Learning, Knowledge and Human Development MOOC’s Updates

Key concept of Behaviorism

Behaviorism, also known as behavioral learning theory, is a theoretical perspective in psychology that emphasizes the role of learning and observable behaviors in understanding human and animal actions. Behaviorism is a theory of learning that states all behaviors are learned through conditioned interaction with the environment. Thus, behavior is simply a response to environmental stimuli.The behaviorist theory is only concerned with observable stimulus-response behaviors, as they can be studied in a systematic and observable manner.

One key concept of behaviorism is conditioning, developed by B.F. Skinner, where a person acts based on the influence of his environment. There are 2 types of conditioning. One of these is operant conditioning, where one's behavior is modified through rewards or punishments. If a behavior is rewarded, you will want to repeat it. But if a behavior is punished, you will likely do it less. Operant conditioning is always part of our lives. We use our past experiences to the way we act. An example is that if a student reviewed his lesson and got a perfect score on his test, the teacher will praise him. The student might want to review his lessons from now on. At work, when an employee is always late the HR will give him a memo. From that experience, the employee will lessen being tardy. When an employee performed well at work and the boss gave him a bonus. In this case, the employee will continue doing his job well. Another example is when a child draws on the wall and the mother scolds him. The child would not want to repeat what he did.

Reference:

https://www.simplypsychology.org/behaviorism.html