Ivan Pavlov's foundational research with dogs significantly expanded the understanding of learning. His studies investigated a form of associative learning that is now recognized as classical conditioning.

Ivan Pavlov

A core methodology in behaviorist research is conducting experiments on animals, based on the premise that the fundamental principles of learning discovered in animals can be generalized to human behavior. This approach assumes that many complex psychological processes can be understood by studying simpler organisms. Edward C. Tolman, a behaviorist, articulated this view by stating, 'I believe that everything important in psychology (except … such matters as involve society and words) can be investigated in essence through the continued experimental and theoretical analysis of the determiners of rat behavior at a choice-point in a maze.'

Use of Animal Models in Behaviorism

John B. Watson (1878–1958) was an influential American psychologist who conducted his most famous work during the early 20th century at Johns Hopkins University. Often considered the father of behaviorism, he championed the shift in psychology's focus away from internal mental processes—which he believed were impossible to analyze objectively—toward the direct observation and control of overt behavior.

John B. Watson

Behaviorism faced criticism for its reductionist and deterministic viewpoints. Critics, particularly from the humanist perspective, argued that its focus on genetics and environment as the sole determinants of behavior was overly simplifying. They contended that this approach disregarded important aspects of the human experience, such as personal control and intentionality.

Critiques of Behaviorism

B. F. Skinner was a pivotal figure in the school of behaviorism, whose contributions to the understanding of the principles of operant conditioning are considered exceptionally significant within psychology.

B. F. Skinner

Over time, the strict principles of behaviorism have evolved, leading to a convergence with other psychological traditions. Notably, cognition has come to play a larger role, with a growing acknowledgment that internal thought processes are significant in learning, challenging the original insistence by some behaviorists that only external environmental triggers mattered.

Cognitive Influence on Behaviorism

John B. Watson's approach to behaviorism was founded on the principle that psychology should be an objective science focused exclusively on measurable, observable behavior. He proposed that all behavior could be understood as a simple stimulus-response reaction, deliberately ignoring internal mental processes. Watson argued that concepts like consciousness were unscientific because they could not be directly seen or measured, and that a legitimate psychological science must limit its study to outward actions.

Watson's Core Principles of Behaviorism

A psychologist is studying why a specific student consistently fails to complete their homework. The psychologist decides to focus only on observable events in the student's environment, such as the time of day the homework is assigned, the presence of distractions like television, and the tangible rewards or punishments the student receives from their parents for completion or non-completion. This approach deliberately avoids speculating about the student's internal feelings of motivation, their thought processes, or their unconscious desires. Which of the following principles is best illustrated by the psychologist's methodology?

In the context of addiction treatment, behavioral therapy plays a crucial role in motivating individuals to engage with their treatment program. It also equips them with practical strategies for managing cravings and preventing relapse.

Role of Behavioral Therapy in Addiction Treatment

B. F. Skinner (1904–1990) was an American psychologist and, like John B. Watson, a prominent behaviorist. He focused on how behavior is affected by its consequences, proposing that reinforcement and punishment are major factors in driving behavior. To carefully study the principles of modifying behavior through these consequences, he developed an operant conditioning chamber, commonly known as a Skinner box.

B.F. Skinner

A major focus within behaviorism was the study of learned behavior and its interaction with the innate, inborn qualities of an organism.

Behaviorist Study of Learned and Inborn Behaviors

Emerging in the 1950s, the cognitive revolution was a movement that revived scientific interest in the mind. This shift was driven by new disciplinary perspectives in linguistics, neuroscience, and computer science, which collectively redirected psychological inquiry back toward mental processes after a prolonged period dominated by behaviorism's focus on external behavior.

Cognitive Revolution (1950s)

In the context of behaviorism, a stimulus-response reaction is the idea that all behavior can be studied as a simple reaction to a stimulus, ignoring unobservable internal mental processes.

Stimulus-Response Reaction in Behaviorism

As one of the most historically influential schools of thought, behaviorism aimed to establish psychology as an objective science. This approach centered on studying overt, observable behavior while deliberately deemphasizing the significance of unobservable internal mental processes.

Google

New Mexico Highlands University

University of Michigan - Ann Arbor

Haverford College in Pennsylvania

- Structuralism
- Behaviorism 
- Cognitive revolution

Early schools of thought/movements in Psychology (leading up to cognitive psychology)

- Watson's Behaviorism
- Skinner's Operant Conditioning
- Social Learning Theory

Types of Learning Theories in Social Development

Psychology's history is marked by the emergence of several major theoretical perspectives that have shaped the field. These schools of thought offer different ways of understanding the mind and behavior. Key approaches include:
* structuralism
* functionalism
* psychoanalytic theory
* Gestalt psychology
* behaviorism
* humanism
* evolutionary theory

Theoretical Approaches in Psychology

Early psychological schools like structuralism, Freudian psychoanalysis, and Gestalt psychology all shared a common goal: to describe and understand the inner workings of the mind. However, this focus on subjective 'inner experience' was met with skepticism by other researchers who questioned whether it could be studied scientifically. This critique led to a shift in focus towards studying only objectively observable behavior, which was seen as the measurable outcome of mental processes.

