Control : : A History of Behavioral Psychology / / John A. Mills.

• Superior document: Title is part of eBook package: De Gruyter New York University Press Backlist eBook-Package 2000-2013
• VerfasserIn: Mills, John A.,
• Place / Publishing House: New York, NY : : New York University Press, , [2000]; ©2000
• Year of Publication: 2000
• Language: English
• Series: Qualitative Studies in Psychology ; 14
• Physical Description: 1 online resource

Behaviorism has been the dominant force in the creation of modern American psychology. However, the unquestioned and unquestioning nature of this dominance has obfuscated the complexity of behaviorism. Control serves as an antidote to this historical myopia, providing the most comprehensive history of behaviorism yet written. Mills successfully balances the investigation of individual theorists and their contributions with analysis of the structures of assumption which underlie all behaviorist psychology, and with behaviorism's role as both creator and creature of larger American intellectual patterns, practices, and values. Furthermore, Mills provides a cogent critique of behaviorists' narrow attitudes toward human motivation, exploring how their positivism cripples their ability to account for the unobservable, inner factors that control behavior. Control's blend of history and criticism advances our understanding not only of behaviorism, but also the development of social science and positivism in twentieth-century America.

Table of Contents

Frontmatter -- Contents -- Acknowledgments -- Introduction: Shaping a Profession: Behaviorism in American Psychology -- 1 The Birth of Psychological Behaviorism -- 2 From Apogee to Perigee: Radical Behaviorism Appears but Fails to Take Root -- 3 The Conceptual Basis of Neobehaviorism and Behavioral Science -- 4 The Behaviorist as Research Manager: Clark L. Hull and the Writing of Principles of Behavior -- 5 The Behaviorist as Philosopher: B. F. Skinner -- 6 Behaviorists as Social Engineers: Behavior Modification Applied to Abnormal Psychology -- 7 Faithful unto This Last: The Neobehaviorist Hegemony -- Notes -- Index -- About the Author