Skip to main content
Log in

Some Historical Relationships between Science and Technology with Implications for Behavior Analysis

  • Published:
The Behavior Analyst Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The relationship between science and technology is examined in terms of some implications for behavior analysis. Problems result when this relationship is seen as one in which science generally begets technology in a one-way, or hierarchical, relationship. These problems are not found when the relationship between science and technology is seen as two-way, or symmetrical, within a larger context of relationships. Some historical examples are presented. Collectively, these and other examples in the references weaken the case for a prevailing one-way, hierarchical relationship and strengthen the case for a two-way, symmetrical relationship. In addition to being more accurate historically, the symmetrical relationship is also more consistent with the principles of behavior analysis.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Alford, L. P. (1934). Henry Laurence Gantt. New York: Harper & Brothers.

    Google Scholar 

  • Azrin, N. H. (1977). A strategy for applied research: Learning based but outcome oriented. American Psychologist, 32, 140–148.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Baer, D. M. (1981). A flight of behavior analysis. The Behavior Analyst, 4, 85–91.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Baer, D. M. (1986). In application, frequency is not the only estimate of the probability of behavior units. In T. Thompson & M. D. Zeiler (Eds.), Analysis and integration of behavioral units (pp. 117–136). Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.

    Google Scholar 

  • Baer, D. M., Wolf, M. M., & Risley, T. R. (1987). Some still current dimensions of applied behavior analysis. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 20, 313–327.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Barnes, B., & Edge, D. (Eds.) (1982). Science in context. Cambridge, MA: M.I.T. Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Beniger, J. R., & Robyn, D. L. (1978). Quantitative graphics in statistics: A brief history. The American Statistician, 32, 1–11.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bennett, J. A. (1986). The mechanics’ philosophy and the mechanical philosophy. History of Science, 24, 1–28.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Boakes, R. (1984). From Darwinism to behaviorism. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bobbin, F. (1913). Some general principles of management applied to the problems of city-school systems. The twelfth yearbook of the national society for the study of education: Part I. The supervision of city schools (pp. 7–96). Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bohme, G., Van Den Daele, W., & Krohn, W. (1978). The’ scientification’ of technology. In W. Krohn, E. T. Layton, & P. Weingart (Eds.), The dynamics of science and technology (pp. 219–250). Dordrecht, Holland: D. Reidel.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Bryan, W. L., & Harter, N. (1897). Studies in the physiology and psychology of the telegraphic language. The Psychological Review, 4, 27–53.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bryan, W. L., & Harter, N. (1899). Studies in the telegraphic language: The acquisition of a hierarchy of habits. The Psychological Review, 6, 345–375.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Buchanan, R. A. (1976). The Promethean revolution: Science, technology and history. History of Technology, 1, 73–83.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bunge, M. (1966). Technology as applied science. Technology and Culture, 7, 329–347.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bush, V. (1970). Pieces of the action. New York: William Morrow.

    Google Scholar 

  • Carmony, D. F., & Elliott, J. M. (1980). New Harmony, Indiana: Robert Owen’s seedbed for Utopia. Indiana Magazine of History, 76, 161–261.

    Google Scholar 

  • Coleman, S. R. (1987). Quantitative order in B. F. Skinner’s early research program. The Behavior Analyst, 10, 47–65.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Danziger, K. (1983). The schema of stimulated motion. History of Science, 21, 183–210.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Day, W. (1980). The historical antecedents of contemporary behaviorism. In R. W. Rieber & K. Salzinger (Eds.), Psychology: Theoretical-historical perspectives (pp. 203–262). New York: Academic Press.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Deitz, S. (1978). Science versus technology. American Psychologist, 33, 805–814.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Deitz, S. (1983). Two correct definitions of applied. The Behavior Analyst, 6, 105–106.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • de Solla Price, D. J. (1982). The parallel structures of science and technology. In B. Barnes & D. Edge (Eds.), Science in context (pp. 164–176). Cambridge, MA: M.I.T. Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Drake, S. (1980). Measurement in Galileo’s science. History of Technology, 5, 39–54.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dresslar, F. B. (1892). Some influences which affect the rapidity of voluntary movements. The American Journal of Psychology, 4, 514–527.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dvorak, A., Merrick, N. L., Dealey, W. L., & Ford, G. C. (1936). Typewriting behavior: Psychology applied to teaching and learning typewriting. New York: American Book.

