B.F. Skinner Evan & Mariah

Synopsis ● Born 1904 in Pennsylvania ● Began working on ideas of human behavior after earning his doctorate from Harvard ● Works included… -The Behavior of Organisms (1938) -Walden Two (1948) ● Explored behaviorism in relation to society -Beyond Freedom and Human Dignity (1971) ● Died in Massachusetts in 1990

Early Life ● Burrhus Frederic Skinner ● Born May 20, 1904 ● Susquehanna, Pennsylvania ● Father was a lawyer ● Stay at home mother - Younger brother ● Showed interest for building gadgets and contraptions at a young age

Early Life ● Hamilton College -Passion for writing ● Graduated in Tried to become professional writer but failed ● Wanted a new direction for life, enrolled at Harvard -Psychologist

The Skinner Box ● Box with a bar or key ● Activates food or water dispenser ● Device that records response ● Schedule of Reinforcement- Which behaviors will be reinforced ● Study behavior in a controlled environment

Pigeon Bombs ● Taught at University of Minnesota - tried to train pigeons to serve as guides for bombing runs during World War II -Project was canceled -Another project was being constructed (Radar) -BUT pigeons knew how to play ping pong ● 1943 built a crib at his wife's request -Clear box, “Baby Tender” -Heated=no blankets -No slats in sides, prevents possible injury

Later Work ● Walden Two -Soldiers comes back from war and search for person -He invites to visit community he built -Utopian society -Everything based off of behaviorism -Behavior can be controlled by manipulating rewards and punishment

Later Work ● 1945 became chair of psychology department in Indiana ● Left two years later to be lecturer at Harvard -Received professorship in Remained for rest of career ● As his children grew became more interested in education -Developed a teaching machine to help children learn -Technology of Teaching (1968)

Final Years ● Contingencies of Reinforcement (1969) ● Beyond Freedom and Dignity (1971) ● About Behaviorism (1974) ● Autobiographical books o Particulars of my Life o The shaping of a Behaviorist o A Matter of Consequences ● Diagnosed with Leukemia (1989) ● August 18, 1990 Cambridge, MA

Personal Opinions Evan: I enjoyed learning about Skinner. My favorite thing about Skinner was his ideas of using pigeons to guide bombs. Mariah: Skinner was a very interesting person to research. My favorite thing about Skinner was his experiment with the rat in the “Skinner box”

Work Cited "B.F. Skinner." Bio. A&E Television Networks, Web. 22 Apr "Home." The B F Skinner Foundation. B.F. Skinner Foundation, Web. 22 Apr