Toates clearly believes that Skinner Schlinger, H. D., J.R. (2011).

SKINNER AS MISSIONARY AND

got it right in many respects and attempts to PROPHET: A REVIEW OF BURRHUS F. SKINNER: SHAPER
show some of the areas in which he thinks a OF BEHAVIOUR. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 44(1),
Skinnerian perspective may prove to be the 217-225. Retrieved from
most useful, in particular, in ethical behavior https://search.proquest.com/docview/857738952?accountid=37714
and in working toward a sustainable
environment.
Toates also appreciates the utility of the
concept of positive reinforcement in both
explaining behavior and changing it. In fact,
one of the goals of his book is to present
evidence of the centrality of the principle of
reinforcement, while at the same time
arguing
that reinforcement is only one process
amongst
others in determining behavior
Toates then cites Carpenter (1974) in Schlinger, H. D., J.R. (2011). SKINNER AS MISSIONARY AND
claiming that operant conditioning cannot PROPHET: A REVIEW OF BURRHUS F. SKINNER: SHAPER
account for some types of learning, including OF BEHAVIOUR. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 44(1),
incidental learning that occurs on a single 217-225. Retrieved from
response, such as the learning of isolated https://search.proquest.com/docview/857738952?accountid=37714
facts or
what someone said on a particular occasion,
claiming that it is highly speculative or
tautological that reinforcement could be
powerfully
and selectively operating in all such
instances
Toates points out that we are victims of Schlinger, H. D., J.R. (2011). SKINNER AS MISSIONARY AND
individual and social traps in which the PROPHET: A REVIEW OF BURRHUS F. SKINNER: SHAPER
shortterm OF BEHAVIOUR. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 44(1),
benefits of behavior occur at the expense 217-225. Retrieved from
of longer term disadvantages and notes, https://search.proquest.com/docview/857738952?accountid=37714
correctly, that it is more useful to explain
such phenomena in terms of maladaptive
reinforcement that emerges in groups rather
than as collective responsibility or social
evil because the former can be tried
(p. 162). Toates assumes a Skinnerian
perspective
in solving these problems by stating
that Research efforts need to focus on how
to
get a reversal of reinforcers, so that
ecologically
desirable actions are immediately reinforced
at an individual level
Behaviorism was the dominant theoretical Ang Teoryang Behaviorism ang dominanteng Horton, L. R. (2014). The effects of problem-based learning
perspective in instructional technology teorya para sa teknolohiyang pang- scaffolds on cognitive load, problem-solving, and student
for over 60 years (Burton, Moore, & instruksyon. Binigyang kahulugan ni John performance within a multimedia-enhanced learning environment
Magliaro, 1996). In 1913, John Watson Watson ang behaviourism sa kanyang akdang (Doctoral dissertation).
defined Psychology as the Behaviorist Views It,
behaviorism in his work Psychology as the isang obhetibong sangay ng agham na
Behaviorist Views It. According to nakatuon sa paghula ng mga tugon sa stimuli
Watson, behaviorism is a purely objective sa kapaligiran. Inilarawan ni Watson hindi
branch of science concerned with the nakatuon sa estadong pang utak ang
prediction of responses to environmental behaviourism, sa halip itoy nakapokus sa
stimuli (Watson, 1913). Behaviorism, as nakikitang relasyon ng stimuli at mga tugon.
described by Watson, is unconcerned with Ang relasyon sa pagitan ng stimuli at tugon
internal mental states, focusing instead on the ay nakabatay sa modelong conditioning ni
observable relationships between stimuli and Pavlov at naniniwala si Watson na itoy
subsequent responses (Boghossian, 2006; nagpapaliwanag ng pagkatuto at pag-unlad ng
Burton, Moore, & Magliaro, 1996). This personalidad (Horton, 2014).
relationship between stimulus and response
was largely
based on Pavlovs conditioning model and
believed by Watson to account for learning
and personality development (Burton et al.,
1996; Schunk, 1991).
