Baron A, Perone M, Galizio M
Department of Psychology, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Milwaukee, WI, USA.
Behav Anal. 1991 Fall;14(2):95-105. doi: 10.1007/BF03392557.
Critics have questioned the value of human operant conditioning experiments in the study of fundamental processes of reinforcement. Contradictory results from human and animal experiments have been attributed to the complex social and verbal history of the human subject. On these grounds, it has been contended that procedures that mimic those conventionally used with animal subjects represent a "poor analytic preparation" for the explication of reinforcement principles. In defending the use of conventional operant methods for human research, we make three points: (a) Historical variables play a critical role in research on processes of reinforcement, regardless of whether the subjects are humans or animals. (b) Techniques are available for detecting, analyzing, and counteracting such historical and extra-experimental influences; these include long-term observations, steady state designs, and, when variables are not amenable to direct control (e.g., age, gender, species), selection of subjects with common characteristics. (c) Other forms of evidence that might be used to validate conditioning principles-applied behavior analysis and behavioristic interpretation-have inherent limitations and cannot substitute for experimental analysis. We conclude that human operant conditioning experiments are essential for the analysis of the reinforcement process at the human level, but caution that their value depends on the extent to which the traditional methods of the experimental analysis of behavior are properly applied.
批评者们对人类操作性条件反射实验在强化基本过程研究中的价值提出了质疑。人类实验和动物实验得出的相互矛盾的结果，被归因于人类受试者复杂的社会和言语经历。基于这些理由，有人认为，模仿传统上用于动物受试者的程序，对于阐释强化原则而言是一种“糟糕的分析准备”。在为将传统操作性方法用于人类研究进行辩护时，我们提出三点：(a) 历史变量在强化过程研究中起着关键作用，无论受试者是人类还是动物。(b) 有技术可用于检测、分析和抵消此类历史及实验外影响；这些技术包括长期观察、稳态设计，以及当变量无法直接控制时（例如年龄、性别、物种），选择具有共同特征的受试者。(c) 可用于验证条件反射原则的其他形式的证据——应用行为分析和行为主义解释——存在固有局限性，无法替代实验分析。我们得出结论，人类操作性条件反射实验对于在人类层面分析强化过程至关重要，但要提醒的是，其价值取决于行为实验分析的传统方法得到恰当应用的程度。
