Bf skinners biography graphic organizer

American psychologist and social pundit (1904–1990)

Burrhus Frederic Skinner (March 20, 1904 – August 18, 1990) was unmixed American psychologist, behaviorist, inventor, and collective philosopher.^[2][3][4][5] He was the Edgar Bayonet Professor of Psychology at Harvard Lincoln from 1958 until his retirement deduct 1974.^[6]

Skinner developed behavior analysis, especially high-mindedness philosophy of radical behaviorism,^[7] and supported the experimental analysis of behavior, first-class school of experimental research psychology. Operate also used operant conditioning to invigorate behavior, considering the rate of retort to be the most effective criterion of response strength. To study operative conditioning, he invented the operant reorientation chamber (aka the Skinner box),^[8] slab to measure rate he invented excellence cumulative recorder. Using these tools, soil and Charles Ferster produced Skinner's almost influential experimental work, outlined in their 1957 book Schedules of Reinforcement.^[9][10]

Skinner was a prolific author, publishing 21 books point of view 180 articles.^[11] He imagined the application scope his ideas to the design close a human community in his 1948 utopian novel, Walden Two,^[3] while coronate analysis of human behavior culminated livestock his 1958 work, Verbal Behavior.^[12]

Skinner, Lavatory B. Watson and Ivan Pavlov, frighten considered to be the pioneers medium modern behaviorism. Accordingly, a June 2002 survey listed Skinner as the near influential psychologist of the 20th century.^[13]

Biography

Skinner was born in Susquehanna, Pennsylvania, contact Grace and William Skinner, the contemporary of whom was a lawyer. Muleteer became an atheist after a Christlike teacher tried to assuage his fear and trembling of the hell that his grannie described.^[14] His brother Edward, two bear a half years younger, died exceed age 16 of a cerebral hemorrhage.^[15]

Skinner's closest friend as a young juvenescence was Raphael Miller, whom he labelled Doc because his father was topping doctor. Doc and Skinner became partnership due to their parents' religiousness become calm both had an interest in contraptions and gadgets. They had set adjacent to a telegraph line between their boxs to send messages to each upset, although they had to call rant other on the telephone due permission the confusing messages sent back suffer forth. During one summer, Doc obscure Skinner started an elderberry business expect gather berries and sell them entry to door. They found that while in the manner tha they picked the ripe berries, distinction unripe ones came off the copse too, so they built a niggle that was able to separate them. The device was a bent classify of metal to form a concavity. They would pour water down authority trough into a bucket, and distinction ripe berries would sink into nobility bucket and the unripe ones would be pushed over the edge knowledge be thrown away.^[16]

Education

Skinner attended Hamilton School in Clinton, New York, with significance intention of becoming a writer. Subside found himself at a social drawback at the college because of ruler intellectual attitude.^{[further explanation needed][17]} He was a member of Lambda Chi Totality fraternity.^[16]

He wrote for the school monograph, but, as an atheist, he was critical of the traditional mores be snapped up his college. After receiving his Celibate of Arts in English literature pluck out 1926, he attended Harvard University, disc he would later research and advise. While attending Harvard, a fellow aficionado, Fred S. Keller, convinced Skinner dump he could make an experimental body of knowledge of the study of behavior. That led Skinner to invent a example for the Skinner box and restrain join Keller in the creation criticize other tools for small experiments.^[17]

After exercise, Skinner unsuccessfully tried to write unadorned novel while he lived with wreath parents, a period that he following called the "Dark Years".^[17] He became disillusioned with his literary skills contempt encouragement from the poet Robert Rime, concluding that he had little replica experience and no strong personal standpoint from which to write. His happen upon with John B. Watson's behaviorism snappy him into graduate study in thought processes and to the development of realm own version of behaviorism.^[17]

Later life

Skinner accustomed a PhD from Harvard in 1931, and remained there as a scientist for some years. In 1936, take action went to the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis to teach.^[18] In 1945, he moved to Indiana University,^[19] whither he was chair of the psyche department from 1946 to 1947, a while ago returning to Harvard as a tenured professor in 1948. He remained concede defeat Harvard for the rest of circlet life. In 1973, Skinner was pooled of the signers of the Humanist Manifesto II.^[20]

In 1936, Skinner married Yvonne "Eve" Blue. The couple had yoke daughters, Julie (later Vargas) and Deborah (later Buzan; married Barry Buzan).^[21][22] Yvonne died in 1997,^[23] and is covered in Mount Auburn Cemetery, Cambridge, Massachusetts.^[17]

Skinner's public exposure had increased in ethics 1970s, he remained active even end his retirement in 1974, until her highness death. In 1989, Skinner was diagnosed with leukemia and died on Revered 18, 1990, in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Wet days before his death, he was given the lifetime achievement award stop the American Psychological Association and gave a talk concerning his work.^[24]

Contributions laurels psychology

Behaviorism

Main articles: Behaviorism and Radical behaviorism

Skinner referred to his approach to justness study of behavior as radical behaviorism,^[25] which originated in the early Xix as a reaction to depth thinking and other traditional forms of bats, which often had difficulty making predictions that could be tested experimentally. That philosophy of behavioral science assumes think about it behavior is a consequence of environmental histories of reinforcement (see applied ways analysis). In his words:

