Abstract

OLIVEIRA-CASTRO, Jorge M. de. "Doing in the head": conceptual analysis, empirical demonstrations and theoretical considerations. Psicol. USP [online]. 1993, vol.4, n.1-2, pp. 171-202. ISSN 1678-5177.

The analysis of the concept "do it in head" in everyday language indicates that its use: i) is metaphoric, because is does not refer to anything in the body; II) is negative, because it indicates that certain activities do not occur; and III) does not necessarily characterize "mental" activities. The psychological theories in general have interpreted the concept positively, as if this indicated that something happens, but somewhere else or in some other way. It is proposed that the concept be interpreted negatively, by investigating the necessary and sufficient conditions for the reduction of some activities ("intermediate responses"). The results of three experiments show that intermediate responses diminish in an orderly way with increasing trials. The concepts of "reduction in reinforcement delay", "transference of stimulus" and "levels of response" are sugested to explain a reduction of intermediate responses.

Keywords : Memory; Behaviorism; Verbal learning.

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