John Watson

John Watson (John B. Watson, 1878–1958)

An American psychologist and the founder of Behaviorism. His 1913 paper 'Psychology as the Behaviorist Views It' fundamentally redirected the course of psychology.

The Behaviorist Revolution

Watson criticized introspection, which was the dominant method in psychology at the time, arguing that for psychology to become a true science, it must study only observable behavior. His position was that inner phenomena such as consciousness or the unconscious cannot be measured scientifically.

The Little Albert Experiment (1920)

This is Watson's most famous — and most controversial — experiment. He conditioned an 11-month-old infant named Albert to fear a white rat by pairing the sight of the rat with a loud, startling noise. This fear then generalized to similar objects such as rabbits and cotton balls.

The experiment demonstrated that emotions can be formed through learning, but by today's research ethics standards, it would never be permitted.

Environmental Determinism

Watson placed extreme emphasis on the influence of environment over heredity. His famous declaration: 'Give me a dozen healthy infants and I'll guarantee to take any one at random and train him to become any type of specialist I might select — doctor, lawyer, or thief.' This radical claim drew criticism, but it powerfully impressed upon people the importance of environment and learning.

The Influence of Behaviorism

Watson's behaviorism was the starting point of a vast intellectual current that led to Skinner's operant conditioning, behavior therapy, and ultimately modern Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT).

Mindy's Perspective

Mindy finds an important lesson in Watson's work. If many of our fears and emotional responses are learned from past experiences, then there is a hopeful message: through new experiences, change is possible.