    Google Scholar 

  • Epling, W. F., & Pierce, W. D. (1986). The basic importance of applied behavior analysis. The Behavior Analyst, 9, 89–99.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Funkhouser, H. (1937). Historical development of the graphical representation of statistical data. Osiris, 3, 269–404.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gantt, H. L. (1974). Organization for work. Easton, PA: Hive. (Original work published 1919)

    Google Scholar 

  • Hall, A. R. (1978). On knowing, and knowing how to …. History of Technology, 3, 91–103.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hayes, S. C., Hayes, L. J., & Reese, H. W. (1988). Finding the philosophical core: A review of Stephen Pepper’s World Hypotheses. Journal of the Experimental Analysis of Behavior, 50, 97–111.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Hayes, S. C., Rincover, A., & Solnick, J. V. (1980). The technical drift of applied behavior analysis. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 13, 275–286.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Henry, J. (1886). The improvement of the mechanical arts. In Scientific writings of Joseph Henry (Vol. 1, pp. 306–324). Washington, DC: Smithsonian Institution. (Original work published 1855)

    Google Scholar 

  • Henry, J. (1972). In N. Reingold (Ed.), The papers of Joseph Henry (Vol. 1). Washington, DC: Smithsonian Institution Press. (Original work published 1832)

  • Herodotus (1972). The histories (A. de Selincourt, Trans.; A. R. Burn, Rev.). Harmondsworth, Middlesex, England: Penguin.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hindle, B., & Lubar, S. (1986). Engines of change. Washington, DC: Smithsonian Institution Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hodgkin, A. L. (1976). Chance and design in electrophysiology: An informal account of certain experiments on nerve carried out between 1934 and 1952. Journal of Physiology, 263, 1–21.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Hoff, H. E., & Geddes, L. A. (1959). Graphic registration before Ludwig: The antecedents of the kymograph. Isis, 50, 5–21.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Hoff, H. E., & Geddes, L. A. (1962). The beginnings of graphic recording. Isis, 53, 287–324.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Hopkins, B. L. (1987). Comments on the future of applied behavior analysis. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 20, 339–346.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Jevons, F. (1976). The interaction of science and technology today, or, is science the mother of invention? Technology and Culture, 17, 729–742.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Joyce, B., & Moxley, R. A. (1988). August Dvorak (1894–1975): Early expressions of applied behavior analysis and precision teaching. The Behavior Analyst, 11, 33–40.

    PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Keevil, J. J. (1957). Medicine and the navy 1200–1900 (Vol. 1). Edinburgh: Livingstone.

    Google Scholar 

  • Keller, F. S. (1977). Summers and sabbaticals: Selected papers on psychology and education. Champaign, IL: Research Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Keller, A. (1984). Has science created technology? Minerva, 22, 160–182.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kline, M. (1972). Mathematical thought from ancient to modern times. New York: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Langrish, J., Gibbons, M., Evans, W. G., & Jevons, F. R. (1972). Wealth from knowledge. London: Macmillan.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Layton, E. T. (1971). Mirror-image twins: The communities of science and technology in 19th-century America. Technology and Culture, 12, 562–580.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Layton, E. T. (1976). American ideologies of science and engineering. Technology and Culture, 17, 688–701.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lindsley, O. R. (1974). Precision teaching in perspective. In R. Ulrich, T. Stachnik, & J. Mabry (Eds.), Control of human behavior: Behaviour modification in education (Vol. 3, pp. 387–391). Glenview, IL: Scott, Foresman.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lloyd, C. (1961). The introduction of lemon juice as a cure for scurvy. Bulletin of the History of Medicine, 35, 123–132.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • McGreevy, P. (1984). Frequency and the standard celeration chart: Necessary components of precision teaching. Journal of Precision Teaching, 5, 28–36.

