B. F. Skinner
Behavior is shaped by consequence.
The leading behaviorist, who showed how reinforcement shapes what we do — and how habits can be rebuilt.
techniques
The consequences of behavior determine the probability that it will occur again.
Who they were
B. F. Skinner argued that to understand people we should look not inward but at behavior and its consequences. His principle of operant conditioning — what gets reinforced gets repeated — became a practical toolkit for changing habits, learning and self-control. Controversial and exacting, his work underpins much of how we think about reward and routine.
Famous books
What they left on the shelf
Terms they cared about
Ideas worth knowing
Their big idea
Operant Conditioning
B. F. Skinner showed that behavior is shaped by its consequences: actions followed by reward tend to repeat, while those followed by nothing or by punishment tend to fade. Through reinforcement, small steps can be gradually shaped into complex habits.
The approach they founded
Behavioral Therapy
Change what you do, and feeling follows. Habits reshaped through reinforcement and practice.
Questions in their spirit
What they’d ask you
Sit with one. Answer online, or in the app.
Carry the idea forward
Skinner — What they’d ask you
Psipas asks you one small, honest question at a time — and builds the picture from your answers.