Behaviorism
Behaviorism is the theory that human or animal psychology can be objectively studied through observable actions (behaviors).
There are two main types of behaviorism: methodological behaviorism and radical behaviorism.
Behaviorists believe humans learn behaviors through conditioning, which associates a stimulus in the environment, such as a sound, with a response, such as what a human does when they hear that sound. Key studies in behaviorism demonstrate the difference between two types of conditioning: classical conditioning and operant conditioning [1].
First, behaviorism is a philosophy of science dictating standards for posing psychological questions and for the methodology, explanations, and psychological theory involved in answering them. Second, it is a philosophy of mind that makes certain assumptions about human nature and the working of the mind. Third, there are several general empirical hypotheses that constitute a background theory for all behavioral theories. Fourth, behaviorism is an ideology, recommend in goals for behavioral science and its application [Zuriff, 687].
Behaviorism emphases experimental methods and focuses on variables we can observe, measure and manipulate, and avoids whatever is subjective, internal, and unavailable - i.e. mental [Woollard, 19].
Behaviorism came into use as a term first associated with classical conditioning. With Pavlov’s dogs, the effect is linear and one-way, i.e., the environment controls behavior.
The Radical Behaviorism of B. F. Skinner
Skinner’s approach to the science of behavior is now known as behavior analysis. The philosophy of science underlying behavior analysis is called radical behaviorism. The term radical implies thoroughgoing and comprehensive behaviorism rather than an extreme position that is fanatically restricted to only publicly observable behavior. Skinner (1989) explicitly linked his ideas to the philosophy of science [Moore, p. 450].
Some Basic Principles of B. F. Skinner’s “Radical Behaviorism”:
Behavior: A subject matter in its right
Behavior is the name for that part of the functioning of an organism that consists of interacting or having commerce with its surrounding environmental circumstances. An instance of behavior is an event.
Analytic concepts: Functional, relational, and generic
Definitions of concepts are functional and relational. For example, a reinforcer is defined in terms of its function. It is a consequence of a response that increases the probability of the response. Furthermore, it is defined by its relation to the response in question.
Behavior: Public and private
Although many behavioral events are publicly observable, not all are. Some behavioral events are “private” in the sense that they are accessible only to the person who is behaving. Private behavioral events are determined by the tools or characteristics of an observer rather than by anything about the nature of the event itself (Donahoe & Palmer, 1994).
Opposition to mentalism
Mentalism is the appeal to causes of behavior (e.g., acts, states, mechanisms, processes, entities, faculties, structures) from other dimensions (e.g., neural, mental, cognitive, psychic, conceptual, mystical, transcendental) in an explanation of behavior. However, no literal mental dimension differs from a behavioral dimension.
Selection by consequences
Selection by environmental consequences is the significant causal mode at three levels: (a) phylogeny—the level of the species, dealt with by behavior-analytically informed behavioral genetics; (b) ontogeny—the level of the individual organism during its lifetime, dealt with by behavior analysis; and (c) cultural—the level of the culture, dealt with by a behavior-analytically informed cultural or social anthropology.
Verbal behavior as operant behavior
Verbal behavior results from operant behavioral processes rather than representational or logical processes that are explicitly held to be nonbehavioral.
Pragmatism
Given the preceding principles, the importance of knowledge claims is judged in terms of their pragmatic contribution to practical, effective action (e.g., prediction and control).
Social activism
Our culture should actively promote practices that increase the quality of life for its citizens. One is the rejection of mentalism in human affairs [Krapfl, p. 123].
⠀ 1. Retrieved from: ThoughtCo [https://www.thoughtco.com/behaviorism-in-psychology-4171770].
⠀ 2. Zuriff, G. E. (1985). Behaviorism: A conceptual reconstruction. Behavioral and Brain Sciences. 9. New York: Columbia.
⠀ 3. John Wooland. (2010). Psychology for the Classroom: Behaviourism. London: Routledge.
Krapfl, J. E. (2016). Behaviorism and Society. The Behavior Analyst, 39(1), 123–129. Williamsburg: Association for Behavior Analysis International.
Moore, J. (2011). Behaviorism. The Psychological Record, 61(3), 449–463. New-York: Springer.