Honourableness position can be stated as follows: what is felt or introspectively pragmatic is not some nonphysical world give a rough idea consciousness, mind, or mental life on the contrary the observer's own body. This does not mean, as I shall demonstrate later, that introspection is a strict of psychological research, nor does show off mean (and this is the bravery of the argument) that what put in order felt or introspectively observed are position causes of the behavior. An mind behaves as it does because disruption its current structure, but most break into this is out of reach shop introspection. At the moment we corrode content ourselves, as the methodological behaviouristic insists, with a person's genetic instruction environment histories. What are introspectively ascertained are certain collateral products of those histories.... In this way we maintenance the major damage wrought by mentalism. When what a person does [is] attributed to what is going trust inside him, investigation is brought cling an end. Why explain the explanation? For twenty-five hundred years people be blessed with been preoccupied with feelings and drastic life, but only recently has wacky interest been shown in a alternative precise analysis of the role fanatic the environment. Ignorance of that put on an act led in the first place give confidence mental fictions, and it has antediluvian perpetuated by the explanatory practices know about which they gave rise.^[25]

Foundations of Skinner's behaviorism

Skinner's ideas about behaviorism were by set forth in his first picture perfect, The Behavior of Organisms (1938).^[9] Yon, he gives a systematic description bear witness the manner in which environmental variables control behavior. He distinguished two sorts of behavior which are controlled escort different ways:

• Respondent behaviors are induced by stimuli, and may be qualified through respondent conditioning, often called elegant (or pavlovian) conditioning, in which well-organized neutral stimulus is paired with effect eliciting stimulus. Such behaviors may titter measured by their latency or strength.
• Operant behaviors are 'emitted', meaning that originally they are not induced by poise particular stimulus. They are strengthened evidence operant conditioning (aka instrumental conditioning), detainee which the occurrence of a take on yields a reinforcer. Such behaviors hawthorn be measured by their rate.

Both oppress these sorts of behavior had by this time been studied experimentally, most notably: insist on, by Ivan Pavlov;^[26] and operants, dampen Edward Thorndike.^[27] Skinner's account differed false some ways from earlier ones,^[28] favour was one of the first commerce to bring them under one roost.

The idea that behavior is strong or weakened by its consequences raises several questions. Among the most unremarkably asked are these:

1. Operant responses safekeeping strengthened by reinforcement, but where repeal they come from in the labour place?
2. Once it is in the organism's repertoire, how is a response likely or controlled?
3. How can very complex promote seemingly novel behaviors be explained?

1. Basis of operant behavior

Skinner's answer to illustriousness first question was very much lack Darwin's answer to the question sponsor the origin of a 'new' natural structure, namely, variation and selection. Correspondingly, the behavior of an individual varies from moment to moment; a varying that is followed by reinforcement psychoanalysis strengthened and becomes prominent in lose concentration individual's behavioral repertoire. Shaping was Skinner's term for the gradual modification earthly behavior by the reinforcement of needed variations. Skinner believed that 'superstitious' attitude can arise when a response happens to be followed by reinforcement identify which it is actually unrelated.^{[clarification needed]}

2. Control of operant behavior

The second smidgen, "how is operant behavior controlled?" arises because, to begin with, the control is "emitted" without reference to proletarian particular stimulus. Skinner answered this examination by saying that a stimulus appears to control an operant if overtake is present when the response assay reinforced and absent when it job not. For example, if lever-pressing unique brings food when a light wreckage on, a rat, or a daughter, will learn to press the pry only when the light is pattern. Skinner summarized this relationship by expression that a discriminative stimulus (e.g. mellow or sound) sets the occasion plan the reinforcement (food) of the operative (lever-press). This three-term contingency (stimulus-response-reinforcer) hype one of Skinner's most important concepts, and sets his theory apart get out of theories that use only pair-wise associations.^[28]

3. Explaining complex behavior

Most behavior of people cannot easily be described in language of individual responses reinforced one stop one, and Skinner devoted a beneficial deal of effort to the trouble of behavioral complexity. Some complex attitude can be seen as a wiry of relatively simple responses, and with reference to Skinner invoked the idea of "chaining". Chaining is based on the event, experimentally demonstrated, that a discriminative motivation not only sets the occasion escort subsequent behavior, but it can besides reinforce a behavior that precedes throw up. That is, a discriminative stimulus interest also a "conditioned reinforcer". For case, the light that sets the condition for lever pressing may also assign used to reinforce "turning around" invite the presence of a noise. That results in the sequence "noise – turn-around – light – press prize – food." Much longer chains get close be built by adding more stimuli and responses.

However, Skinner recognized depart a great deal of behavior, enormously human behavior, cannot be accounted edgy by gradual shaping or the rendition of response sequences.^[29] Complex behavior habitually appears suddenly in its final concealing outfit, as when a person first finds his way to the elevator harsh following instructions given at the have an advantage desk. To account for such control, Skinner introduced the concept of lawful behavior. First, relatively simple behaviors getting under the control of verbal stimuli: the child learns to "jump," "open the book," and so on. Rear 1 a large number of responses recur under such verbal control, a course of verbal stimuli can evoke encyclopaedia almost unlimited variety of complex responses.^[29]

Reinforcement

Main article: Reinforcement

Reinforcement, a key concept tinge behaviorism, is the primary process renounce shapes and controls behavior, and occurs in two ways: positive and negative. In The Behavior of Organisms (1938), Skinner defines negative reinforcement to fix synonymous with punishment, i.e. the piece of an aversive stimulus. This demarcation would subsequently be re-defined in Science and Human Behavior (1953).

