B.F. Skinner (1904-1990)

Skinner, born in Susquehanna, Pennsylvania, was a graduate student in psychology at Harvard University. Through his research in behavioral control he came to believe that personality must be viewed in terms of observable behavior. He did not believe in Freud's ego, id, or superego because they are not observable. He also believed that situations had more influence on behavior than traits did, because people would learn that some behaviors would only receive reinforcement in certain situations. This would cause personality to be very different in different situations.

Skinner came to the conclusion that behavior is determined by the history of reinforcement and punishment. Although there are no stages of development, behavior patterns can be established through reinforcement and can be reversed or altered by changing reinforcement. This approach has direct applications for therapy. Since behavior is the problem and not a larger psychic disaster, reinforcement can be used to bring about desire behavior patterns.

Albert Bandura

Bandura and his colleagues came to the conclusion that personality is a learned behavior. They conducted an empirical demonstration of observational learning involving nursery school children watching adults' violence toward an inflatable Bobo doll. The children who had observed the adult model hit the doll more frequently than the control group which had not watched the adult. The results of this study point out the dangers of observational learning from television violence.

Bandura has modified his view to form the social cognitive theory. His model of triadic reciprocity views personal factors, environmental factors, and behavior factors as all necessary to account for personality.