This web page is intended to give an introduction into the role that behaviorists play in education. This page looks specifically at Classical Conditioning, by Ivan Pavlov, as well as Operant Conditioning, by B. F. Skinner. This page will also provide a link to the text book used by Freed-Hardeman University in its undergraduate Educational Psychology - PSY 306 classes.
1. Introduction to Behaviorist Theories: Using techniques borrowed from the physical sciences, researchers began conducting experiments to understand how people and animals learn. This site gives a basic overview of what behaviorist theories of learning focuses on without getting into specific details about any particular style.
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2.
Ivan
Pavlov: Ivan Pavlov was born in a small
village in central Russia. After reading Charles Darwin, he found that
he was interested in scientific pursuits and went to the University of
St. Petersburg. There he received his doctorate in 1879 in chemistry and
physiology.
3. Classical Conditioning: This was the first type of learning to be discovered in the behaviorists tradition. This type of conditioning links one stimulus that evokes a particular response with a stimulus that does not evoke that response, so that the previously neutral stimulus will evoke the desired response. |
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4.
B.
F. Skinner:
Skinner, B(urrhus) F(rederic) (1904-1990), was an American psychologist who was one of the foremost proponents of behaviorist psychology. Born in Susquehanna, Pennsylvania, Skinner was instrumental in forming Operant Conditioning as well as his famous Skinner Box. 5. Operant Conditioning: This is a type of associative learning in which there is a contingency between the response and the presentation of the reinforcer. It uses consequences (rewards and punishments) to control the occurrence of behavior. |
This page created by Brittain West.
For Dr. Lewis, PSY 306.
Last update 11/17/99.