Cumulative Record: Definitive Edition (1999). Chapter 3: The Design of Cultures. Quote 3

Post author:B. F. Skinner Foundation
Post published:March 22, 2021
Post category:Skinner's Quote of the Day

Contingencies of reinforcement are similar to what we might call contingencies of survival. (p. 42)

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SKINNER'S QUOTE OF THE DAY

Verbal Behavior: Extended Edition. Chapter 4: Verbal Behavior under the Control of Verbal Stimuli. Quote 16
Echoic responses are useful and reinforced when they serve as fill-ins. In answer to the question What will happen to the international situation during the next few weeks? the student may begin During the next few weeks, the international situation…, which may be purely echoic but, especially if the situation demands speed, self-reinforcing if it provides a breathing space for the composition of the rest of the sentence. (p. 57)
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