This is a brief video on Skinner and Behaviorism that links behaviorism to our superstitious practices. The narrator begins with a review of behaviorism in terms of rewards for behaviors, using the learned behaviors of rats and pigeons as examples. The narrator explains that Skinner also studied the impact of random reward on behavior. The findings indicated that these random rewards tended to reinforce quirky behaviors in animals (e.g., superstitions) that were in no way linked to the reward itself other than the fact that they had been engaged in that behavior at the time the reward was administered. Using the example of the various rituals that people have when bowling, such as leaning in one direction or another, the narrator makes the point that such behaviors are done to influence the ball when in fact the ball is influencing us. I had not really thought about behaviorism in this way before, but I thought that this was a great example of how reinforcements can influence the way that we perceive our actions. In particular, reinforcements can lead us to perceive actions as meaningful, even if they are not particularly influential on our outcomes.
Teachers must think alike. I found this particular video interesting as well. Your conclusion clinches the creator's meaning to my mind: "reinforcements can lead us to perceive actions as meaningful, even if they are not particularly influential on our outcomes." This thought reminds me much of what Bargh and Chartrand say in their article, as well as what Gladwell presents in Blink. Yet, in Blink, Gladwell also mentions, when talking about experiments dealing with priming, that if the subjects are aware of being primed, they don't respond. Is the same true with the demonstrations presented in this video? If bowlers, for instance, are made aware that they are illogically leaning to the left, will they stop it? Does reason short-circuit acquired behavior? Will we tend to our habits only when we are on 'auto-pilot'? How will students react if they become conscious of having their behavior modified? They aren't pigeons, after all.
ReplyDeleteI thought that this video was amazing. The bird's behavior of spinning the wheel was rewarded with a pellet. I noticed that the bird would spin the wheel because it knew that it would get a reward. It would spin the wheel less if the reward was withheld for a while. I now realize that conditioning occurs in many areas of our lives.
ReplyDeleteI look at children and how they use spanking to condition their children so that they can get them to act in a good manner. When a child acts bad, the parent will spank the child so that they will know that they are not acting correctly. But when the child exhibits better behavior, the child will not receive a spanking. In due time, the parents hope that the child's behavior will improve so that they do not have to spank them. Overall, conditioning happens but is it always good to condition children to act a certain way? Should they be allowed to exercise their free will?
@ Ben - These are great questions. I would venture to say that, even if we are aware of our own behavior modification, this will not necessarily stop our habits. However, I do think that as we continue to develop, we can become more mindful of them. For example, those of us studying education, sociology, anthropology, and probably other areas as well are aware of influences that culture has on our "worldview." While activities such as the IAT and stereotyping research make us aware of how these cultural experiences impact our view on the world, they do not stop us from forming habits. However, they do cause us to take pause and consider where these habits are coming from, whether they be points of view or bowling strategies.
ReplyDelete@ Antoinette - While I think that children (and adults for that matter) should be allowed to exercise their free will, I would argue that environmental pressures will ultimately attempt to shape that child's behavior in the absence of parental guidance. While this is not always successful in society's eyes (as would be the example of criminals who do not conform to society's rules), exercising free will, or perhaps just countering societal norms, can be a good thing. Many leaders and innovators would not have made their contributions without pushing the limits of society!
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