Shared Focus on Inner Experience in Early Psychological Schools

Goldstein, E. B. (2014). Cognitive psychology: Connecting mind, research and everyday experience. Nelson Education.


Cognitive psychology: Connecting mind, research and everyday experience

Spielman, R. M., Jenkins, W. J., & Lovett, M. D. (2020, April 22). Psychology (2nd ed.). OpenStax. https://openstax.org/books/psychology-2e/pages/1-introduction

OpenStax Psychology (2nd ed.) Textbook

The psychological school of thought that posits our experience is made up of combining basic elements of experience, referred to as sensations. Wanted to make a "periodic table of elements" for psychology. It dominated psychology in the late 1800s and early 1900s.

Structuralism

Behaviorism

Timeline of predecessors to cognitive psychology

B. F. Skinner's theory of operant conditioning, which expands on Edward Thorndike's law of effect, posits that voluntary behaviors are learned through their consequences. Skinner's research, often involving rats and pigeons in operant conditioning chambers, focused on how reinforcement and punishment alter the probability of a behavior's recurrence. Beyond his laboratory work, Skinner was a strong advocate for applying operant conditioning principles in educational settings to shape students' behavior and improve learning outcomes.

Skinner's Operant Conditioning

Proposed by Albert Bandura and other researchers, social learning theory is a perspective on learning that incorporates cognitive processes. It evolved from behaviorism but differed by asserting that internal mental states play a crucial role in learning. Unlike pure behaviorism, this theory can explain how learning occurs even without direct external reinforcement, emphasizing the importance of observation and mental processing.

Social Learning Theory

Edward Titchener (1867-1927), a protege of Wilhelm Wundt, integrated structuralism with psychology. This allowed emphasis on the contents of mental processes instead of their functions.

Structuralism in Psychology

Championed by figures like William James, functionalism is a psychological perspective that investigates how mental activities help an organism adapt to its environment. This school of thought was heavily influenced by Darwin's theory of evolution, proposing that behaviors, like physical traits, are naturally selected because they serve a function for survival and reproduction. Functionalism focuses on the operation of the mind as a whole, rather than breaking it down into its individual components, which was the aim of structuralism.

Functionalism in Psychology

A psychological perspective, developed by Sigmund Freud, that focuses on the unconscious and early childhood experiences; and how those experiences impact conscious behavior.

Psychoanalytic Theory

Evolutionary psychology is a field that investigates the ultimate biological causes of behavior by focusing on how universal patterns of cognition and behavior have evolved over time. It operates on the principle that these genetically influenced patterns are adaptations to an organism's physical and social environment, shaped by their contribution to survival and reproductive success.

Evolutionary Psychology

Humanism is a highly influential perspective in psychology that focuses on the growth potential of healthy individuals and their innate capacity for good. Championed by key figures like Abraham Maslow and Carl Rogers, this approach posits that people are driven by a desire for self-actualization. It highlights concepts such as free will and self-determination, asserting that individuals actively strive to become the best version of themselves, which has significantly contributed to the psychological understanding of the self.

Humanism in Psychology

Gestalt psychology is a school of thought based on the core principle that the whole is different from the sum of its parts. The term 'gestalt' translates to 'form' or 'pattern,' reflecting the idea that the brain does not merely combine individual sensory stimuli but actively creates a holistic perception. This process of organizing sensory information into a meaningful whole occurs in predictable ways, which Gestalt psychologists formulated into a set of principles.

Gestalt Psychology

In the early part of the 20th century, the field of American psychology was largely shaped by two major schools of thought: behaviorism and psychoanalysis. The widespread influence of these two perspectives set the stage for the emergence of new theories, such as humanism, which developed in response to their perceived limitations.

Dominance of Behaviorism and Psychoanalysis in Early 20th-Century Psychology

A researcher is conducting a study to understand why people are more likely to help a stranger who looks like them. The researcher hypothesizes that this behavior is a modern manifestation of an ancient mechanism that favored helping genetic relatives to ensure the survival of shared genes. This line of reasoning is most characteristic of which theoretical approach?

Emerging as a critique of psychological schools focused on inner experience, behaviorism is an approach that insists on studying only objectively observable behavior. Proponents of this view argued that subjective mental states could not be legitimate subjects of scientific inquiry, and therefore psychology should concentrate on behavior as the measurable outcome of mental processes.

Learn Before

Related

Learn After