John B. Watson

John Watson, American psychologist, scholar and behavioural expert Source: Wikicommons Are you interested in contributing to HLWIKI International – hlwiki.ca? contact: dean.giustini@ubc.ca To browse other articles on a range of HSL topics, see the A-Z index. Last Update 12 May 2013 Introduction See also Adult learning theory (andragogy) | Cognitivism | John Dewey | Famous learning theorists in history | Semiotics and the web | Teaching library users‎ | Lev Vygotsky "John Watson is one of the most significant figures in the history of psychology. He has three major contributions to his credit: he wrote the revolutionary paper that started the behaviourist movement, he conducted the famous (or infamous) Little Albert study, and he demonstrated the broad range of applications of classical conditioning." — Reevy et al, 2010 John Broadus Watson (1878 — 1958), American psychologist, scholar and behavioural expert, promoted a change in psychology through his lecture "Psychology as the behaviorist views it" given at Columbia University in 1913. The lecture was seen as Watson's behaviorist manifesto. Earlier, when Watson went to the University of Chicago in 1900, he was immersed in a highly intellectual setting where it was said that students were oriented to America’s version of the study of psychology. His years in Chicago included classes with professors such as James Hayden Tufts (1862-1942) and Edward Scribner Ames (1870-1958). He studied philosophy with John Dewey on the recommendation of Furman professor, Gordon Moore, who was a proponent of the view that life and the behaviour of living organisms could be explained entirely by chemistry and physics without recourse to a supposed "vital force". Watson spent his free time was spent in a lab observing the behavior of rats and monkeys, and went on to earn his PhD at the age of twenty-five; his dissertation dealt with the relationship between behaviour in the white rat and the growth of its nervous system. Later his research on child rearing and advertising, not to mention his "Little Albert" experiment, made him famous. In 1919, Watson published what many regard as the most important book of his career, Psychology from the Standpoint of a Behaviorist. At the height of his career, Watson had an affair with one of his graduate students, and was asked by the university to resign. Watson later married the student and the two remained together until her death in 1935. After leaving his academic post, he continued to publish books on Behaviorism (1924) and The psychological care of infant and child (1928). By the 1930s, his interests had shifted to advertising where he ended his scholarly life. He spent his final years as a recluse on a farm in Connecticut. Before his death, Watson burned his unpublished personal papers and letters. He died in 1958 at age 80, shortly after receiving a citation from the American Psychological Association for his contributions to psychology. Major contributions Watson challenged the prevailing views of psychology, especially the arbitrary divisions of consciousness, moving it towards "...a purely objective experimental science" with the goal of "predicting and controlling behavior." Watson moved psychology towards a more objective field in terms of methods and terminology, and stimulated a great deal of research. Watson along with other psychologists attempted to determine to source of unnatural fears. The subject of his experiment, an infant named Albert B, was given a white rat to play with; it was noted that Albert liked the rat, and was even noted playing with him. The next time Albert got the rat, the psychologists made a loud noise that made Albert cry. They repeated this many times, until when Albert was given the rat without the noise he would cry anyway. To verify their results, the psychologists gave Albert a white rabbit and a Santa Claus mask, both of which made Albert cry. Albert was taught to be scared of anything that was white and furry. Despite its moral conflicts, this experiment was a breakthrough in the workings of the human mind. Quotes Give me a dozen healthy infants, well-formed, and my own specified world to bring them up and I'll guarantee to take any one at random and train him to become any type of specialist I might select—doctor, lawyer, merchant-chief, and yes, even beggarman and thief. Key websites & video John Broadus Watson (1878 — 1958) John B. Watson YouTube channel References Buckley KW. Mechanical man: John Broadus Watson and the beginnings of behaviorism. New York: Guilford Press, 1989. Reevy et al. Encyclopedia of emotion. ABC-CLIO, 2010. Watson JB. Behavior: an introduction to comparative psychology. Henry Holt, New York, 1914. Watson JB. Psychology from the standpoint of a behaviorist. Lippincott, Philadelphia. 2nd ed 1924. Watson JB. Psychological care of infant and child. Norton, New York, 1928. Watson JB. Behaviorism (revised edition). University of Chicago Press, 1930.