Behaviorism considers how consequences to
a given response shape behaviour (Burton et
al., 1996) and features prominently in the
work of B.F. Skinner (Delprato & Midgley,
1992; Schunk, 1991). Given this perspective,
behaviorism views learning as
occurring through learners reactions to
conditions within the environment and
shaped
through reinforcement and correction (Ertmer
& Newby, 1993; Winn, 1990). Reinforcers
enhance the likelihood that a learner will
provide a given response when encountering
a specific stimulus (Schunk, 1991). Skinner
describes both positive and negative forms of
reinforcement; positive reinforcements are
additional stimuli that can be used to shape a
behavior, while negative reinforcers remove
undesirable stimuli. The use of conditioning
supports processes of successive
approximation, wherein reinforcement and
punishment
are applied to promote a gradual refinement
in the learners behaviors.
Behaviorists believed that only observable,
measurable, outward behavior is worthy of
scientific inquiry (Bush, 2006, p. 14).
Hence, their focus was on learning as
affected by changes
Sa behaviourism, nalalaman kung paanong Horton, L. R. (2014). The effects of problem-based learning
ang mga resulta ng mga tugong ibibigay ay scaffolds on cognitive load, problem-solving, and student
makakapaghubok ng pag uugali. Sa performance within a multimedia-enhanced learning environment
pamamagitan ng ganitong perspective, ang (Doctoral dissertation).
pagkatuto ng mga mag aaral ay nagaganap
sa pamamagitan ng mga reaksyon sa mga
kondisyon nasa kapaligiran at nahuhubog sa
pamamagitan ng pagpapatibay at pagtatama.
Ang mga nagpapatibay ay nagpapaganyak sa
mga mag aaral na magbigay ng tugon kapag
nakatagpo ng stimulus. Inilarawan ni Skinner
ang positibo at negatibong pampatibay. Ang
mga positibong pampatibay ay nagdaragdag
ng stimuli na magagamit sa paghubog ng pag
uugali habang ang mga negatibong
pampatibay ay nagbabawas ng hindi kanais-
nais na stimuli. Ang paggamit ng prosesong
pagkondisyon ay nagreresulta ng sunod-
sunod na pagtantya samantalang ang
pampatibay at pagpaparusa ay nagagamit sa
pagpapaunlad ng banayad na pagpapabuti ng
pag uugali ng mga mag aaral (Horton,
2014).
Naniniwala ang mga behaviourists na tanging
ang nakikita, nasusukat at panlabas na pag
uugali ang karapatdapat ng pang-agham na
pagtatanong. Kaya, ang kanilang pokus ay sa
pagkatuto na apektado ang pagbabago ng
in behavior. They concluded that given the
right environmental influences, all learners
acquire
identical understanding and that all students
can learn.
Current behaviorists believe that students
learn by memorizing chunks of information
before higher-level, problem-based learning
can take place (Shield, 2000).
By the 1920s, John B. Watson had left
academic psychology and other behaviorists
were becoming influential,
proposing new forms of learning other than
classical conditioning. Perhaps the most
important of these was Burrhus
Frederic Skinner. Although, for obvious
reasons he is more commonly known as B.F.
Skinner.
Skinner's views were slightly less extreme
than those of Watson (1913). Skinner
believed that we do have such a
thing as a mind, but that it is simply more
productive to study observable behavior
rather than internal mental events. The work
of Skinner was rooted in a view that classical
conditioning was far too simplistic to be a
complete explanation of complex human
behavior. He believed that the best way to
understand behavior is to look at the
causes of an action and its consequences. He
called this approach operant conditioning.
ugali. Pinalagay nila na ang mabuting
impluwensya mula sa kapaligiran ng mga
mag aaral ay magreresulta ng pagtamo ng
magkakatulad na pagkatuto at ang lahat ng
mga mag aaral ay matututo (Horton, 2014).
Naniniwala ang mga kasulukuyang
behaviourist na ang mga mag aaral ay
natututo sa pagsasaulo ng tipak na
impormasyon bago ang mataas na antas at
pagkatutong batay sa problema (Horton,
2014).
