American psychologist who was the most influential behaviorist of the 20th century — developing operant conditioning and arguing that inner mental states are irrelevant to a science of behavior.
Operant conditioning: behavior is shaped by its consequences — reinforcement and punishment schedules. The Skinner box: experimental apparatus for studying operant conditioning. Verbal Behavior: language as operant behavior — criticized by Chomsky in the famous 1959 review. Walden Two: a fictional behaviorist utopia. Beyond Freedom and Dignity: free will is an illusion — behavior is determined by its consequences.
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