The control of human behavior

Abstract

The purpose of this text was to critically analyze Chapter 12 of About Behaviorism, which is devoted to the control of human behavior. This topic, which generally generates enor­mous resistance to behaviorism, is approached by Skinner with forceful arguments, although in a rather didactic way. Two main additions are suggested to broaden the scope of the argu­ments presented: 1) a precise definition of what is meant by control; 2) the inclusion of the concept of “power” in the analysis of social controls. Some updates are also pertinent, such as improving the concept of counter-control, eliminating the evaluative distinction between positive reinforcement and aversive control, and analyzing the sense of freedom as a function of choice. We conclude that, 50 years later, the chapter is still very important for understand­ing behaviorism. The emphasis on the dynamics of mutual interaction between organism and environment (simultaneously controlling and being controlled) supports the claim that this control does not express passivity or an attitude of domination. The text leads the reader to accept that control is natural and that knowledge of it is a condition for the individual to be able to change the existing controls and thus be an active element in the world around him.