The impact of B. F. Skinner’s science of operant learning on early childhood research, theory, treatment, and care

ABSTRACT

B. F. Skinner is the most eminent psychologist of the twentieth century, and it is no exaggeration to say that his discovery of operant learning (conditioning) has influenced the broader field of psychology, as well as other disciplines, including education, neuroscience, and philosophy. Skinner’s discovery and elucidation of operant learning has also had an immeasurable impact on our understanding of behavioural changes in infancy and childhood and on the treatment of behavioural disorders in children. In this article, I present the case that Skinner’s discoveries and inventions have not only contributed to a scientific understanding of typical child development, but have also led to significant advances in the education, treatment, and care of children. In that regard, it could be argued that Skinner was an early childhood pioneer.

KEYWORDS:

• B. F. Skinner
• operant learning
• behaviour analysis
• child development

Acknowledgements

The author is grateful to Rachel Thomspon for turning him on to a number of pertinent references and, as always, to Julie Riggott for her expert editing and her keen eye for the smallest details.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Henry D. Schlinger

Henry D. Schlinger Jr. (Ph.D., Western Michigan University, 1985) is a full professor of psychology and former director of the M. S. Program in Applied Behavior Analysis in the Department of Psychology at California State University, Los Angeles. Dr. Schlinger has authored more than 80 articles, commentaries, chapters, and book reviews in more than 30 different journals, and is the author (or co-author) of Psychology: A Behavioral Overview (1990), A Behavior-Analytic View of Child Development (1995) (which was translated into Japanese), and Introduction to Scientific Psychology (1998). He is past editor of The Analysis of Verbal Behavior and The Behavior Analyst. He serves on the editorial boards of several journals, on the Board of Trustees of the Cambridge Center for Behavioral Studies, and on the Advisory Boards of the B. F. Skinner Foundation and The Venus Project (https://www.resourcebasedeconomy.org/advisory-board/).