Dialogues on Verbal Behavior Chapter 1: A Functional Analysis of Verbal Behavior
Sep 18, 2024
Join Dave Palmer and David Roth as they delve into the fascinating world of Skinner's Verbal Behavior. They tackle the challenges posed to behaviorism, discussing early criticisms and anecdotes from linguistics classes. Explore Skinner's empirical work, the importance of auditory feedback, and the unique properties of verbal behavior. They highlight the mediator role of listeners and critique traditional interpretations, advocating for objective descriptions grounded in established principles. It's a deep dive into the intersection of language and behavior!
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Whitehead's Provocative Challenge
- Alfred North Whitehead challenged B.F. Skinner with the line, "Let me see you account for my behavior as I sit here saying, no black scorpion is falling upon this table."
- That exchange sparked Skinner to begin outlining what became Verbal Behavior the very next morning.
Why Some Verbal Acts Defy Intuition
- Whitehead's 'no black scorpion' example highlights how verbal behavior can reference improbable or absent events, making scientific accounts difficult.
- Such examples expose the challenge of explaining talk about non-present or private events within behavior analysis.
The Verbal Summator Experiment
- Skinner's 'verbal summator' played faint, meaningless vowel patterns to subjects who reported distinct words, revealing internal history shapes reported content.
- Skinner treated these reports as clues to individuals' prior experiences and considered projective uses akin to inkblot tests.