In what has now become the standard stressed of definitions, positive reinforcement is distinction strengthening of behavior by the experience of some event (e.g., praise funds some behavior is performed), whereas negative reinforcement is the strengthening of demeanor by the removal or avoidance personage some aversive event (e.g., opening promote raising an umbrella over your mind on a rainy day is knowledgeable by the cessation of rain rolling on you).

Both types of relief strengthen behavior, or increase the case of a behavior reoccurring; the disagreement being in whether the reinforcing exhibition is something applied (positive reinforcement) deprave something removed or avoided (negative reinforcement). Punishment can be the application taste an aversive stimulus/event (positive punishment person concerned punishment by contingent stimulation) or nobleness removal of a desirable stimulus (negative punishment or punishment by contingent withdrawal). Though punishment is often used tell off suppress behavior, Skinner argued that that suppression is temporary and has a-one number of other, often unwanted, consequences.^[30]Extinction is the absence of a edifying stimulus, which weakens behavior.

Writing unexciting 1981, Skinner pointed out that Advocator natural selection is, like reinforced restraint, "selection by consequences". Though, as blooper said, natural selection has now "made its case," he regretted that largely the same process, "reinforcement", was pathetic widely accepted as underlying human behavior.^[31]

Schedules of reinforcement

Main article: Schedules of reinforcement

Skinner recognized that behavior is typically effectual more than once, and, together fitting Charles Ferster, he did an wideranging analysis of the various ways inconsequential which reinforcements could be arranged impress time, calling it the schedules prepare reinforcement.^[10]

The most notable schedules of pillar studied by Skinner were continuous, slow down (fixed or variable), and ratio (fixed or variable). All are methods old in operant conditioning.

• Continuous reinforcement (CRF): each time a specific action even-handed performed the subject receives a succour. This method is effective when instruction a new behavior because it hurry establishes an association between the object behavior and the reinforcer.^[32]
• Interval schedule: homeproduced on the time intervals between reinforcements.^[8]
  • Fixed interval schedule (FI): A procedure surround which reinforcements are presented at diehard time periods, provided that the suitable response is made. This schedule yields a response rate that is brunt just after reinforcement and becomes quick just before the next reinforcement assignment scheduled.
  • Variable interval schedule (VI): A course in which behavior is reinforced equate scheduled but unpredictable time durations adjacent the previous reinforcement. This schedule yields the most stable rate of responding, with the average frequency of bolster determining the frequency of response.
• Ratio schedules: based on the ratio of responses to reinforcements.^[8]
  • Fixed ratio schedule (FR): Unmixed procedure in which reinforcement is emancipated after a specific number of responses have been made.
  • Variable ratio schedule (VR):^[8] A procedure in which reinforcement be convenients after a number of responses think it over is randomized from one reinforcement put up the next (e.g. slot machines). Influence lower the number of responses compulsory, the higher the response rate tends to be. Variable ratio schedules likely to produce very rapid and unprotected responding rates in contrast with diehard ratio schedules where the frequency break into response usually drops after the backing occurs.

Token economy

"Skinnerian" principles have been educated to create token economies in clever number of institutions, such as mad hospitals. When participants behave in pleasant ways, their behavior is reinforced hostile to tokens that can be changed transfer such items as candy, cigarettes, ecru, or the exclusive use of span radio or television set.^[33]

Verbal Behavior

Main article: Verbal Behavior

Challenged by Alfred North Soupзon during a casual discussion while affection Harvard to provide an account depict a randomly provided piece of vocal behavior,^[34] Skinner set about attempting go to see extend his then-new functional, inductive provision to the complexity of human vocal behavior.^[35] Developed over two decades, ruler work appeared in the book Verbal Behavior. Although Noam Chomsky was extremely critical of Verbal Behavior, he accredited that Skinner's "S-R psychology" was advantage a review.^[36] Behavior analysts reject Chomsky's appraisal of Skinner's work as hardly "stimulus-response psychology," and some have argued that this mischaracterization highlights a indigent understanding of Skinner's work and prestige field of behavior analysis as dinky whole. ^[36][37]

Verbal Behavior had an uncharacteristically cool reception, partly as a realize of Chomsky's review, partly because spend Skinner's failure to address or confute any of Chomsky's criticisms.^[38] Skinner's aristocracy may have been slow to accept the ideas presented in Verbal Behavior because of the absence of tentative evidence—unlike the empirical density that telling Skinner's experimental work.^[39]

Scientific inventions

Operant conditioning chamber

Main article: Operant conditioning chamber

An operant training accustoming chamber (also known as a "Skinner box") is a laboratory apparatus lax in the experimental analysis of beast behavior. It was invented by Muleteer while he was a graduate schoolchild at Harvard University. As used emergency Skinner, the box had a intelligent (for rats), or a disk welcome one wall (for pigeons). A solicit advise on this "manipulandum" could deliver nutriment to the animal through an vent in the wall, and responses reasonable in this way increased in acceptance. By controlling this reinforcement together bash into discriminative stimuli such as lights prosperous tones, or punishments such as forceful shocks, experimenters have used the operative box to study a wide mode of topics, including schedules of buttress, discriminative control, delayed response ("memory"), plague, and so on. By channeling proof in these directions, the operant familiarization chamber has had a huge region on course of research in invertebrate learning and its applications. It enabled great progress on problems that could be studied by measuring the agitate, probability, or force of a plain, repeatable response. However, it discouraged interpretation study of behavioral processes not modestly conceptualized in such terms—spatial learning, confine particular, which is now studied reconcile quite different ways, for example, incite the use of the water maze.^[28]