Noong 1920, umalis si John B. Watson sa McLeod, S. A. (2015). Skinner - Operant Conditioning. Retrieved
akademiko ng sikolohiya at ang ibang mga from www.simplypsychology.org/operantconditioning.
behaviourist ay naging dominantet html
nagpanukala ng iba pang paraan ng pagkatuto
maliban sa klasikong pagkondisyon (classical
conditioning). Maramhil ang
pinakaimportante sa kanila ay si Burrhus
Frederic Skinner. Ang pananaw ni Skinner
ay hindi gaanong matindi kung ikokompara
kay Watson. Naniniwala si Skinner na
mayroon tayong talino ngunit mas uunlad ang
pag aaral ng nakikitang pag uugali kaysa
mga mental na pangyayari. Ayon kay
Skinner, ang mabuting paraan sa pag unawa
ng ugali ay ang pagtutok sa mga sanhi ng
aksyon at ang mga kahihinatnan nito.
Tinawag niya itong operant conditioning.
Ibinatay ni Skinner ang kanyang teoryang
operant conditioning sa pag aaral ni
Thorndike. Sa operant conditioning, ang mga
sinadyang kilos ay may epekto sa
kapaligirang nakapalibot.
Operant Conditioning deals with operants -
intentional actions that have an effect on the
surrounding environment.
Skinner is regarded as the father of Operant
Conditioning, but his work was based on
Thorndikes law of effect.
Skinner introduced a new term into the Law
of Effect - Reinforcement. Behavior which is
reinforced tends to be
repeated (i.e. strengthened); behavior which
is not reinforced tends to die out-or be
extinguished (i.e. weakened).
Skinner (1948) studied operant conditioning
by conducting experiments using animals
which he placed in a 'Skinner
Box' which was similar to Thorndikes puzzle
box.
B.F. Skinner (1938) coined the term operant
conditioning; it means roughly changing of
behavior by the use of
reinforcement which is given after the desired
response. Skinner identified three types of
responses or operant that
can follow behavior.
Neutral operants: responses from the
environment that neither increase nor
decrease the probability of a
behavior being repeated.
Reinforcers: Responses from the
environment that increase the probability of a
behavior being repeated.
Reinforcers can be either positive or negative.
Punishers: Responses from the
Tinuring na ama ng Operant Conditioning si
Skinner pero ang kanyang gawa ay nakabatay
sa Law of Effect ni Thorndike. Ipinakilala ni
Skinner ang bagong katawagan ng Law of
Effect ang pampatibay (reinforcement).
Ang ugaling pinatibay ay gagawin ulit at ang
ugaling hindi pinatibay ay mawawala. Pinag
aralan ni Skinner ang operant conditioning
sa pamamagitan ng pagpanukala ng mga
eksperimento gamit ang mga hayop na
inalagay niya sa Skinner Box na katulad ng
Puzzle Box ni Thorndike.
Tinukoy ni Skinner ang tatlong uri ng tugon
para sa pagpapabuti ng ugali. Una ay neutral
operants na mga tugon mula sa kapaligiran na
magpapataas o magpapababa ng
pagkakataong maulit ang ugali. Pangalawa ay
Reinforcers at itoy mga tugon mula sa
kapaligiran na nagpapataas ng pagkakataong
maulit ang ugali. Ito ay maaring positibo o
negatibo. Pangatlo ay ang Punishers at itoy
mga tugon mula sa kapaligiran na
nagpapababa ng pagkakataong maulit ang
ugali.
environment that decrease the likelihood of a
behavior being repeated.
Punishment weakens behavior.
We can all think of examples of how our own
behavior has been affected by reinforcers and
punishers. As a child
you probably tried out a number of behaviors
and learned from their consequences.
For example, if when you were younger you
tried smoking at school, and the chief
consequence was that you got in
with the crowd you always wanted to hang
out with, you would have been positively
reinforced (i.e. rewarded) and
would be likely to repeat the behavior. If,
however, the main consequence was that you
were caught, caned, suspended from school
and your parents became involved you would
most certainly have been punished, and you
would consequently be much less likely to
smoke now.
