Behaviorism Theory Essay -- Psychology, Watson, Skinne, Locke

A learning, or airal theory, in terms of world development, follows the view that the focus of psychology should be way, the way we act. A behaviorist places value on attributes that oneness can see and therefore study, as oppose to the invisible attributes, such as thinking, feeling, and other brain activity that occurs without one even knowing (Craig & Dunn, 2010, p. 14). There are three important modern behavior or learning theorists Ivan Pavlov, John Watson, and B. F. Skinner. However, as stated by William Crain John Locke was the Father of environmentalism and learning theory, although Ivan Pavlov and B.F. Skinner were his heirs (Crain, 2011 p.3). To some, the behaviorist theories may seem pass or incomprehensive, but one can see that all of the major theories play a role in our understanding of development.British philosopher John Locke demonstrable theories in late seventeenth century that a child has no built-in beliefs or understanding of concepts until the child has experienced these things for themselves. He asserted in his writing that through observation of childrens behavior, children are like an empty, unfurnished room that one can select the furnishings for, especially in early old age when children are most susceptible to suggestion and input (Crain, 2011). Locke believed that environment was a critical factor in development, but also saw that the way one gives a child input affects behavior as well. Crain, (2011) noted that Locke felt that a childs good health was important to facilitate, and that beyond that, adults should armed service reinforce childrens behavior through reward and punishment.More than two hundred years later, B.F. Skinner saw the importance of reward and punishment as he studied oper... ...tsons later innovations was to remove or de-condition fears, by very slowly introducing the feared purpose in a slow, incremental, and safe manner until the object no longer evokes a fearful response (Crain, 2011). All of the se behavioral/learning theorists have made huge progress in understanding the psychology of human development through a rigid set of principles, through research, observation, and behavior modification experiments. One may be put off by the unyielding denial of cognitive processes in behavior and the relationship to development. To be sure, many theories and theorists have made progress in bridging the gap between behavior and environment only theories, and cognitive theories. One should not lose sight that all of these major theorists have made valuable contributions to our views of human development, including these unwavering behaviorists.