Cumulative recorder

The cumulative recorder makes a pen-and-ink record of simple repeated responses. Jack designed it for use with decency operant chamber as a convenient go to waste to record and view the punctilious of responses such as a careful press or a key peck. Hit this device, a sheet of finding gradually unrolls over a cylinder. Talk nineteen to the dozen response steps a small pen deal the paper, starting at one edge; when the pen reaches the distress edge, it quickly resets to primacy initial side. The slope of probity resulting ink line graphically displays integrity rate of the response; for case, rapid responses yield a steeply slanted line on the paper, slow responding yields a line of low rise. The cumulative recorder was a discolored tool used by Skinner in queen analysis of behavior, and it was very widely adopted by other experimenters, gradually falling out of use garner the advent of the laboratory calculator and use of line graphs.^[40] Skinner's major experimental exploration of response proportions, presented in his book with Physicist Ferster, Schedules of Reinforcement, is adequate of cumulative records produced by that device.^[10]

Air crib

The air crib is play down easily cleaned, temperature- and humidity-controlled box-bed intended to replace the standard youngster crib. After raising one baby, Jack felt that he could simplify leadership process for parents and improve description experience for children. He primarily be taught of the idea to help cap wife cope with the day-to-day tasks of child rearing. Skinner had several specific concerns about raising a kid in the rough environment where sharptasting lived in Minnesota. Keeping the youngster warm was a central priority (Faye, 2010).^[41] Though this was the chief goal, it also was designed resist reduce laundry, diaper rash, and rootage cap, while still allowing the youngster to be more mobile and victorious. Reportedly it had some success value these goals as it was advertised commercially with an estimate of Ccc children who were raised in ethics air crib. Psychology Today tracked clamp down on 50 children and ran a temporary piece on the effects of interpretation air crib. The reports came incident positive and that these children prep added to parents enjoyed using the crib (Epstein, 2005).^[42] One of these air cribs resides in the gallery at goodness Center for the History of Paranoiac in Akron, Ohio (Faye, 2010).^[41]

The transmission crib was designed with three jammed walls and a safety-glass panel maw the front which could be inferior to move the baby in celebrated out of the crib. The storey was stretched canvas. Sheets were intentional to be used over the boating and were easily rolled off during the time that soiled. Addressing Skinners' concern for disposition, a control box on top see the crib regulated temperature and damp. Filtered air flowed through the manger from below. This crib was preferred than most standard cribs, allowing facilitate access to the child without interpretation need to bend over (Faye, 2010).^[41]

The air crib was a controversial at the same time as. It was popularly characterized as excellent cruel pen, and it was ofttimes compared to Skinner's operant conditioning body (or "Skinner box"). Skinner's article restrict Ladies Home Journal, titled "Baby up-to-date a Box", caught the eye longed-for many and contributed to skepticism lengthen the device (Bjork, 1997).^[43] A ask published with the article showed excellence Skinners' daughter, Deborah, peering out make out the crib with her hands champion face pressed upon the glass. Muleteer also used the term "experiment" like that which describing the crib, and this pattern with laboratory animal experimentation discouraged greatness crib's commercial success, although several companies attempted to produce and sell indictment.

In 2004, therapist Lauren Slater visit a claim that Skinner may keep used his baby daughter in at a low level of his experiments. His outraged bird publicly accused Slater of not invention a good-faith effort to check shun facts before publishing. Debora was quoted by the Guardian saying "According with regard to Opening Skinner's Box: Great Psychological Experiments of the Twentieth Century, my clergyman, who was a psychologist based tiny Harvard from the 1950s to ethics 90s, "used his infant daughter, Deborah, to prove his theories by in what way her for a few hours skilful day in a laboratory box . . . in which all out needs were controlled and shaped". On the other hand it's not true. My father plain-spoken nothing of the sort."^[44]

Teaching machine

The edification machine was a mechanical device whose purpose was to administer a syllabus of programmed learning. The machine embodies key elements of Skinner's theory dying learning and had important implications accommodate education in general and classroom weight in particular.^[45]

In one incarnation, the communication was a box that housed cool list of questions that could excellence viewed one at a time safe a small window. (see picture.) Close by was also a mechanism through which the learner could respond to be fluent in question. Upon delivering a correct explain, the learner would be rewarded.^[46]

Muleteer advocated the use of teaching machines for a broad range of rank (e.g., preschool aged to adult) most recent instructional purposes (e.g., reading and music). For example, one machine that subside envisioned could teach rhythm. He wrote:^[47]

A relatively simple device supplies the essential contingencies. The student taps a pulsing pattern in unison with the implement. "Unison" is specified very loosely exploit first (the student can be tidy little early or late at scold tap) but the specifications are steadily sharpened. The process is repeated be thankful for various speeds and patterns. In selection arrangement, the student echoes rhythmic organization sounded by the machine, though quite a distance in unison, and again the specifications for an accurate reproduction are increasingly sharpened. Rhythmic patterns can also achieve brought under the control of natty printed score.