Skinner showed how positive reinforcement
worked by placing a hungry rat in his Skinner
box. The box contained a
lever on the side and as the rat moved about
the box it would accidentally knock the lever.
Immediately it did so a
food pellet would drop into a container next
to the lever. The rats quickly learned to go
straight to the lever after a
few times of being put in the box. The
consequence of receiving food if they pressed
the lever ensured that they
would repeat the action again and again.
Positive reinforcement strengthens a behavior
by providing a consequence an individual
finds rewarding. For
example, if your teacher gives you 5 each
time you complete your homework (i.e. a
reward) you will be more likely
to repeat this behavior in the future, thus
strengthening the behavior of completing
your homework.
The removal of an unpleasant reinforcer can
also strengthen behavior. This is known as
negative reinforcement
because it is the removal of an adverse
stimulus which is rewarding to the animal
or person. Negative
reinforcement strengthens behavior because it
stops or removes an unpleasant experience.
For example, if you do not complete your
homework, you give your teacher 5. You
will complete your homework to
avoid paying 5, thus strengthening the
behavior of completing your homework.
Skinner showed how negative reinforcement
worked by placing a rat in his Skinner box
and then subjecting it to an
unpleasant electric current which caused it
some discomfort. As the rat moved about the
box it would accidentally
knock the lever. Immediately it did so the
electric current would be switched off. The
rats quickly learned to go
straight to the lever after a few times of being
put in the box. The consequence of escaping
the electric current
ensured that they would repeat the action
again and again.
In fact Skinner even taught the rats to avoid
the electric current by turning on a light just
before the electric current
came on. The rats soon learned to press the
lever when the light came on because they
knew that this would stop
the electric current being switched on.
These two learned responses are known as
Escape Learning and Avoidance Learning.
Punishment is defined as the opposite of
reinforcement since it is designed to weaken
or eliminate a response
rather than increase it. It is an aversive event
that decreases the behavior that it follows
Like reinforcement, punishment can work
either by directly applying an unpleasant
stimulus like a shock after a
response or by removing a potentially
rewarding stimulus, for instance, deducting
someones pocket money to
punish undesirable behavior.
Note: It is not always easy to distinguish
between punishment and negative
reinforcement.
There are many problems with using
punishment, such as:
Punished behavior is not forgotten, it's
suppressed - behavior returns when
punishment is no longer present.
Causes increased aggression - shows that
aggression is a way to cope with problems.
Creates fear that can generalize to
undesirable behaviors, e.g., fear of school.
Does not necessarily guide toward desired
behavior - reinforcement tells you what to do,
punishment only
tells you what not to do.
Imagine a rat in a Skinner box. In operant
conditioning if no food pellet is delivered
immediately after the lever is
pressed then after several attempts the rat
stops pressing the lever (how long would
someone continue to go to work
if their employer stopped paying them?). The
behavior has been extinguished.
Behaviorists discovered that different
patterns (or schedules) of reinforcement had
different effects on the speed of
learning and on extinction. Ferster and
Skinner (1957) devised different ways of
delivering reinforcement, and found
that this had effects on
1. The Response Rate - The rate at which
the rat pressed the lever (i.e. how hard the rat
worked).
2. The Extinction Rate - The rate at which
lever pressing dies out (i.e. how soon the rat
gave up).
Skinner found that the type of reinforcement
which produces the slowest rate of extinction
(i.e. people will go on
repeating the behavior for the longest time
without reinforcement) is variable-ratio
reinforcement. The type of
reinforcement which has the quickest rate of
extinction is continuous reinforcement.
(A) Continuous Reinforcement
An animal/human is positively reinforced
every time a specific behaviour occurs, e.g.
every time a lever is pressed a
pellet is delivered and then food delivery is
shut off.
Response rate is SLOW
Extinction rate is FAST
(B) Fixed Ratio Reinforcement
Behavior is reinforced only after the behavior
occurs a specified number of times. E.g. one
reinforcement is given
after every so many correct responses, e.g.
after every 5th response. For example a child
receives a star for every
five words spelt correctly.
Response rate is FAST
Extinction rate is MEDIUM
(C) Fixed Interval Reinforcement
One reinforcement is given after a fixed time
interval providing at least one correct
response has been made.

