Bijou's empirical behaviorism: its proposals and characteristics

There are many paradigms and theoretical currents that have existed in psychology throughout history, all of them focused on the study of the psyche and human (and animal) behavior from very various. Among these currents, probably the most prominent and popularly known are the cognitivist current, the behaviorist current, and the psychoanalysis and psychodynamic currents (also others such as systemic theory, gestalt and humanist and integrators).

But within each of these paradigms we can find various theories that allow us to differentiate between subtypes of the theoretical current in question. As far as behaviorism is concerned, one of its variants, although continuous with the ideas of operant behaviorism, is Empirical behaviorism and Bijou's behavioral analysis of development.

• Related article: "Behaviorism: history, concepts and main authors"

Behaviorism: what is it?

Before starting to assess what we call empirical behaviorism, it is necessary to make a small recapitulation regarding what behaviorism is at a general level and what are its main characteristics.

Behaviorism is one of the main currents or paradigms of psychology, and arose as a reaction to the then predominant psychoanalysis.

This current is based on the premise that the only verifiable and demonstrable element of our psyche, the only thing that we can really see without any doubt, is the conduct or behavior done. In this sense, behaviorism arose as a discipline that sought to be the most scientific and objective as possible, with a mechanistic vision in which all behavior occurs based on certain laws concrete.

The basic element to explain the performance of behaviors is the ability to associate or link stimuli. However, the subject is a passive entity of this process, considering aspects such as will or cognition less important and sometimes even non-existent.

Inside behaviorism Multiple perspectives have emerged that claim to offer an explanation for the behavior, an explanation that is often conceptualized as conditioning processes in which two stimuli are associated in such a way that one of they, neutral, start to acquire the properties of another that is appetitive or aversive based on the repetition of their association (conditioning classical), or in that this relationship occurs between carrying out the behavior and its appetitive or aversive consequences (conditioning operating).

One of these perspectives is empirical behaviorism, defended among other authors by Bijou.

• You may be interested in: "Conditioned stimulus: characteristics and uses in psychology

Bijou's empirical behaviorism

The concept of empirical behaviorism refers to one of the branches of behaviorism, which he considers which he considers that psychology should be devoted to the study of observable behavior and manifest. In the case of the defendant of Sidney W. jewelry, part of the procedures and bases of operant conditioning of B. F. skinner and Kantor's philosophy and concept of development and the need for application in the field.

Bijou's empirical behaviorism is particularly characterized by its focus on the process of human development and the acquisition of learning throughout growth, and is in fact a pioneer in attempt approximating the theory of behaviorism to human evolution and to the educational process during the first stages of life.

It is an orthodox model and to a certain extent quite continuous with the procedures and Skinner's theory of behaviorism, in which the main thing when explaining the behavior is the reinforcement and the consequences that the issuance or non-issuance of the behavior has for the subject.

The author proposed a model based on behavioral analysis in which the minor will be modeled by what happens in the environment but that he can also model said environment in turn with his actions, receiving different responses from the environment depending on his behaviors.

Learning and developing implies according to this model associations made during the evolution and growth of the person. Development itself is considered the accumulation of associations, which are carried out continuously and always under the same norms and laws.

Change during development is explained through analysis of both antecedents and consequences. of the behavior of the minor, being possible to control the stimuli that are presented to him in the situation of learning.

The three empirical stages of development

Bijou and other exponents of empirical behaviorism and developmental behavior analysis elaborate from their theory, from a point of view that they consider totally empirical, the existence of a total of three great phases of development.

1. Fundamentals Stage

Bijou and other authors identified this first period with the period from birth to language learning.

The behavior at this moment is fundamentally explained by biology, genetics and innate reflexes, and in general it is the same or very similar among all subjects. Gradually conditioning will arise as over time the child experiments and makes associations. These will be the ones that will allow him to learn to control his own body, move, walk and speak.

2. Basic stage or stage

Between the beginning of language and adolescence, in this period there is an increasing importance of associations made through experience when interacting with the half.

The behavior is governed more and more by its appetitive and aversive consequences, something that will cause the minor to increase or decrease the behavior in question. Acquired skills are refined with use, and the game behavior is added as a behavior test.

3. social stadium

This last stadium appears during adolescence and lasts for the rest of the subject's life, and in it the social responses of the environment emerge and become increasingly important as the main cause and determinant of behavior.

It is here where more or less regular habits and behavior styles arise, derived from operant conditioning in which the main reinforcer is the social. Old age is also included, in which behavior changes in order to meet the difficulties arising from the aging and deterioration of the organism.

Application in the educational field

Bijou's empirical behaviorism focuses broadly on the evolutionary process and human development, with which it has been linked especially with childhood and has found an applicability in the field educational. In fact, Bijou's own work was largely based on using behavioral methods and conditioning to promote children's learning in schools, both in the cases in which they could follow ordinary schooling and in those who presented difficulties in doing so.

He started from the idea that it is necessary to continuously monitor the performance and development of learning, as well as the idea of ​​the importance of the teacher as a transmitter of knowledge and the need to decide what, how and when to apply it (remember that for most behaviorism the subject is passive in generating the association).

Also, they should be taken into account the antecedents and consequences of the subject's behavior and seek control of stimuli in order to direct the learning of behaviors. Work with parents is also proposed in order to encourage them to provide educational guidelines and enriching environments for the child.

Although this vision does not take into account the existence of cognitive and volitional aspects, or the role of motivation and the search for meaning throughout learned, and as a theory has been superseded by other currents that do take them into account, the truth is that Bijou's empirical behaviorism has contributed to generate one of the first directed educational models based on what was considered a learning methodology based on the scientific study of human behavior.

Bibliographic references:

• Mills, J. TO. (2000). Control: A History of Behavioral Psychology. New York University Press.