A failure is not always a mistake, it may simply be the best one can do under the circumstances. The real mistake is to stop trying.
B. F. Skinner
Burrhus Frederic Skinner (B.f. Skinner) was born in the hilly state of Pennsylvania on March 20, 1904. When he was child, he would often build and invest things. He went to Hamiton College, where he received a BA in English Literature. He was a struggling writer when he found the works of John B. Watson and Ivan Pavolv. He gave up writing and started at the psychology graduate program at Harvard University. B. F. Skinner had a lasting effect on psychology through his work with operant conditioning.
Skinner's most famous experiment was the Skinner's Box. Skinner created a box that would have a mixture of levers and buttons. These would do different things such as release water or food, turn off and on lights, turn noise on and off, and electrify the floor. Skinner would keep track of how many times a rat would touch the button or level. He was able to test behavior in a controlled environment. This lead to him becoming one of the biggest influences with Behaviorism. Behaviorism is the idea John B. Watson came up with that said people get their behavior through conditioning a certain way. In 1948, Skinner published Walden II, which described how a society founded on behaviorist principles could easily become Utopian. In 1971, Skinner published another book called Beyond Freedom and Dignity, which is where he stated that people don't have a free will. It is all an illusion, that we are trained.
Skinner's most famous experiment was the Skinner's Box. Skinner created a box that would have a mixture of levers and buttons. These would do different things such as release water or food, turn off and on lights, turn noise on and off, and electrify the floor. Skinner would keep track of how many times a rat would touch the button or level. He was able to test behavior in a controlled environment. This lead to him becoming one of the biggest influences with Behaviorism. Behaviorism is the idea John B. Watson came up with that said people get their behavior through conditioning a certain way. In 1948, Skinner published Walden II, which described how a society founded on behaviorist principles could easily become Utopian. In 1971, Skinner published another book called Beyond Freedom and Dignity, which is where he stated that people don't have a free will. It is all an illusion, that we are trained.