Verbal Behavior

By: B. F. Skinner

Sign Up Now! Already a Member? Log In
You must be logged into Bookshare to access this title. Learn about membership options, or view our freely available titles.

Synopsis: Over half a century after its initial publication in 1957, Verbal Behavior has remained in high demand and continues to contribute to science and society. The documented efficacy of Skinner's practices has maintained the popularity of Verbal Behavior despite the initial criticism from Noam Chomsky's allegedly fatal review. In fact, his research has inspired techniques that have proven increasingly successful with aberrant behavior disorders, such as autism and delayed speech. In this brilliant and ambitious work, Skinner gives a functional analysis of verbal behavior and argues that operant conditioning can account for and explain a large portion of linguistic phenomena, as demonstrated in laboratory experiments and extensive literary analysis. Skinner details the consequences and issues of this analysis and addresses its philosophical implications, such as the social aspects of language and natures of meaning and thought. Skinner's classic study of psychology, while controversial, has contributed to the welfare of society, and it continues to inspire a growing body of research and applications. Verbal Behavior is an exceptional theoretical work for those who wish to understand the principals of behavioral therapy.