Gilbert Gottlieb's theory of probabilistic epigenesis replaced the nature-nurture dichotomy, and similar oppositions, with an integrated account of the development of the entire behavioral phenotype. In that theory, invariant developmental outcomes cannot be identified with an organism's 'nature,' if by that term is meant a set of predetermined…

In order to understand the complex behavior of an individual, what that individual has learned must be understood. Unfortunately, behavior analysis and psychology in general have not studied the cumulative effects of the learning principles. However, there are concepts in behavior analysis that, although not well researched, address this area.…

The selections in this book discuss a wide variety of elements that enhance or inhibit the learning process, from areas of individual physical and mental health to the teaching media available in the classroom. Throughout the book the individual student is viewed in relation to the classroom or sociological group, the teacher, and/or the…

Notes advantages of using dynamic models to understand cognitive functioning: (1) they are specifically intended to represent changes that systems undergo as they evolve; (2) they can capture change in a continuous fashion; (3) they can account for development of behavior that appears orderly at times and disorderly at others, and (4) chaotic…

Evaluates John B. Watson's contributions to developmental psychology. Watson's insistence on objective methodology in psychology retains its influence, but his extreme environmentalism has been rejected. His concern with the principles of learning is reflected in the work of Hull and Skinner. (BC)

The authors describe a program of research in the application of scalogram analysis to the validation of learning hierarchies, together with the development of an alternative method for assessing hierarchical relationships among tests of instructional objectives. The relationship between scalability of tests and positive transfer between…

Traces the ideas of Rousseau and Spencer concerning proper use of consequences in moral education. Concludes that behavior modification techniques retard the development of principled individuals because they neglect development of moral understanding. (Author/DB)

Written in the form of programmed instruction, this book is designed to help parents and teachers understand and correct situations in which a child's behavior is distressing. The book utilizes the social learning approach (that people learn most behavior patterns from other people). The first section discusses how parents and children learn and…

Provides a brief history of the empiricism-nativism issue, considering present-day intellectual roots of nativist and empiricist inclinations. A schema is proposed for explaining the ontogenetic origin of an innate attribute or principle relevant to language. An attempt is made to explain the origin of primitives as derived by learning. (Contains…

The 30 sixth and 30 ninth grade students, all of whom attended one rural school district in central Illinois, not only displayed a wider variety of behaviors than reported in the Inhelder and Piaget study (1958) investigating the development of logical thinking in children, but the behavioral components served to fill significant gaps in the…

This symposium paper describes 2 experiments in which the principles of observational learning were applied in school settings to the treatment of 2 separate groups of test-anxious junior high school students. The first experiment was designed to test the assumption that the counter-conditioning responses thought to occur in systematic…

Describes Project ABC (Iowa), designed to build effective learning climates for children through helping teachers identify behavioral needs of all children. Figure sketches included. (Author/CJ)

It was the purpose of this study to design a secondary school curriculum in narrative and dramatic literature which would reflect the growth of structures of thought and behavior in early and middle adolescence. Based on Jean Piaget's theory of intellectual development which begins in the student's experiences and works toward…

This text is a series of readings designed to introduce the student to scientific research on children. Choice of material for inclusion was based on: (1) the provision of a wide selection of the developmental literature, its origins and growth; (2) the presentation of examples of empirical research, and (3) the selection of articles representing…