Changes from Within

Behavioral therapy was developed by American behaviorist Burrhus Fredric Skinner. Behavior modification is a form of therapy used to change bad behaviors with good ones by positive and negative reinforcement. As defined by the American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, behavioral therapy is defined as “the use of basic learning techniques, such as conditioning, biofeedback, reinforcement, or aversion therapy, to alter human behavior.” Behavioral therapy is not only used in adults, but often in children and animals. It is helpful to people who have phobias, attention deficit hyperactive disorder (ADHD), obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), and much more. Behavior modification is based on operant conditioning and classical condition. It can be aided by techniques such as implosion therapy, reciprocal therapy and token economy among others. Born on March 20, 1904 in Susquehanna, Pennsylvania, Burrhus Skinner was born to a father who was a lawyer and a mother who was a housewife. His one brother died at the age of sixteen from cerebral aneurism. Skinner continued to be an outstanding but curious child. As a child, he made a flotation device that separated fresh berries from mature berries. It assisted in his selling of berries from door to door. His later inventions included the air crib, cumulative recorder, operant conditioning chamber, teaching machine and the pigeon guided missile. Skinner went to college in New York, where he majored in English Literature and minored in Romance languages. He received his Bachelor’s degree in English. He however, did not succeed in his attempt to become a fictional writer. When he first got involved in philosophy and psychology, he came upon Bertrand Russell’s book, An Outline of Philosophy. In Russell’s book, psychologist John B. Watson writes about his own personal behavioralist philosophies. During this time, Skinner became more interested in his surroundings. He was curious about people’s actions