B. F. Skinner and his Operant Conditioning Theory

Paper Summary:

The paper describes world renowned psychologist, B.F Skinner's Operant Conditioning Theory - the primary focus of this form of learning being on the relationship of reinforcement to the change in overt behavior. The paper provides a biography of Skinner and shows how his ideas affected the psychological world.

From the Paper:

"We, as human beings, are distinguished by the fact that our vocal responses can be easily conditioned as operants. Because the behavior must be reinforced through the mediation of other people, who do many different things, there are many kinds of verbal operants (http://www.bfskinner.org/Operant.asp). Language is composed of the reinforcing practices of a given culture. These practices are responsible for the majority of the extraordinary achievements of humans. Other species acquire behavior from each other through imitation and from modeling or showing each other what to do."

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