Control : A History of Behavioral Psychology

Behaviorism has been the dominant force in the creation of modern American psychology. However, the unquestioned and unquestioning nature of this dominance has obfuscated the complexity of behaviorism. Control serves as an antidote to this historical myopia, providing the most comprehensive history of behaviorism yet written. Mills successfully balances the investigation of individual theorists and their contributions with analysis of the structures of assumption which underlie all behaviorist psychology, and with behaviorism's role as both creator and creature of larger American intellectual patterns, practices, and values. Furthermore, Mills provides a cogent critique of behaviorists' narrow attitudes toward human motivation, exploring how their positivism cripples their ability to account for the unobservable, inner factors that control behavior. **Control**'s blend of history and criticism advances our understanding not only of behaviorism, but also the development of social science and positivism in twentieth-century America. Behaviorism has been the dominant force in the creation of modern American psychology. However, the unquestioned and unquestioning nature of this dominance has obfuscated the complexity of behaviorism. Control serves as an antidote to this historical myopia, providing the most comprehensive history of behaviorism yet written. Mills successfully balances the investigation of individual theorists and their contributions with analysis of the structures of assumption which underlie all behaviorist psychology, and with behaviorism's role as both creator and creature of larger American intellectual patterns, practices, and values. Furthermore, Mills provides a cogent critique of behaviorists' narrow attitudes toward human motivation, exploring how their positivism cripples their ability to account for the unobservable, inner factors that control behavior. Control 's blend of history and criticism advances our understanding not only of behaviorism, but also the development of social science and positivism in twentieth-century America. Behaviorism was the dominant force in the creation of modern American psychology, and it continues to undergird the field to this day. Even so, a full understanding of the complexity of behaviorism has remained elusive. Its dominance within American psychology has, paradoxically, blocked our efforts to understand its role and its nature. Control serves as an antidote to this historical myopia, providing the most comprehensive history of behaviorism yet written. Mills successfully balances the investigation of individual theorists and their contributions with analyses of the structures of assumption that underlie all behaviorist psychology, and of behaviorism's role as both creator and creature of larger American intellectual patterns, practices, and values.