A further important contribution made by

Skinner (1951) is the notion of behaviour
shaping through successive
approximation. Skinner argues that the
principles of operant conditioning can be
used to produce extremely complex
behaviour if rewards and punishments are
delivered in such a way as to encourage move
an organism closer and
closer to the desired behaviour each time.
In order to do this, the conditions (or
contingencies) required to receive the reward
should shift each time the
organism moves a step closer to the desired
behaviour.
According to Skinner, most animal and
human behaviour (including language) can be
explained as a product of this
type of successive approximation.
Behavior modification is a set of therapies /
techniques based on operant conditioning
(Skinner, 1938, 1953). The
main principle comprises changing
environmental events that are related to a
person's behavior. For example, the
reinforcement of desired behaviors and
ignoring or punishing undesired ones.
This is not as simple as it sounds always
reinforcing desired behavior, for example, is
basically bribery.
There are different types of positive
reinforcements. Primary reinforcement is
when a reward strengths a behavior by
itself. Secondary reinforcement is when
something strengthens a behavior because it
leads to a primary reinforcer. Examples of
behavior modification therapy include token
economy and behavior shaping
Token economy is a system in which targeted
behaviors are reinforced with tokens
(secondary reinforcers) and later
exchanged for rewards (primary reinforcers).
Tokens can be in the form of fake money,
buttons, poker chips, stickers, etc. While the
rewards can range anywhere
from snacks to privileges or activities.
Token economy has been found to be very
effective in managing psychiatric patients.
However, the patients can
become over reliant on the tokens, making it
difficult for them to adjust to society once
they leave prisons, hospital
etc.
Teachers also use token economy at primary
school by giving young children stickers to
reward good behavior. In the conventional
learning situation operant conditioning
applies largely to issues of class and student
management, rather than to learning content.
It is very relevant to shaping skill
performance.
A simple way to shape behavior is to provide
feedback on learner performance, e.g.
compliments, approval,
encouragement, and affirmation. A variable-
ratio produces the highest response rate for
students learning a new
task, whereby initially reinforcement (e.g.
praise) occurs at frequent intervals, and as the
performance improves
reinforcement occurs less frequently, until
eventually only exceptional outcomes are
reinforced.
For example, if a teacher wanted to
encourage students to answer questions in
class they should praise them for
every attempt (regardless of whether their
answer is correct). Gradually the teacher will
only praise the students
when their answer is correct, and over time
only exceptional answers will be praised.
Unwanted behaviors, such as tardiness and
dominating class discussion can be
extinguished through being ignored
by the teacher (rather than being reinforced
by having attention drawn to them).
Knowledge of success is also important as it
motivates future learning. However it is
important to vary the type of
reinforcement given, so that the behavior is
maintained. This is not an easy task, as the
teacher may appear
insincere if he/she thinks too much about the
way to behave.
Schneider and Morris (1987) suggested that Moore, J. (2013). THREE VIEWS OF BEHAVIORISM. The
John B. Watson was the first to invoke the Psychological Record, 63(3), 681-691. Retrieved from
term behaviorism. Moore (2008, 2011) https://search.proquest.com/docview/1442999258?accountid=37714
recently argued that there is a lot of debate
about just what behaviorism means and
whether it is in fact a broadly monolithic
viewpoint, appropriately understood in a
majority of cases. The present article
examines three views of behaviorism, in a
further effort to clarify an understanding of
behaviorism. We noted earlier that Fodor
(1968, p. 55) held behaviorism to differ
significantly from the mentalism of cognitive
psychology. That view is surely correct if
View 3, radical behaviorism, is taken as the
exemplar of behaviorism. It would not be
correct if View 2 were taken as the exemplar.
