Resumo

SOUZA, Carlos Barbosa Alves de; BARROS, Romariz da Silva  e  GALVAO, Olavo de Faria. On Skinner's concept of thinking. Ciênc. cogn. [online]. 2007, vol.11, pp. 168-183. ISSN 1806-5821.

Abstract How does Skinner refer to the notion of thinking? According to him, thinking has been defined as a mental process, because of the metaphorical use of words to describe the way people act. This definition implies the existence of a controlling mind. Skinner criticizes this assumption and stresses the analysis of reinforcement contingencies as an effective way to explain actions considered as thinking, either as covert or overt behavior. Considering that, Skinner defines thinking as a behavior. However, as Ryle pointed out, thinking is a polymorphous concept, and as such, cannot be defined simply by answering the question "what is thinking?" In order to avoid conceptual confusion, questions about thinking should be very specific and clearly formulated. Wondering on the necessary and sufficient conditions for the occurrence of actions considered as thinking, can be first step towards this end.

Palavras-chave : Skinner; thinking; thinking as behavior; Ryle; conceptual analysis..

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