Article provided the the ACBS UK and Ireland Chapter
Interview with Keynote Speaker
Dr. Louise McHugh, Lecturer, University College Dublin
The programme for the London conference, November 2013, is now finalised and the conference committee is very excited about the depth and breadth of the content that we’re able to offer. As both research and applied activity continue to increase in the world community, the London conference will be a fantastic opportunity for those in this corner of the globe to hear about latest developments and network with others from our own areas and further afield. As a taster of what to expect, we caught up with one of our keynote speakers, Dr. Louise McHugh, to find out about her experiences at the ACBS World Conference in Sydney 2013, what she plans to bring of this to her London plenary, and why she feels so passionate about her work and the future of CBS.
For those of us who didn't make it over to Sydney, were there any new ideas or developments in CBS that really struck or inspired you?
There were a number of presentations that particularly impressed me. Eva Jablonka gave a really eye opening talk on the importance of symbolic inheritance. In order to ground the idea of the cultural transmission of ideas from generation to generation evolutionary biologists have been seeking a coherent understanding of how humans develop symbolic understanding. Meantime, RFT researchers have an empirically validated account of these phenomena as operant behaviour that fits their needs. Darin Cairns, Steve Hayes and I were on a panel with Eva Jablonka that discussed these ideas. Exciting times for CBS and evolutionary science! Other talks I really enjoyed included Denis Embry and Anthony Biglan on getting CBS out to the public via community based work; Darin Cairn’s plenary on how he is applying RFT in his clinic with children and adults with a range of psychological disorders. Dennis Tirch and Paul Gilbert on self-compassion and the compassion focused therapy tradition. Last but not least, Steve Hayes brought the audience to tears (appropriately enough!) when he talked about creating a safe context for emotions. As I say, lots of exciting and potentially world-changing ideas!
How might these influence your own future research - what will we be hearing about in your contribution to the London conference?
Seeing how effective the RFT technology is in the applied setting really inspired me to work on creating accessible protocols that can be rolled out on a wider scale. Darin Cairns’ work, for example, suggests the importance of staying in contact with our applied colleagues so we’re more familiar with the most pressing issues from their point of view.
In my plenary in London I’ll be addressing the issue of perspective taking and empathy from a CBS point of view. I’ll be looking at both the light and dark sides of perspective taking. At its best perspective-taking facilitates empathy, emotionally and intellectually meaningful social interaction and mindfulness. On the not so good side, it can allow manipulation of others as seen for example in some cases of bullying or psychopathic behaviour. My talk will address how we can promote healthy and helpful perspective taking.
As an active and enthusiastic member of the CBS community, what most matters to you about the work that you do? What drives you?
The CBS philosophy on life has made the sweet, crazy moments in my life all the more sweeter by teaching me how to be present with my own experience and to really move towards what matters to me in my personal and professional life even when thoughts of not being good enough pop up. I recently heard a comedy sketch by Russell Brand in which he remarked ‘if you fancy me and think you are not good enough, you probably are’. Although he didn't mean that in the ‘thank your mind’ kind of way that reminded me of how many things I would not have done if I’d believed my thoughts.
What drives me to work in this area is that I believe CBS provides a comprehensive and clear understanding of human behaviour and behaviour change. This approach seems to me to have the potential to contribute powerfully in so many areas - educational, clinical, organizational, etc. The work is just in its infancy in terms of what it can achieve. Being a part of this movement that can help develop more effective education strategies, help people live more meaningful lives and develop caring communities is something I strongly value.
The BABCP ACT SIG has a belief and a commitment to bring ACT to our wider communities, beyond our clinics. Where would you like to see CBS being put to good use?
Our science speaks to so many sectors of society. The most obvious at the moment seem to be clinical and education. But its potential is obvious anywhere in which human beings work and interact with each other. As such, CBS work is becoming popular in organizational settings, sport, the criminal justice system and it can reach into economics and politics as well. Embry and Biglan’s work is reaching out in a top down way to larger systems in the community. This is a truly exciting development. We are seeing a movement in CBS that is now providing an understanding of human behavior and the evolution of culture that can help guide positive cultural change and inheritance. The insight that CBS can provide is essential at a time when human society is changing at an accelerated rate. The Chinese curse is ‘May you live in interesting times’. These are some of the most interesting times in human history. As such they are incredibly exciting but also hold peril both for individuals and society. These are times when we need to maximize the type of scientifically grounded psychological insight and flexibility provided by CBS in order to promote individual health and to guide human society in positive and creative directions rather than fearful and destructive ones.
Want to see Louise McHugh at the London conference in November, 2013? Go here for more info.
Also check out the ACBS World Conference June 2014 in Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA.