Behaviorism

            In the early half of the twentieth century, a movement in philosophy and psychology called Behaviorism grew in opposition to the mostly introspectionist methods of the times. Stressing the relation of mental subjects to their quantitatively measurable physical manifestations, the movement attempted to explain human nature through its (the movement's) experimental methodology. It was John B. Watson who created the term "Behaviorism" and laid down some important groundwork, mostly arguments denying the introspective methods of gathering data. In its strictest and at one time most popular form, B. F. Skinner defined the movement in rigid terms and purported the grandest uses for it. While in modern academia Behaviorism has lost it's appeal due in large part to many of the criticisms I will be discussing in this paper, it still lingers as it supplied important arguments that were taken up by later philosophies. .
             I will focus on the theories of B. F. Skinner, since his "Radical Behaviorism" is the about the purest Behaviorist perspective around, and also since he is one of the few authors whose work I own that support its tenets. Therefore, when I refer to Behaviorism or Behaviorists from here on, it means of the "Radical Behaviorist" stance. Working upon the Stimulus-Response theory as proposed by Pavlov, Behaviorism applies this method of experimentation and direct observation of human response to gain information. It proposes that all human activity is based upon response from environmental stimuli. The primary argument for rejecting the introspective methods is simply that they cannot be .
             measured, and if concrete information cannot be obtained, then it technically doesn't exist, and is not worth consideration.
             To explain behavior as a functional response to external stimuli, Skinner uses the example of a person being offered a glass of water. He will either drink the water or not, but whichever his choice is, it can be explained through the environmental conditions surrounding him: temperature, his level of hydration due to various external manipulation, etc.