Indeed, legitimate questions arise as to (a)
whether we should regard View 2 as
substantially different from View 1, and
indeed (b) whether we should therefore
regard View 2 as a behaviorism at all.The
radical behaviorism of View 3 is a
thoroughgoing scientific epistemology, in the
sense that a causal account of the predicting,
theorizing, and explanatory behavior of
researchers and theorists uses the same
behavioral analytical concepts from the
behavioral dimension as does a causal
account of the behavior of the participant. As
Skinner (1957) once put it, One of the
ultimate accomplishments of a science of
verbal behavior may be an empirical logic, or
a descriptive and analytical scientific
epistemology, the terms and practices of
which will be adapted to human behavior as a
subject matter (p. 431).The radical
behaviorism of View 3 is further a
thoroughgoing pragmatism. According to one
interpretation, pragmatism means that the
value of any statement is how well it
promotes effective action in those who
entertain it when they interact with nature.
Behaviorism is the movement that has argued Arturo Clavijo, A. (2013). THE PSYCHE AS BEHAVIOR. Revista Colombiana
for behavior as the Psyche, or subject matter De Psicologa, 22(2), 377-387. Retrieved from
of psychology. According to the Merriam- https://search.proquest.com/docview/1677204645?accountid=37714
Webster Dictionary (2013), behaviorism is a
school of psychology that takes the objective
evidence of behavior (as measured responses
to stimuli) as the only concern of its research
and the only basis of its theory without
reference to conscious experience, and
according to the Encyclopedia Britannica
(2013):
Behaviorism was a highly influential
academic school of psychology that
dominated psychological theory between the
two world wars. Classical behaviorism,
prevalent in the first third of the 20th century,
was concerned exclusively with measurable
and observable data and excluded ideas,
emotions, and the consideration of inner
mental experience and activity in general
(para. 1). Watsons behaviorism had strong
roots in Darwinism and functionalism, so his
version of the Psyche was not exclusive to
humans. Since he assumed continuity among
species, he believed that research with other
animals would help in the understanding of
the human Psyche, just as research with
humans would help in the understanding of
the other animals Psyche. His interest in
animal behavior was one of the reasons for
rejecting mental states and consciousness
as the subject matter of psychology; it would
not be possible to introspect the mental
states of an animal.
 According to Watson (1913, 1930), an
observer could measure the behavior of
another organism in physical terms, find the
variables that regulate its behavior in the
environment, and describe its behavior in a
stimulus-response framework. In his view,
the behavior of an organism was a physical
phenomenon that consisted of responses to
the different forms of stimulation in its
environment. He defined a response as an
observable and measureable movement that
always involved the whole organism;
however, the response could be so slight that
an observer would require instruments to
record it (Watson, 1930). Watson (1930)
assumed contiguity and immediate efficient
causation in each S-R relation so that every
response was an immediate reaction to a
present, effective stimulus. The way in which
he dealt with apparently delayed responses
shows his strong commitment to a strict S-R
psychology. According to Watson, a response
that seems to occur a long time after a
stimulus just results from the accumulation of
sequential S-R units that altogether
conformed a habit. In relation to learning,
Watson believed that responses to stimuli
could be innate or learned, although he gave
more importance to the environment as a
determinant of behavior. He supposed that
organisms have a set of unlearned, reflex
responses to few stimuli. The size and
characteristics of the innate-response set
would depend on the species. For example,
humans would have fewer innate and more
conditioned responses than insects. The
learning of fear responses to new stimuli was
a frequent subject in Watsons texts.
According to Watson (1913, 1930), all be-
havior, even feelings and thinking, is just a
set of learned habits. As Verdu-Rico and
Bentes de Carvalho-Neto (2010) pointed out,
scholars may have overlooked and
misrepresented Watsons theories on thinking
and language. In Watsons (1913, 1930)
view, each stimulus produced a response, so
the environment acted on organisms.
Organisms reacted by responding all the time
to some stimulus. Each response would be a
discrete event, but behavior seemed
continuous due to the amount of stimuli that
incessantly assailed organisms. Like Watson,
Skinner assumed that discrete and observable
responses compose the behavior of an
organism. Skinner (1938, 1974)
acknowledged that Watsons S-R psychology
accounted for a small portion of behavior, but
not for the largest and more significant part.
