The conference on reproductive behavior: a history

The Society for Behavioral Neuroendocrinology was, in part, an outgrowth of the Conference on Reproductive Behavior, which was, in turn, an outgrowth of the West Coast Sex Meetings. In this article I trace the history of these organizations. The West Coast meetings provided an opportunity for free and informal exchange among west coast researchers studying sexual behavior. The 29 meetings of the Conference on Reproductive Behavior began with a similar format that evolved as success and growth forced numerous changes. With time, the meetings became more structured and more dependent on time limits, and added invited addresses, symposia, workshops, roundtables, posters, tours, and papers presented by abstract only. The administrative structure was kept as simple as possible. With changing times, these informal meetings eventually were superseded by the Society for Behavioral Neuroendocrinology.