the 1980's.
By the late 1960's, the field had grown substantially
and many investigators trained in the West had moved to
the central and eastern US. In order to provide an eastern
equivalent of the West Coast Sex Meetings, Lynwood Clemens
organized the first meeting of the Eastern Regional Conference
on Reproductive Behavior (ERCRB), which held its inaugural
meeting in 1969. The ERCRB meetings were the first of a
series of formally organized meetings that eventually gave
rise to the Society for Behavioral Neuroendocrinology.
In 1978, the ERCRB became simply the CRB, and the CRB increasingly
gathered a national and international attendance. However,
beyond some modest programmatic changes, the CRB remained
a fairly informal organization, and although the focus
had broadened to include reproductive behaviors other than
mating, the meetings did not yet address many other hormone-sensitive
behaviors.
By the mid-1990's, there was a recognition that CRB's
sole focus on reproductive behavior was too narrow
and that this focus limited participation of researchers
with related interests. Clearly a professional society
was needed that covered more broadly what Frank Beach
had called "behavioral
endocrinology." Emilie Rissman spearheaded this effort,
recruiting Rae Silver and Kim Wallen to develop a
new society, which was initially called the Society
for Behavioral Endocrinology. Emilie, Kim and Rae
recruited an advisory board whose first task was
to decide the final name for the society. After much,
sometimes intense, debate the Society for Behavioral
Endocrinology (SBE) became the Society for Behavioral
Neuroendcrinology (SBN) to better reflect the neural, cellular,
and molecular direction of the field. The three founders
developed a set of bylaws and incorporated SBN in
Virginia in 1996. Their efforts came to fruition
when a transitional meeting was held for the CRB and the
newly-formed SBN in Baltimore.
SBN has matured dramatically in just a few short years,
and is now a major force in integrative biology and biomedical
research. The organization has taken bold steps in fostering
students, and has established editorial control of Hormones
and Behavior. Michael Baum was the first SBN-elected Editor
of Hormones and Behavior, and under his leadership this
publication became the premier journal for integrative
studies of behavior, achieving the highest impact factor
of any behavioral journal. Anne Etgen has now relieved
Dr. Baum as Editor. Current
membership is 567 (141 students and 426 faculty) and annual
meeting attendance now exceeds 400, with attendees traveling
from all parts of the globe.
For an excellent review of our history, see: Dewsbury,
D.A., 2003. The conference on reproductive behavior:
a history. Horm. Behav. 43, 465-473.
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