According to Skinner, the responses of
organisms could be voluntary-emitted or in-
voluntary-elicited. Classically conditioned
andreflex responses exemplified elicited
behavior. As emitted or voluntary behavior
composed most of mammals behavior,
Skinner deemed insufficient an S-R
framework in which behaving is just reacting.
Skinner adopted an R-S framework. He ar-
gued that the stimulus that modifies an
emitted response is the one that follows it
rather than the one that antecedes it. For
instance, if by pressing a lever (R) in a
Skinner box, a rat obtains pellets (S), it is
more likely that the rat will press the lever
again. As long as lever-pressing results in
pellets, the rat will keep pressing it. If the rat
does not receive any more pellets by pressing
the lever, lever pressing will decrease or
disappear. It is evident that no antecedent
stimulus evokes a lever-pressing response.
An S-R psychology assumed that the
stimulus is an efficient cause that evokes,
elicits, or produces a response. According to
Skinner, the stimulus selects responses by
making more likely those that produce
reinforcing consequences and less likely
those that produce punishing or no con-
sequence at all. Skinner himself described his
causal model as selection by consequences in
an analogy with Darwins explanation of
evolution (Skinner, 1984).
In synthesis, Skinner shared Watsons core argument
about psychology as a science of behavior. Both
argued for behavior as the subject matter of
psychology, rejected mental explanations, and
adopted an environmental determinism. Neither
Skinner nor Watson denied the importance of the
organism, and both argued for historical factors in
explaining behavior by relying on learning to explain
new responses. Watson denied a place for
consciousness and immediate subjective experience
in a science of behavior, while Skinner argued that a
complete science of behavior should deal with
subjective experience. Although Skinner moved away
from an S-R psychology, his commitment to a molec-
ular analysis might have preserved something of the
S-R logic in his conception of behavior.
Operant conditioning can be used to explain a
wide variety of behaviors, from the process
of learning, to addiction
and language acquisition. It also has practical
application (such as token economy) which
can be applied in
classrooms, prisons and psychiatric hospitals.
However, operant conditioning fails to take
into account the role of inherited and
cognitive factors in learning, and
thus is an incomplete explanation of the
learning process in humans and animals.
For example, Kohler (1924) found that
primates often seem to solve problems in a
flash of insight rather than be trial
and error learning. Also social learning
theory (Bandura, 1977) suggests that humans
can learn automatically
through observation rather than through
personal experience.
The use of animal research in operant
conditioning studies also raises the issue of
extrapolation. Some
psychologists argue we cannot generalize
from studies on animals to humans as their
anatomy and physiology is
different from humans, and they cannot think
about their experiences and invoke reason,
patience, memory or self-comfort.
Ang operant conditioning ay nagpapaliwanag
ng maraming pag uugali mula sa proseso ng
pagkatuto hanggang sa pagtamo ng wika.
Mayroon din itong aplikasyon sa loob ng
klasrum, prisinto at mga saykayatrikong
ospital. Gayunpaman, nabigo ang operant
conditioning sa pagpapahalaga sa papel ng
minanang salik ng kognitib sa pagkatuto kaya
hindi kompleto ang pagpapaliwanag sa
proseso ng pagkatuto ng mga tao at mga
hayop. Halimbawa, nakita ni Kohler na ang
unggoy ay nakakahanap ng solusyon sa
problema sa isang kislap ng kaalaman kaysa
sa trial at error na pagkatuto. Sa teoryang
social learning naman ni Bandura,
nagmumungkahi ito na ang mga tao ay
agarang natututo sa pamamagitan ng
pagmamasid kaysa sa sariling karanasan. Ang
paggamit ng hayop sa operant conditioning
na pag aaral ay nagtataas ng isyu sa
extrapolation. Ilan sa mga sikologo ang
nangatwiran na hindi maaaring gawing
pangkalahatan ang pag aaral mula sa mga
hayop tungo sa mga tao dahil ang kanilang
anatomy at pisyolohiya ay kaiba sa mga tao at
hindi sila nakakapag isip tungkol sa
kanilang sariling karanasan at
nakakapagpangatwiran, pasensya, memorya
at kaginhawaan sa sarili.