Transcript Awards
B.F. Skinner
Burrhus Frederic Skinner
Background
March 20, 1904- August 18, 1990
Born in Susquehanna, Pennsylvania
1926 a B.A. in English literature Hamilton College,
Time spent a struggling writer Inspired by these works,
Entered the psychology graduate program at Harvard
University.
1936-married Yvonne Blue in 1936,
Daughters Julie and Deborah.
1945- moved to Bloomington, Indiana
became Psychology Department Chair and the University
of Indiana.
1948- joined the psychology department at Harvard
University’
1974- Retired
Accomplishments
He became a leader of behaviorism
Invented Skinner box
Awards:
1966 Edward Lee Thorndike Award, American Psychological
Association
1968 - National Medal of Science from President Lyndon B.
Johnson
1971 - Gold Medal of the American Psychological Foundation
1972 - Human of the Year Award
1990 - Citation for Outstanding Lifetime Contribution to
Psychology
Seminal Work in Field
Continued
Pavlov and Watson’s Work
Advanced Thorndike’s work.
Operant Conditioning Theory
Programmed
learning
Broken into steps
Maximize success, minimize frustration
Programmed instruction
Use
of behavioral objectives
Tracey 46
To
employ the theory of operant
conditioning we must look at actions and
consequences
Responses that follow behavior
Neutral Operant
Reinforcers
Punishers
Shaping-
Through shaping we gradually
bring the learner to the desired outcome
by starting to reinforce broad steps and
then more specific steps necessary to
achieve a goal
Chaining- Sequence small steps into a
more complex act.
Tracey 28
Classroom Application
Behaviorism
approach”
led to the “subskills
Reading is broken down to many parts
Mastery of parts through response/
immediate feedback
Programmed
learning
Using activities that demonstrate a
correlation between what has been taught
and what is assessed
Pro
Strong
on emphasizing concept of sequence
and success of students
Con
Moves
very slowly with little student input
(Marlow1)
Direct Instruction
Introduction
Select examples that are easy to apply skill
guided practice
Scaffolded
Discrimination
Criticism
His
theory of "operant conditioning" -known as behavior modification -seemed, in the 1950s and '60s,
manufactured for the same fascist tool kit
as Huxley's soma or Orwell's
thoughtcrime” (Bennet1)
“
‘I’m embarrassed to say I haven’t read
any of his work,’ Spock wrote, ‘but I know
that it’s fascist and manipulative, and
therefore I can’t approve of it.’”
(Freedman1)
Time found
Skinner
unsettling
enough to put
him on its cover
and ask,
"Skinner's
Utopia:
Panacea, or
Path to Hell”
(Bennet 1).
Walden Two
To
teach toddlers self-control, Frazier says,
workers hang lollipops "like crucifixes"
around their necks and tell them they
may eat the whole thing later, provided
they don't lick it until permitted (Bennet 1).
Citations
Bennet, J (2012). What man can make of man. In The Atlantic. . Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 6
May 2013.
Cherry, K. (2013). “B. F. Skinner Biography (1904-1990).”In About.Com Guide. Retrieved May 13, 2013
from http://psychology.about.com/od/profilesofmajorthinkers/p/bio_skinner.htm
Edgier, M (2012). Recent leaders in American education. In College Student Journal 46. :174+. Student
Resources in Context. Web. 7 May 2013.
Freedman, David H.(2012) The perfected self: B.F. Skinner's notorious theory of behavior modification
was denounced by critics 50 years ago as a fascist, manipulative vehicle for government control. But
Skinner's ideas are making an unlikely comeback today, powered by smartphone apps that are
transforming us into thinner, richer, all-around-better versions of ourselves. The only thing we have to
give up? Free will. In The Atlantic: 42+. Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 7 May 2013.
Tracey, D. and Morrow, L.M. (2012). Behaviorism. (Ch. 3) In Lenses on reading: An introduction to
theories and models. New York. NY: Guilford Press, pp. 40-56.