    Google Scholar 

  • Michael, J. (1980). Flight from behavior analysis. The Behavior Analyst, 3, 1–21.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Mosteller, F. (1981). Innovation and evaluation. Science, 211(4485), 881–886.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • O’Brien, J. A. (1926). Silent reading. New York: Macmillan.

    Google Scholar 

  • Pauly, P. J. (1987). Controlling life: Jacques Loeb and the engineering ideal in biology. New York: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Pennypacker, H. S. (1986). The challenge of technology transfer. The Behavior Analyst, 9, 147–156.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Pepper, S. C. (1970). World hypotheses: A study in evidence. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press. (Original work published 1942)

    Google Scholar 

  • Perrone, M., Galizio, M., & Baron, A. (1988). The relevance of animal-based principles in the laboratory study of human operant conditioning. In G. Davey & C. Cullen (Eds.), Human operant conditioning and behavior modification (pp. 59–85). New York: Wiley.

    Google Scholar 

  • Pierce, J. R. (1961). Symbols, signals and noise: The nature and process of communication. New York: Harper & Row.

    Google Scholar 

  • Pierce, W. D., & Epling, W. F. (1980). What happened to analysis in applied behavior analysis? The Behavior Analyst, 3, 1–9.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Polanyi, M. (1962). Personal knowledge. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Poling, A., Picker, M., Grossett, D., Hall-Johnson, E., & Holbrook, M. (1981). The schism between experimental and applied behavior analysis. The Behavior Analyst, 4, 93–102.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Purchas, S. (1905). Hakluytus Posthumus (Vol. 2). Glasgow: James MacLehose.

    Google Scholar 

  • Russell, B. (1970). An outline of philosophy. London: George Allen & Unwin. (Original work published 1927)

    Google Scholar 

  • Rymer, J. (1988). Scientific composing processes: How eminent scientists write journal articles. In D. A. Joliffe (Ed.), Advances in writing research: Vol. 2. Writing in academic disciplines (pp. 211–250). Norwood, NJ: Ablex.

    Google Scholar 

  • Skinner, B. F. (1968). The technology of teaching. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.

    Google Scholar 

  • Skinner, B. F. (1972). Cumulative record (3rd ed.). New York: Appleton-Century-Crofts.

    Google Scholar 

  • Skinner, B. F. (1979). The shaping of a behaviorist. New York: New York University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Skinner, B. F. (1987). Upon further reflection. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.

    Google Scholar 

  • Studwell, P., & Moxley, R. (1984). Self-recording in kindergarten: A Study in naturalistic evaluation. Psychology in the Schools, 21, 450–456.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Taylor, F. (1911). Shop management. New York: Harper & Brothers.

    Google Scholar 

  • Thorndike, E. L. (1913). Educational psychology: The Pychology of Learning (Vol. 2). New York: Columbia University, Teachers College.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Tilling, L. (1975). Early experimental graphs. British Journal for the History of Science, 8, 193–213.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Van Houten, R. (1984). Setting up performance feedback systems in the classroom. In W. L. Heward, T. E. Heron, D. S. Hill, & J. Trapp-Porter (Eds.), Focus on behavior analysis in education (pp. 114–125). Columbus, OH: Merrill.

    Google Scholar 

  • Vincenti, W. G. (1988). How did it become “obvious” that an airplane should be inherently stable? American Heritage of Invention & Technology, 4, 50–56.

    Google Scholar 

  • Washburne, C. W. (1922). Educational measurement as a key to individual instruction and promotions. Journal of Educational Research, 5, 195–206.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Watson, J. D. (1968). The double helix. New York: Atheneum.

    Google Scholar 

  • Westfall, R. S. (1973). Newton and the fudge factor. Science, 179(4075), 751–758.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Ziman, J. (1984). An introduction to science studies: The philosophical and social aspects of science and technology. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

    Book  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Moxley, R.A. Some Historical Relationships between Science and Technology with Implications for Behavior Analysis. BEHAV ANALYST 12, 45–57 (1989). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03392476

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03392476

Key words

Navigation