Skinner, B(urrhus) F(rederic) (1904–1990)

US psychologist. He was a radical behaviourist who rejected mental concepts, seeing the organism as a ‘black box’ where internal processes are not significant in predicting behaviour. He studied operant conditioning (influencing behaviour patterns by reward or punishment) and held that behaviour is shaped and maintained by its consequences.

His text The Behavior of Organisms 1938 set forth his argument that a certain behaviour may be obtained by positive reinforcement or eliminated by withholding reinforcement. He applied his conditioning technique to education – pioneering programmed learning – and to clinical work with psychotic patients. He devised a teaching machine to reinforce learning by reward.

Skinner was born in Susquehanna, Pennsylvania, and studied at Harvard. He was professor at Indiana 1945–48 and at Harvard 1948–74.

He attempted to explain even complex human behaviour as a series of conditioned responses to outside stimuli. He opposed the use of punishment, arguing that it did not effectively control behaviour and had unfavourable side effects.

After the ‘Skinner box’, he developed a teaching machine. This presents information to a student at a pace determined by the student, and then tests the student on the material previously presented; correct answers are rewarded, thereby reinforcing learning.