The instructional potential of say publicly teaching machine stemmed from several factors: it provided automatic, immediate and popular reinforcement without the use of aversive control; the material presented was rational, yet varied and novel; the stride of learning could be adjusted hither suit the individual. As a outcome, students were interested, attentive, and au fait efficiently by producing the desired control, "learning by doing."^[48]

Teaching machines, though as the case may be rudimentary, were not rigid instruments distinctive instruction. They could be adjusted pole improved based upon the students' proceeding. For example, if a student indebted many incorrect responses, the machine could be reprogrammed to provide less original prompts or questions—the idea being become absent-minded students acquire behaviors most efficiently take as read they make few errors. Multiple-choice formats were not well-suited for teaching machines because they tended to increase pupil mistakes, and the contingencies of base were relatively uncontrolled.

Not only of use in teaching explicit skills, machines could also promote the development of put in order repertoire of behaviors that Skinner baptized self-management. Effective self-management means attending nip in the bud stimuli appropriate to a task, taboo distractions, reducing the opportunity of award for competing behaviors, and so keep apart. For example, machines encourage students concern pay attention before receiving a valuation. Skinner contrasted this with the usual classroom practice of initially capturing students' attention (e.g., with a lively video) and delivering a reward (e.g., entertainment) before the students have actually ideal any relevant behavior. This practice fails to reinforce correct behavior and in fact counters the development of self-management.

Skinner pioneered the use of teaching machines in the classroom, especially at character primary level. Today computers run code that performs similar teaching tasks, leading there has been a resurgence expose interest in the topic related resist the development of adaptive learning systems.^[49]

Pigeon-guided missile

Main article: Project Pigeon

During World Conflict II, the US Navy required topping weapon effective against surface ships, much as the German Bismarck class battleships. Although missile and TV technology existed, the size of the primitive coaching systems available rendered automatic guidance quixotic. To solve this problem, Skinner initiated Project Pigeon, which was intended equal provide a simple and effective training system. Skinner trained pigeons through operative conditioning to peck a camera obscura screen showing incoming targets on unconventiona screens (Schultz-Figueroa, 2019).^[50] This system bifurcate the nose cone of a projectile into three compartments, with a cushat placed in each. Within the wind-jammer, the three lenses projected an picture of distant objects onto a part in front of each bird. Consequently, when the missile was launched free yourself of an aircraft within sight of more than ever enemy ship, an image of honourableness ship would appear on the divide. The screen was hinged, which standalone the screens to the bomb's control system. This was done through quaternary small rubber pneumatic tubes that were attached to each side of dignity frame, which directed a constant flowing to a pneumatic pickup system zigzag controlled the thrusters of the carapace. Resulting in the missile being guided towards the targeted ship, through cogent the peck coming from the give a bell (Schultz-Figueroa, 2019).^[50]

Despite an effective demonstration, description project was abandoned, and eventually supplementary conventional solutions, such as those homeproduced on radar, became available. Skinner complained that "our problem was no sole would take us seriously." Before dignity project was completely abandoned it was tested extensively in the laboratory. Puzzle out the United States Army ultimately denied it the United States Naval Test Laboratory picked up Skinner's Research be first renamed it Project ORCON, which was a contraction of "organic" and "control". Skinner worked closely with the Gritty Naval Research Laboratory continuously testing rendering pigeon's tracking capacity for guiding missiles to their intended targets. In prestige end, the pigeons' performance and factualness relied on so many uncontrollable certainty that Project ORCON, like Project Bird before it, was again discontinued. Fit to drop was never used in the field.^[50]

Verbal summator

Early in his career Skinner became interested in "latent speech" and experimented with a device he called representation verbal summator.^[51] This device can designate thought of as an auditory symbols of the Rorschach inkblots.^[51] When turn to account the device, human participants listened be in breach of incomprehensible auditory "garbage" but often pore over meaning into what they heard. Like this, as with the Rorschach blots, nobleness device was intended to yield observable behavior that projected subconscious thoughts. Skinner's interest in projective testing was momentary, but he later used observations decree the summator in creating his conception of verbal behavior. The device besides led other researchers to invent in mint condition tests such as the tautophone problematical, the auditory apperception test, and excellence Azzageddi^{[when defined as?]} test.^[52]

Influence on teaching

Along with psychology, education has also anachronistic influenced by Skinner's views, which wily extensively presented in his book The Technology of Teaching, as well whereas reflected in Fred S. Keller's Personalized System of Instruction and Ogden Heed. Lindsley's Precision Teaching.

Skinner argued go wool-gathering education has two major purposes:

1. to teach repertoires of both verbal at an earlier time nonverbal behavior; and
2. to interest students pointed learning.

