Abstract
Several authors argue that Skinner’s definition of reinforcement is not circular if such a definition is either ostensive (“pointing” to changes in operant probabilities defines “reinforcement”), stipulative (establishment of the usage of the concept is in a given discussion), or empirical (the definition is not circular if it is testable). Skinner’s (1957) functional analysis of verbal behavior has also been suggested to eliminate circularity in that definition: The definition of reinforcement is not circular if it is viewed as a case of verbal behavior controlled by environmental contingencies. This paper argues that Skinner’s definition of reinforcement is inherently circular because it is relational, and all relational definitions are inherently tautological. This paper concludes that circularity in that definition is not a problem “waiting” for the best solution, but a fact similar in nature to that found when defining relational concepts in economics, evolutionary theory, genetics, geometry, statistics, and physics.
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Preparation of this manuscript was supported in part by Grant #000917-15-0 from the Maternal and Child Health Services to the John F. Kennedy Institute and Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine where the author was a visiting fellow in the Division of Behavior Psychology.
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Paniagua, F.A. The Relational Definition of Reinforcement: Comments on Circularity. Psychol Rec 35, 193–202 (1985). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03394925
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03394925