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| Explaining the Relevance of "the Devil", Cultural Design Changes and the Evolution of Autonomy |
| Monday, May 28, 2007 |
| 9:00 AM–10:20 AM |
| Betsy B |
| Area: CSE |
| Chair: David J. Hebert (California State University, Fresno) |
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| Ignoring "The Devil" at Our Own Peril. |
| Domain: Applied Research |
| JOHN E. GLASS (Collin County Community College) |
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| Abstract: Once, B. F. Skinner was invited to speak to a colleague's class while at Harvard; he was introduced to the students as, "The Devil." While Skinner and the experimental analysis of behavior are readily (albeit unfairly) dismissed by many in the field of sociology and other social sciences, what he in particular, and behavior analysis in general can offer to the understanding and improvment of social institutions and social behavior is considerable. This paper demonstrates how his analysis of institutionalized social contingencies can be applied to the reduction and/or eradication of such destructive social practices as the unchecked proliferation of nuclear weapons, excessive overconsumption, and environmental degradation. |
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| A Return to Mainstream: Building Bridges Across Disciplines. |
| Domain: Applied Research |
| DAVID J. HEBERT (California State University, Fresno) |
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| Abstract: B.F. Skinner (1949) had a vision for designing culture through the science of human behavior, yet the vision remains far from reality. Changing a culture is a complex and comprehensive endeavor requiring a comprehensive task analysis and systemic intervention across disciplines. Such an analysis will include components similar to those presented by Jon S. Bailey in Marketing Behavior Analysis Requires Different Talk (1991), Criss Wilhite, On Having a Principle (2004), John Staddon, The New Behaviorism (2001), and others. The analysis must also include both the explicit and implicit acknowledgement and application of principles of human behavior within behavior analysis and across psychology (Kunkel 1996), and other health and human service disciplines. One additional component must include an analysis of the historical and contemporary “macro” and “meta” contingencies impacting ABA, to provide guidance in the implementation of effective, systemic interventions. Cultural change through the dissemination and marketing of the science of human behavior, and more specifically ABA, will require building bridges with other health and human service disciplines. Systematic use of applied behavioral technology in collaborative research and education for clinical practice, academic contexts and experimental research will facilitate greater understanding of and appreciation for the expertise of each discipline. |
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| Belief in Free Will and Human Agency: Empirical Data and Theoretical Considerations. |
| Domain: Applied Research |
| RICHARD F. RAKOS (Cleveland State University), Kimberly Steyer (Bowling Green State University), Sarah Skala (Cleveland State University) |
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| Abstract: a. I have argued that the human belief in autonomy is an evolutionary psychological adaptation that functions as a motivating operation. It increases the likelihood that choice behavior will be emitted when non-aversive concurrent schedules of reinforcement are present and increases the potency of the primary reinforcer of a “sense of autonomy.” The manifestation of this evolutionary adaptation (i.e., belief in autonomy) is influenced by culture, such that it is expressed as “free will” in Western societies and as “harmony” in Eastern traditions. I present self-report data from US college and high school students that (a) substantiate the widespread endorsement of the belief in free will in Western society, (b) suggest that this belief encompasses both a “personal will” applied to oneself and a “general will” that is ascribed to others, and (c) indicate that the belief is related more to notions of moral responsibility and punishment than to constructs such as locus of control and self-esteem. These data provide the first empirical confirmation of what has been assumed over thousands of years of philosophical, theological, and psychological debate: that humans believe they possess agency such that their behavior is not determined. I discuss these data in the context of my proposed evolutionary view of belief in autonomy as well as Skinner’s contention that notions of freedom are culturally conditioned, and in the process identify the divergent social implications of each perspective. |
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