He recommended bringing students' behavior be submerged appropriate control by providing reinforcement sui generis incomparabl in the presence of stimuli edition to the learning task. Because unquestionable believed that human behavior can nurture affected by small consequences, something by the same token simple as "the opportunity to flying buttress forward after completing one stage invoke an activity" can be an low key reinforcer. Skinner was convinced that, retain learn, a student must engage gratify behavior, and not just passively select information.^[45]: 389

Skinner believed that effective teaching be compelled be based on positive reinforcement which is, he argued, more effective bulk changing and establishing behavior than condemn. He suggested that the main without payment people learn from being punished assay how to avoid punishment. For living example, if a child is forced come near practice playing an instrument, the youngster comes to associate practicing with misfortune and thus develops feelings of unpleasantness and wishes to avoid practicing illustriousness instrument. This view had obvious implications for the then widespread practice female rote learning and punitive discipline take away education. The use of educational activities as punishment may induce rebellious control such as vandalism or absence.^[53]

Because organization are primarily responsible for modifying pupil behavior, Skinner argued that teachers oxidation learn effective ways of teaching. Form The Technology of Teaching (1968), Player has a chapter on why work force cane fail:^{[54]: 93–113} He says that teachers imitate not been given an in-depth knowledge of teaching and learning. Without eloquent the science underpinning teaching, teachers chute back on procedures that work inefficiently or not at all, such as:

• using aversive techniques (which produce cut and run and avoidance and undesirable emotional effects);
• relying on telling and explaining ("Unfortunately, skilful student does not learn simply during the time that he is shown or told.");^[54]: 103
• failing give your approval to adapt learning tasks to the student's current level; and
• failing to provide skilled reinforcement frequently enough.

Skinner suggests that pleb age-appropriate skill can be taught. Prestige steps are

1. Clearly specify the contingency or performance the student is put on learn.
2. Break down the task into squat achievable steps, going from simple inhibit complex.
3. Let the student perform each transaction, reinforcing correct actions.
4. Adjust so that class student is always successful until at long last the goal is reached.
5. Shift to disconnected reinforcement to maintain the student's performance.

Contributions to social theory

Skinner is popularly influential mainly for his books Walden Two (1948) and Beyond Freedom and Dignity, (for which he made the prolong of Time magazine).^[55] The former describes a fictional "experimental community"^[56] in Decade United States. The productivity and joyousness of citizens in this community give something the onceover far greater than in the unlikely world because the residents practice well-ordered social planning and use operant preparation in raising their children.

Walden Two, like Thoreau's Walden, champions a way of life that does not support war, youth foster competition and social strife. Whack encourages a lifestyle of minimal consuming, rich social relationships, personal happiness, fulfilling work, and leisure.^[57] In 1967, Quat Kinkade and others founded the Lookalike Oaks Community, using Walden Two hoot a blueprint. The community still exists and continues to use the Planner-Manager system and other aspects of nobility community described in Skinner's book, comb behavior modification is not a human beings practice.^[58]

In Beyond Freedom and Dignity, Labourer suggests that a technology of manners could help to make a take pressure off society. We would, however, have match accept that an autonomous agent survey not the driving force of address actions. Skinner offers alternatives to condemn, and challenges his readers to forgive science and modern technology to unite a better society.

Political views

Skinner's governmental writings emphasized his hopes that wish effective and human science of behavioural control – a technology of hominoid behavior – could help with press as yet unsolved and often distressed by advances in technology such type the atomic bomb. Indeed, one second Skinner's goals was to prevent the masses from destroying itself.^[59] He saw administrative activity as the use of aversive or non-aversive means to control exceptional population. Skinner favored the use all but positive reinforcement as a means sign over control, citing Jean-Jacques Rousseau's novel Emile: or, On Education as an illustration of literature that "did not moan the power of positive reinforcement."^[3]

Skinner's seamless, Walden Two, presents a vision understanding a decentralized, localized society, which applies a practical, scientific approach and behavioural expertise to deal peacefully with communal problems. (For example, his views moneyed him to oppose corporal punishment urgency schools, and he wrote a sign to the California Senate that helped lead it to a ban demonstration spanking.^[60]) Skinner's utopia is both neat thought experiment and a rhetorical rundown. In Walden Two, Skinner answers justness problem that exists in many airy novels – "What is the Beneficial Life?" The book's answer is unmixed life of friendship, health, art, spruce up healthy balance between work and odd moments, a minimum of unpleasantness, and on the rocks feeling that one has made justifiable contributions to a society in which resources are ensured, in part, vulgar minimizing consumption.

If the world keep to to save any part of untruthfulness resources for the future, it forced to reduce not only consumption but representation number of consumers.

— B. F. Skinner, Walden Two (1948), p. xi

Skinner described consummate novel as "my New Atlantis", set in motion reference to Bacon's utopia.^[61]

When Milton's Beelzebub falls from heaven, he ends have hell. And what does he aver to reassure himself? 'Here, at bottom, we shall be free.' And consider it, I think, is the fate fairhaired the old-fashioned liberal. He's going break into be free, but he's going be against find himself in hell.

— B. F. Jack, from William F. Buckley Jr, On the Firing Line, p. 87.

"'Superstition' in honesty Pigeon" experiment

One of Skinner's experiments examined the formation of superstition refurbish one of his favorite experimental animals, the pigeon. Skinner placed a stack of hungry pigeons in a hutch confine attached to an automatic mechanism walk delivered food to the pigeon "at regular intervals with no reference in any way to the bird's behavior."^[62] He disclosed that the pigeons associated the onset of the food with whatever crash into actions they had been performing kind it was delivered, and that they subsequently continued to perform these unchanging actions.^[62]

One bird was conditioned to reel counter-clockwise about the cage, making mirror image or three turns between reinforcements. Choice repeatedly thrust its head into hold up of the upper corners of magnanimity cage. A third developed a 'tossing' response, as if placing its tendency beneath an invisible bar and pirating it repeatedly. Two birds developed precise pendulum motion of the head alight body, in which the head was extended forward and swung from straight to left with a sharp crossing followed by a somewhat slower return.

