Skinner’s Analysis of Private Events: The Essence of Radical Behaviorism Behavior Analysis Association of Michigan Ypsilanti, Michigan Friday, March 18, 2004 Jack Michael, Western Michigan University

Skinner’s Radical Behaviorism 1. Behavior is a function of stimuli and other variables in the environment. 2. Some parts of the environment are within the organism’s skin:private events. 3. Private events are related to behavior in a unique way because no one else can be affected by them--inflamed tooth eg. 4. But such variables seem to have no special properties because of the limited accessibility by others. 5. We acquire tacts of public stimuli by the reactions of others to our behavior in the presence of those stimuli. We also acquire tacts of private stimuli (itches, pains nausea, etc. So how is it accomplished? 6. Four ways: two indirect and two direct followed by stimulus generalization.

Skinner’s Radical Behaviorism 1. Behavior is a function of stimuli and other variables in the environment. 2. Some parts of the environment are within the organism’s skin:private events. 3. Private events are related to behavior in a unique way because no one else can be affected by them--inflamed tooth eg. 4. But such variables seem to have no special properties because of the limited accessibility by others. 5. We acquire tacts of public stimuli by the reactions of others to our behavior in the presence of those stimuli. We also acquire tacts of private stimuli (itches, pains nausea, etc. So how is it accomplished? 6. Four ways: two indirect and two direct followed by stimulus generalization.

B. F. Skinner's philosophical view, Radical Behaviorism, concerns the treatment of private stimul. Six points, as in S&HB, pp (which I modify slightly) as follows: 1. Behavior is a function of the environment–any event in the universe capable of affecting the organism. (stimuli, motivative operations, response–consequence relations) 2. But part of the universe is enclosed within the organism's own skin. (some stimuli originate within the organism' own skin) 3. Some stimuli etc. may, therefore, be related to behavior in a unique way. The individual's response to an inflamed tooth, for example, is unlike the response that anyone else can make to that particular tooth, since no one else can establish the same kind of contact with it. These are private events. 4. But we need not suppose that private events have special properties for that reason. They may be distinguished by their limited accessibility but not, so far as we know, by any special structure or nature. Interoceptive and proprioceptive stimuli are just stimuli, like exteroceptive stimuli. The only difference is that exteroceptive S can affect more than one person in approximately the same way. 5. We acquire vb under control of public stimuli by the reactions of others to our behavior in the presence of those stimuli. We also acquire vb controlled by private stimuli where others cannot make direct contact with those stimuli. We tact itches, pains, nausea, etc. How is it accomplished? 6. Four ways: two involving indirect contact with the private stimuli (common public accompaniment and collateral responses); two involving direct contact with stimuli that are first public but still control vb when they become private (common properties and response reduction).

Normal tact learning, same stimuli: An adult teaching a child to name geometric shapes of objects on a tray. teacher reinforces the vocal rsp cube by the learner as the teacher observes (sees) the the cube and as the learner also observes (sees) the cube eventually the learner says cube in the presence of the visual stimuli of the cube– the visual SD for saying cube Public Stimulus Control