John B. Watson and B. F. Skinner believed that
Multiple Choice
A consciousness should always be investigated through the process of individual introspection.
B psychology should focus on an organism’s visible interactions with the environment-that is, behaviors.
C psychological methods could be developed to study the process of human cognition.
D psychology should study both outwardly observed behaviors and inborn mental motivations.
The correct answer and explanation is :
The correct answer is:
B. Psychology should focus on an organism’s visible interactions with the environment—that is, behaviors.
Explanation:
John B. Watson and B. F. Skinner were both key figures in the development of behaviorism, a school of thought in psychology that emphasized the study of observable behaviors rather than internal mental states or consciousness.
John B. Watson:
Watson is often regarded as the father of behaviorism. He argued that psychology should focus exclusively on observable behavior. Watson rejected introspection—the process of examining one’s own conscious thoughts—and believed that psychological research should be based on objective, measurable data. He argued that since consciousness is subjective and cannot be directly observed, it is not suitable for scientific study. Instead, Watson advocated for studying how organisms respond to stimuli in their environment, which could be observed and measured objectively. He emphasized that behavior is learned through interactions with the environment, and he believed this approach could lead to a more rigorous and scientific understanding of human and animal behavior.
B. F. Skinner:
B. F. Skinner expanded upon Watson’s ideas and became one of the most influential figures in the field of behaviorism. Skinner introduced the concept of operant conditioning, which focuses on how behaviors are shaped and maintained by their consequences. According to Skinner, behaviors that are reinforced (either through rewards or avoidance of punishment) are more likely to be repeated, while behaviors that are not reinforced tend to fade. Skinner’s work further reinforced the idea that psychology should be grounded in observable behavior and that internal mental processes (such as thoughts and emotions) could not be reliably studied or measured scientifically.
Both Watson and Skinner firmly believed that psychology’s primary goal should be to study the behaviors of organisms in response to environmental stimuli, with a focus on external, observable actions rather than unobservable mental processes. Their views marked a major departure from introspective approaches and helped establish behaviorism as a dominant force in early 20th-century psychology.