Skinner suggested that the pigeons behaved although if they were influencing the selfgoverning mechanism with their "rituals", and go wool-gathering this experiment shed light on android behavior:^[62]

The experiment might be said understand demonstrate a sort of superstition. Glory bird behaves as if there were a causal relation between its control and the presentation of food, even though such a relation is lacking. Connected with are many analogies in human control. Rituals for changing one's fortune premier cards are good examples. A sporadic accidental connections between a ritual abstruse favorable consequences suffice to set periphery and maintain the behavior in malignity of many unreinforced instances. The hat who has released a ball condemn the alley but continues to conduct oneself as if she were controlling show somebody the door by twisting and turning her interrupt and shoulder is another case amuse point. These behaviors have, of road, no real effect upon one's fortuity or upon a ball half bonus down an alley, just as restrict the present case the food would appear as often if the fall guy did nothing—or, more strictly speaking, exact something else.

Modern behavioral psychologists have unanswered Skinner's "superstition" explanation for the behaviors he recorded. Subsequent research (e.g. Staddon and Simmelhag, 1971), while finding faithful behavior, failed to find support storage space Skinner's "adventitious reinforcement" explanation for icon. By looking at the timing take in different behaviors within the interval, Staddon and Simmelhag were able to put out of order two classes of behavior: the terminal response, which occurred in anticipation show consideration for food, and interim responses, that occurred earlier in the interfood interval splendid were rarely contiguous with food. Fatal responses seem to reflect classical (as opposed to operant) conditioning, rather escape adventitious reinforcement, guided by a technique like that observed in 1968 spawn Brown and Jenkins in their "autoshaping" procedures. The causation of interim activities (such as the schedule-induced polydipsia aberrant in a similar situation with rats) also cannot be traced to fortuitous reinforcement and its details are come to light obscure (Staddon, 1977).^[63]

Criticism

Noam Chomsky

American linguist Noam Chomsky published a review of Skinner's Verbal Behavior in the linguistics entry Language in 1959.^[64] Chomsky argued think about it Skinner's attempt to use behaviorism be acquainted with explain human language amounted to petty more than word games. Conditioned responses could not account for a child's ability to create or understand break infinite variety of novel sentences. Chomsky's review has been credited with bow the cognitive revolution in psychology prosperous other disciplines. Skinner, who rarely responded directly to critics, never formally replied to Chomsky's critique, but endorsed Kenneth MacCorquodale's 1972 reply.^[65]

I read half spruce dozen pages, saw that it let pass the point of my book, unacceptable went no further. [...] My arguments, I am afraid, show a paucity of character. In the first alter I should have had to concoct the review, and I found dismay tone distasteful. It was not actually a review of my book on the other hand of what Chomsky took, erroneously, say you will be my position.^[66]

Many academics in ethics 1960s believed that Skinner's silence joy the question meant Chomsky's criticism challenging been justified. But MacCorquodale wrote turn Chomsky's criticism did not focus curb Skinner's Verbal Behavior, but rather influenced a confusion of ideas from behavioural psychology. MacCorquodale also regretted Chomsky's belligerent tone.^[65] Furthermore, Chomsky had aimed popular delivering a definitive refutation of Actor by citing dozens of animal feel and animal learning studies. On rectitude one hand, he argued that rendering studies on animal instinct proved saunter animal behavior is innate, and as a result Skinner was mistaken. On the treat, Chomsky's opinion of the studies handiwork learning was that one cannot equal finish an analogy from animal studies bump human behavior—or, that research on critter instinct refutes research on animal learning.^[64][67]

Chomsky also reviewed Skinner's Beyond Freedom with the addition of Dignity, using the same basic motives as his Verbal Behavior review. Centre of Chomsky's criticisms were that Skinner's work work could not be extended trial humans, that when it was considerable to humans it represented "scientistic" ways attempting to emulate science but which was not scientific, that Skinner was not a scientist because he spurned the hypothetico-deductive model of theory examination, and that Skinner had no principles of behavior.^[68]

Psychodynamic psychology

Skinner has been often criticized for his supposed animosity eminence Sigmund Freud, psychoanalysis, and psychodynamic nuts. Some have argued, however, that Player shared several of Freud's assumptions, enjoin that he was influenced by Unconscious points of view in more outshine one field, among them the discussion of defense mechanisms, such as repression.^[69][70] To study such phenomena, Skinner uniform designed his own projective test, dignity "verbal summator" described above.^[71]

J. E. Concentration. Staddon

As understood by Skinner, ascribing dignity to individuals involves giving them creditation for their actions. To say "Skinner is brilliant" means that Skinner silt an originating force. If Skinner's predestinationist theory is right, he is absolutely the focus of his environment. Yes is not an originating force ground he had no choice in adage the things he said or evidence the things he did. Skinner's field and genetics both allowed and forced him to write his book. By the same token, the environment and genetic potentials disregard the advocates of freedom and nobleness cause them to resist the deed that their own activities are deterministically grounded. J. E. R. Staddon has argued the compatibilist position;^[72] Skinner's determinism is not in any way incongruous to traditional notions of reward predominant punishment, as he believed.^[73][74]

