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B.F. Skinner and Personality Theory

• Behaviorism Overview

  • Behaviorism was not originally proposed as a theory of personality.

  • B.F. Skinner made significant contributions to personality theory.

• Skinner's Perspective

  • Dismissed the necessity for a personality structure.

  • Focused on the causes behind specific behavioral actions of organisms.

  • His approach prioritizes prediction and control of behavior over understanding it.

  • Emphasis on how personality traits are learned rather than an inherent structure.

• Operant Conditioning

  • Skinner's work is rooted in the principles of operant conditioning.

  • Defined as learning that occurs through reinforcements, illustrated thoroughly in the unit "Learning, Memory, and Motivation".

• Skinner Box

  • Common experimental apparatus for demonstrating operant conditioning.

  • Description: A cage equipped with a device to deliver food when an animal performs the desired behavior.

  • Example:

  • A bird pecking a bar receives food (a pellet) as a reward.

  • This represents positive reinforcement; the behavior (pecking) is encouraged through reward.

  • Conversely, if the bird does not peck at the bar, it does not receive reinforcement (food).

• Key Concepts

  • Reinforcement: Any stimulus that increases the likelihood of a behavior being repeated in the future.

  • Extinction: Occurs when a behavior ceases because reinforcement is no longer provided.

  • Example: If a student stops receiving rewards for staying in their dorm, their inactivity may eventually stop.

• Application to Personality

  • Instead of probing into childhood experiences (as Freud would), Skinner examines observable behaviors.

  • Example Hypothesis: A college student's depression may correlate with their inactivity in their dorm.

  • Observed Behavior:

  • Student spends excessive time in their dorm, avoids classes, shows limited emotional expression, and avoids social interactions.

  • Skinner would analyze external reinforcers contributing to this behavior, such as attention from a girlfriend.

    • If her attention reinforces the student's behavior, it suggests the cause of his continued withdrawal.

    • Conversely, if he becomes more active upon reduced attention from her, the hypothesis is validated.

• Educational Applications

  • Skinner’s behaviorist principles are widely applied in educational settings.

  • Teachers utilize reinforcement techniques to modify student behaviors.

Albert Bandura and Personality Theory

• Overview of Bandura's Views

  • Bandura conceptualized personality as learned rather than solely through reinforcement.

  • Emphasized the role of observation in learning personality traits.

  • Suggested that individuals learn how to behave in different contexts by observing others and the consequences of their behaviors.

• Reciprocal Determinism

  • Defined as the mutual influence of an individual's environment and their behavior.

  • Bandura posited that behavior affects the environment just as the environment influences behavior.

• Social Cognitive Theory

  • Developed from Bandura's experiments, especially the classic Bobo doll experiment.

  • This study emphasized two main components of social learning:

  • Modeling: Learning behavior by imitating others.

  • Reinforcement: Behaviors are tuned based on observed rewards or punishments.

• Bobo Doll Experiment Details

  • Setup: Preschool children placed in a playroom with various toys, including a Bobo doll.

  • Experiment:

  • An adult model interacted with the Bobo doll aggressively, hitting, kicking, and verbalizing aggression (e.g., “kick him!”).

  • Results:

  • Children exposed to aggressive interactions mimicked the aggression, demonstrating a doubled likelihood of acting similarly towards the Bobo doll.

  • They also showed sensitivity to observed consequences; if the adult was rewarded or praised for aggressive behavior, children replicated this aggression.

Questions and Activities

• Skinner's Approach

  • True or False: Skinner saw no need for a personality structure. (Answer: True)

  • Personal Reflection: Consider whether a person's depressive state is reinforced by attention they receive from others.

• Bandura’s Concept

  • What is the term Bandura coined for the relationship where the world and a person's behavior mutually influence each other? (Answer: Reciprocal determinism)

• Behavior Change Activity

  • Think of a behavior in someone you wish to change.

  • Suggest a method using reinforcers to achieve that change.