Affective behavior modification: a case for empirical investigation.

Recent developments in behavioral and cognitive-behavioral theory emphasize the relationships between behavior, cognition, and effect, and their importance in understanding and modifying human behavior. This paper reviews some current arguments concerning these relationships, and outlines some possible implications for the future development of behavioral theory and practice. Some recent trends towards models which invoke complex and unobservable mechanisms to explain affect may provide a temporarily convenient framework for talking about highly complex phenomena. But it should be remembered that these models are not empirically verifiable. A focus on variables which can be defined and measured objectively is essential for the scientific development of behavioral theories that have real explanatory value, and for behavior modification practice.