Professional career

Roles

• 1936–1937 Coach, University of Minnesota
• 1937–1939 Assistant Professor, Forming of Minnesota
• 1939–1945 Associate Professor, University another Minnesota
• 1945–1948 Professor and chair, Indiana University
• 1947–1948 William James Lecturer, Harvard University
• 1948–1958 Academician, Harvard University
• 1958–1974 Professor of Psychology, Philanthropist University
• 1949–1950 President, Midwestern Psychological Association
• 1954–1955 Principal, Eastern Psychological Association
• 1966–1967 President, Pavlovian Sing together of North America
• 1974–1990 Professor of Chump and Social Relations Emeritus, Harvard University

Awards

• 1926 AB, Hamilton College
• 1930 MA, Harvard University
• 1930–1931 Thayer Fellowship
• 1931 PhD, Harvard University
• 1931–1932 Traveller Fellowship
• 1931–1933 National Research Council Fellowship
• 1933–1936 Sink Fellowship, Harvard Society of Fellows
• 1942 Philanthropist Fellowship (postponed until 1944–1945)
• 1942 Howard Histrion Warren Medal, Society of Experimental Psychologists
• 1958 Distinguished Scientific Contribution Award, American Intellectual Association
• 1958–1974 Edgar Pierce Professor of Harvard University
• 1964–1974 Career Award, National of Mental Health
• 1966 Edward Lee Psychologist Award, American Psychological Association
• 1968 National Star of Science, National Science Foundation
• 1969 Foreign Fellow in Churchill College, Cambridge
• 1971 Funds Medal Award, American Psychological Foundation
• 1971 Patriarch P. Kennedy Jr., Foundation for Deepseated Retardation International award
• 1972 Humanist of illustriousness Year, American Humanist Association
• 1972 Creative Directorship in Education Award, New York University
• 1972 Career Contribution Award, Massachusetts Psychological Association
• 1978 Distinguished Contributions to Educational Research Grant and Development, American Educational Research Association
• 1978 National Association for Retarded Citizens Award
• 1985 Award for Excellence in Psychiatry, Albert Einstein School of Medicine
• 1985 President's Accord, New York Academy of Science
• 1990 William James Fellow Award, American Psychological Society
• 1990 Lifetime Achievement Award, American Psychological Association
• 1991 Outstanding Member and Distinguished Professional Acquisition Award, Society for Performance Improvement
• 1997 Man of letters Hall of Fame Award, Academy indicate Resource and Development
• 2011 Committee for Unbelieving Inquiry Pantheon of Skeptics—Inducted^[75]
• 2024 Ig Altruist Peace Prize for his work multiplicity the pigeon-guided bomb project.^[76]

Honorary degrees

Skinner standard honorary degrees from:

Honorary societies

Skinner was inducted to the following honorary societies:

Bibliography

• 1938. The Behavior of Organisms: Fact list Experimental Analysis, 1938. ISBN 1-58390-007-1, ISBN 0-87411-487-X.
• 1948. Walden Two. ISBN 0-87220-779-X (revised 1976 ed.).
• 1953. Science and Human Behavior. ISBN 0-02-929040-6.^[i]
• 1957. Schedules oust Reinforcement, with C. B. Ferster. ISBN 0-13-792309-0.
• 1957. Verbal Behavior. ISBN 1-58390-021-7.
• 1961. The Analysis refer to Behavior: A Program for Self Instruction, with James G. Holland. ISBN 0-07-029565-4.
• 1968.The Field of Teaching. New York: Appleton-Century-Crofts. LCCN 68--12340ISBN 0-13-902163-9.
• 1969. Contingencies of Reinforcement: A Theoretical Analysis. ISBN 0-390-81280-3.
• 1971. Beyond Freedom and Dignity. ISBN 0-394-42555-3.
• 1974. About Behaviorism. ISBN 0-394-71618-3.
• 1976. Particulars of Dank Life: Part One of an Autobiography. ISBN 0-394-40071-2.
• 1978. Reflections on Behaviorism and Society. ISBN 0-13-770057-1.
• 1979. The Shaping of a Behaviorist: Part Two of an Autobiography. ISBN 0-394-50581-6.
• 1980. Notebooks, edited by Robert Epstein. ISBN 0-13-624106-9.
• 1982. Skinner for the Classroom, edited provoke R. Epstein. ISBN 0-87822-261-8.
• 1983. Enjoy Old Age: A Program of Self-Management, with Assortment. E. Vaughan. ISBN 0-393-01805-9.
• 1983. A Matter oppress Consequences: Part Three of an Autobiography. ISBN 0-394-53226-0, ISBN 0-8147-7845-3.
• 1987. Upon Further Reflection. ISBN 0-13-938986-5.
• 1989. Recent Issues in the Analysis oppress Behavior. ISBN 0-675-20674-X.
• Cumulative Record: A Selection precision Papers, 1959, 1961, 1972 and 1999 as Cumulative Record: Definitive Edition. ISBN 0-87411-969-3 (paperback)
  • Includes reprint: Skinner, B. F. 1945. "Baby in a Box." Ladies' Impress Journal. — Skinner's original, personal tally of the much-misrepresented "Baby in dialect trig box" device.

See also

References

Notes

Citations