B.F. Skinner Praxis Brief

Major Ideas

· Skinner was the Edgar Pierce Professor of Psychology at Harvard (1958-1974)

· It is said that he was one of the most influential psychologists of our time, publishing 21 books and over 180 articles.

· Created the Operant Conditioning Chamber: (AKA Skinner Box) This is an apparatus that is utilized in a laboratory setting to experiment on behavior analysis. It focused on operant conditioning and classical conditioning.

o Operant conditioning: Using consequence to modify voluntary behavior. It “operates” on the environment and is sustained by consequence.”

o Classical Conditioning: (AKA Pavlovian Conditioning) Based on associative learning. In classical conditioning, a neutral stimulus is presented along with a stimulus that has significance, eventually causing a response to the neutral stimulus. Example: Pavlov’s utilization of a metronome to cause salivation in dogs. The metronome was the neutral stimulus that was utilized before feeding the dogs, and eventually became a cause for salivation for the dogs.

· The Skinner Box: A sound and light proof enclosure that detects behavioral responses. In Skinner’s experiments, he often used rodents to push levers to produce reinforcers such as food.


(See Skinner box illustration below)



Theoretical Perspectives:

· Skinner focused on positive reinforcement, which is the encouragement of a specific behavior that results in the repetition of that behavior.

· Skinner created “Radical Behaviorism,” which was a philosophy that includes all aspects of reinforcement, including hidden aspects like emotions, perceptions, and thoughts. Radical behaviorism includes the environment as a function of behavior.

· B.F. Skinner’s research helped with the investigation of several different aspects of human psychology.

o Skinner boxes, or, operant conditioning chambers, are often used today in the research of behavioral pharmacology.

o Practical application has been extended to behavioral economics, which is an aspect of financial analysts that applies empirical research to human behavior in the world. Slot machines are an example of how behavioral economics affect society.

Phases/Steps:

· Skinner’s research expanded from classical conditioning, to operant conditioning, to radical behaviorism. He created several inventions to test his research and include varying aspects of behavioral psychology that has practical applications in the world today.

· B. F. Skinner was the inventor of cumulative reorder, which was a measuring tool for the rate of response in accordance with a reinforcement schedule.

· He also invented the air crib, which was a climate controlled box, similar to a crib, that was designed to soothe a baby and reinforce positive behavior. While this was one of his more controversial inventions, there was some success noted in his experiment.


Classroom Applications:

· Skinner stated that, “Teachers must learn how to teach…they need only to be taught more effective ways of teaching.”

o This quotation was a reflection of his idea that positive reinforcement is one of the most effective teaching resources. He believed that positive reinforcement was a better alternative than punishment in education, as he believed that the only thing a student would learn from punishment was how to not be punished.

· Skinner stated that there are five main obstacles to the student learning experience:

1. Students fear that they may fail at a task.
2. Tasks are not broken down into enough simple steps.
3. Teachers do not often provide enough direction.
4. The directions that are provided are not always clear and concise.
5. There is a lack of positive reinforcement.

· Skinner believed that skills that are age appropriate can be taught to students utilizing five main aspects to correct the problems listed above:

1. Provide the student with immediate feedback about their work.
2. Break-down the tasks at hand so they are smaller and simpler.
3. Reiterate the directions to the student over and over to clarify.
4. Organize tasks in a hierarchy, ranging from simpler tasks to more complex tasks.
5. Provide lots of immediate, positive reinforcement.

By utilizing some of the above ideas, it is possible to gain knowledge from B.F. Skinner’s work, taking it from the research laboratory to the everyday classroom. Like the “Skinner Box,” students of all ages who receive immediate positive reinforcement will continue to perform the task that provides them with such reinforcement.

This is especially important in an educational setting, because often, there is a lack of motivation in students, if their positive behavior is not reinforced as much as it should be.



Resources

Special Connection, (2009). Positive Reinforcement. Retrieved March 27, 2009, from htt
p://www.specialconnections.ku.edu/cgi-bin/cgiwrap/specconn/main.php?cat= behavio
r&section=main&subsection=classroom/positive

Wikipedia, (2009). B.F. Skinner. Retrieved March 27, 2009, from http://en.wikipedia.org/
wiki/B.F._Skinner#Theory