Behaviorism and Learning Reflection

Behaviorism is the study of observable behavior. Although it began with the ideas of James Watson and his skepticism of subjective thoughts and feelings, other schools of behaviorism have developed insights worth understanding from a personal perspective. Clark Hull, for example, criticized Watson’s rejection of unobservable events as unsound. Hull also believed that scientists might be able to infer internal events through mediation means (Powell, Honey, & Symbaluk, (2017). The following article will present an example of a means of examination my own internal events to expose some insight into my past behavior.

My Choice of Music

Could music expose our inner feelings? As I look back at my own bad behavior, I seem to remember those feelings I was experiencing at a troubled time in my life. When I was 10 years old, one of my favorite songs was, I Think I Love You, by the Partridge Family. When I was 11 years old, my parents divorced, and I moved in with my dad who had just married a woman who already had four younger children. My favorite song then became, Behind Blue Eyes, by The Who. Nine troubled months later, I moved back in with my mom. My favorite song then became, No More Mister Nice Guy, by Alice Cooper. Thereafter, I became a troubled teenager. Although scientists may not be able to see or hear other people’s feelings, they should be able to infer negative feelings from children who listening to music that either explicitly or implicitly exhibits those feelings.

Thoughts, Feelings, and Behavior

Albert Bandura’s social learning theory emphasizes reciprocal determinism, which asserts that thoughts and feelings and behavior influence each other (Powell, Honey, & Symbaluk, (2017). After my parents divorced, while I was living with my dad and his new family in their home and going to their church, I felt rejection from my dad. I felt like the other children were good children because they were a part of my dad’s new religion. I felt like they were better than me, and that made me mad! But I did not stomp my feet or punch the wall. Instead, I developed the idea that I was better at doing the things I was not supposed to do that they could not do, like smoking cigarettes, which is strictly forbidden in their religion. My madness was expressed through passive-aggressiveness. This passive-aggressiveness manifested itself in bad behavior, which is why, after nine months, my dad explicitly rejected me and sent me back to live with my mom. Thus, the feelings of rejection I experienced while living with the new family influenced my thinking that I was better than my step siblings because I was not afraid to smoke cigarettes. This thinking influenced my bad behavior (smoking), which caused my dad to reject me and send me back to live with my mom; thus, reciprocal determinism.

The behavior I was expressing in response to my feelings of rejection is not unique. A descriptive method of research is probably the better method to use in order to understand more about how feelings of rejection might affect behavior. Case studies of other similarly situated people would provide a lot of insight into the psychological effects of children who must adapt to a new family and religion after a divorce.

References

Powell, R. A., Symbaluk, D. G., & Honey, P. L. (2008). Introduction. In Introduction to Learning and Behavior

I Think I Love You: Partrige Family: retriveved from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bb4FMn-IWEY

Behind Blue Eyes: The Who: retrieved from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qg_TRaiWj4o

No More Mr. Nice Guy: Alice Cooper: retrieved from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PE1vGT-hlLI