The 10 types of behaviorism: history, theories and differences

This school became more complex thanks to the authors who proposed their own theory.

Throughout the history of psychology, numerous currents of thought and schools have been born, each of which interprets the human mind and mental and behavioral processes in a particular way.

One of these schools of thought focused on what they considered to be the only directly observable correlate of the psyche, behavior, while ignoring that which was not directly observable.They ignored what they could not measure and sought to make psychology as scientific and objective a science as possible. This is behaviorism.

But there are different types of behaviorism. In spite of being part of the same paradigm, different authors have established their own vision on the subject, proposing different approaches, methods and objectives. This article presents some of the different theoretical developments that the behaviorist current has given.

• Recommended article: "The 10 main theories of Psychology".

The behaviorist paradigm

Behaviorism is one of the main theoretical currents in psychology.. Born at a time in history when the psychodynamic current was predominant, behaviorism was opposed to and differed greatly from the conception of the latter.

Behaviorism focuses on trying to offer the most scientific and objective explanation possible of psychic phenomena and human behavior, avoiding any information that cannot be directly observed. It proposes that the only clearly observable aspect of the psyche is behavior, this being the only element with which it is possible to work in a scientific manner.

He does not deny aspects such as mental processes, but considers them secondary, a black box impossible to study.. Behaviorism is a paradigm of environmentalist orientation, being behavior determined by environmental phenomena. Specifically, it is explained on the basis of the association between stimuli, which provoke a response. If we have a neutral stimulus that is associated with an appetitive or aversive one, the response to the former will end up being the same as to the latter due to the fact that the link between both stimuli is generated. Responses are conditioned, this aspect being one of the most important for the behaviorist paradigm.

Types of behaviorism

Since the birth of behaviorism, many advances have been made and many authors have worked on the basis of it, offering different perspectives and subtypes of behaviorism. Some of the most relevant ones are briefly presented below.

1. Watson's classical behaviorism

Classical behaviorism is the one formulated by John B. Watson, influenced among other aspects by the work of Pavlov and Thorndike. In this type of behaviorism, studies focus on the link between stimuli and responses, being especially important in the treatment of phobias.

It considers that the mind is neither observable nor analyzable, but a black box that should not be taken into account (and in some cases its existence or real importance was denied) and behavior is the only thing that can be analyzed objectively. What determines behavior is the environment and the stimuli: for classical behaviorism the subject is a passive and reactive being, who acts through learning associations.

2. Skinner's radical behaviorism

Another type of behaviorism and one of the most important and recognized, together with Watson's, is the radical behaviorism of B. F. Skinner. This author considered that behavior could not be understood only through simple conditioning processes, although the organism acts to adapt to the good and the bad. Skinner proposed that the explanation of behavior was more closely linked to the perception of the consequences of our actions..

We learn that performing a certain action in a certain context has pleasant or unpleasant consequences, on the basis of which we modify our behavior by repeating or inhibiting those actions. Skinner called this mode of behavior modification operant conditioning. He also emphasized trial-and-error learning.

3. Interbehaviorism or Kantor's field behaviorism.

Similar to radical behaviorism, it differs from it in that it considers behavior as an interaction instead of interpreting it as a simple response. Behavior allows the subject and the environment to relate to each other and are interdependent, and it is this interaction that must be studied.

4. Tolman's intentional or propositional behaviorism

Edward C. Tolman establishes another type of behaviorism, this time proposing that all behavior is composed of actions that end up directing the individual towards an objective.

Behavior is propositional and not a learned sequence.. It also proposes that we establish cognitive maps in order to achieve these objectives, and we use them as a learning mechanism. In this type of behaviorism we begin to see elements that take into account mental processes, such as intentionality. In fact, some consider him to be the first cognitivist.

5. Hull's deductive behaviorism

Clark L. Hull proposes a functional vision of behavior: behavior and learning are understood as a way of surviving the environment.. This is explained by the formation of habits from which to satisfy or reduce impulses. The subject takes on an increasingly active role.

6. Rachlin's teleological behaviorism

This branch of behaviorism establishes behavior as something purposive, directed to an end, and which is realized over time. Howard Rachlin considers that the mind is the way the body functions, not something internal, and ideas an elaborated behavior.and ideas are behavior elaborated through time. He emphasizes the idea of the time frame of an event: its past, present and future. He also considers that the behavior occurs before the reinforced, noting that the effect occurs before the cause (behavior is the effect of the desire to eat).

7. Theoretical behaviorism of Staddon

Theoretical behaviorism is a type of behaviorism in which behavior is conceived as an action derived from environmental as well as Biological variables. as well as biological variables. It does not consider cognitive processes as behavior, but as a theoretical mechanism whose sole function is to manage states that link behavior and environment. It is a more cognitivist and biologistic approach than most variants of behaviorism.

8. Staats' psychological behaviorism

This type of behaviorism stands out for its presentation of the concept of basic behavioral repertoires, which are elaborated over the course of time.which are elaborated in the course of learning and development in a cumulative manner. It is also representative of the fact that it gives importance to emotional factors in behavior and learning.

9. Timberlake's biological behaviorism

This type of behaviorism stands out for its search for explanations of behavior and learning based on an ecological vision of them. For William Timberlake behavior is linked to the context in which the subject develops.It has a biological origin that predisposes us to feel and act in a certain way.

10. Hayes' functional contextualism

This author focuses his perspective on verbal behavior: that is, on language.. This serves as an intermediate element between behavior and environment. Steven Hayes also proposes the need to investigate mental phenomena if behavior is to be understood. He also works on aspects such as the influence of rules on behavior.

Other types of behaviorism and its effect on other currents

The above are some of the main types of behaviorism that have been developed over time. But there are many others, such as Bijou's empirical behaviorism, or philosophical, emergent or systemic behaviorism.

In addition, we must bear in mind that the evolution of behaviorism and the overcoming of its limitations have allowed the emergence of many other theoretical models such as cognitivism and constructivism.