Käyttäytymäliike

Käyttäytymisliike, also known as behaviorism, is a school of psychology that emerged in the early 20th century. Its central tenet is that all behavior, whether observable or unobservable, can be explained by the interaction between an organism and its environment. Behaviorists focus on observable actions and their relationship to environmental stimuli. They believe that behavior is learned through processes such as classical conditioning and operant conditioning.

Classical conditioning, famously demonstrated by Ivan Pavlov's experiments with dogs, involves associating a neutral stimulus with an unconditioned stimulus that naturally elicits a response. Over time, the neutral stimulus alone comes to evoke the same response. Operant conditioning, developed by B.F. Skinner, focuses on how consequences shape behavior. Behaviors followed by reinforcement, such as rewards, are more likely to be repeated, while behaviors followed by punishment are less likely to occur.

Early behaviorists, like John B. Watson, advocated for a scientific approach to psychology that excluded internal mental states, such as thoughts and feelings, as they were not directly observable. While later forms of behaviorism, such as cognitive behaviorism, began to incorporate cognitive processes, the core emphasis remained on the empirical study of behavior. Behaviorism has had a significant impact on fields like education, therapy, and animal training, offering practical applications for understanding and modifying behavior.