Theoretical, Philosophical, and Conceptual Issues Special Interest Group – 2025 SIG Update

By Lee Mason

Theories are Fun

In his 1949 presidential address to the Midwestern Psychological Association, B.F. Skinner asked, Are Theories of Learning Necessary? Having defined theory as “any explanation of an observed fact which appeals to events taking place somewhere else, at some other level of observation, described in different terms, and measured, if at all, in different dimensions” (p. 193), Skinner (1950) concluded, “Perhaps to do without theories altogether is a tour de force that is too much to expect as a general practice. Theories are fun” (p. 215).

Skinner himself was prone to extending the implications of his research beyond the collected data and encouraged others to follow suit. “The reader will have noticed that almost no extension to human behavior is made or suggested,” said Skinner (1938, p. 441). “Let him extrapolate who will” (p. 442). Skinner (1957) posited that his experimental work could be applied to the analysis of verbal behavior; Skinner (1953) extended his laboratory findings to the roles of government, religion, and education; and Skinner (1948) postulated the implications of his work on society at large. Of course, Skinner was not the only one to advance the theory and philosophy of behaviorism; behavior analysts from various disciplines continue to contribute their conceptual work to journals such as Perspectives on Behavior Science and Behavior and Philosophy, and textbooks like Zilio and Carrara’s (2021) Contemporary Behaviorisms in Debate. Indeed, the conceptual side of our field is alive and well!

In graduate classrooms across the country, it is common to hear arguments rooted in, “Skinner says….” Just as at annual conferences it is not unheard of for presenters to tout, “Skinner was wrong!” In both cases we must be careful to designate the use of these Skinnerarianisms as either intervening variables or hypothetical constructs (MacCorquodale & Meehl, 1948). Any importance of such remarks cannot be found in the degree of validity with Skinner’s own writings. As Frazier, in Walden Two, declared, “We never mark any member for special approbation…. Our decision to eliminate personal aggrandizement arose quite naturally from the fact that we were thinking about the whole group. We could not see how the group could gain from individual glory” (p. 156).

As the founder of radical behaviorism, we owe Skinner no special gratitude. “This is a world without heroes,” said Frazier (1948, p. 220), “In a pre-scientific society the best the common man can do is pin his faith on a leader and give him his support, trusting in his benevolence against the misuse of the delegated power and in his wisdom to govern justly and to make war successfully” (p. 221). Skinner helped to develop a branch of science that has become sustainable to the point that we need not acknowledge his own personal contributions, right or wrong. Rather, we can return to the data he taught us to collect. As Sidman (1960) reminds us, “Good data are always separable, with respect to their scientific importance, from the purposes for which they were obtained” (p. 3). To the extent that a theory serves as an intervening variable which merely abstracts the empirical relationships, “It will not stand in the way of our search for functional relations because it will arise only after relevant variables have been found and studied” (Skinner, 1950, p. 216).”

See, Skinner was right: Theories are fun!

References:

MacCorquodale, K., & Meehl, P. E. (1948). On a distinction between hypothetical constructs and intervening variables. Psychological Review, 55(2), 95–107. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0056029

Sidman, M. (1960). Tactics of scientific research: Evaluating experimental data in psychology. Basic Books.

Skinner, B. F. (1938). The behavior of organisms: An experimental analysis. Appleton-Century.

Skinner, B. F. (1948). Walden two. Macmillan.

Skinner, B. F. (1950). Are theories of learning necessary? Psychological Review, 57(4), 193–216. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0054367

Skinner, B. F. (1953). Science and human behavior. Macmillan.

Skinner, B. F. (1957). Verbal behavior. Appleton-Century-Crofts. https://doi.org/10.1037/11256-000

Zilio, D., & Carrara, K. (Eds.). (2021). Contemporary behaviorisms in debate. Springer International Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-77395-3